Top 20 Ultimate Project Runway Challenges

#20: Wickedly Avant-Garde

“Something Wicked”

The road to the Season 21 finale took a spellbinding detour through Oz. With the finale approaching, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo introduced a two-day assignment inspired by “Wicked: For Good,” while Oscar-winning costume designer Paul Tazewell joined the contestants as a mentor. Instead of demanding literal character recreations, the open brief encouraged bold, conceptual fashion and gave each designer room to filter the film through a personal aesthetic. The pressure was deliciously brutal: two contestants would be eliminated, and Tyra Banks joined the judging panel. Ethan Mundt ultimately won with a dazzling green creation, but the entire runway showed how effectively a movie tie-in can ignite genuine imagination instead of producing glorified costumes.

#19: The HP & Intel Challenge

“The Art of Fashion”

One museum trip sent six designers into one of Season 11’s most layered assignments. After exploring the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum for inspiration, three newly formed pairs had to create an original textile, then use it across two coordinated garments: an avant-garde statement and a ready-to-wear companion. That combination tested collaboration, print development, cohesion, and the ability to translate a grand concept into something commercially plausible. Stanley Hudson and Michelle Lesniak Franklin excelled with a dark, spiraling-woman motif. Michelle delivered the experimental piece, while Stanley’s ready-to-wear dress earned the individual win and a $10,000 prize. The challenge made the designers operate like miniature fashion houses, turning museum inspiration into a complete visual language rather than a single striking outfit.

#18: The Makeover Challenge

“Makeover”

The Season 2 competitors traded dress forms for one another, making every fitting personal and every critique painfully public. Randomly assigned partners had to reinvent a fellow designer from head to toe, then send that very client down the runway in the finished look. Clothing, hair, makeup, and styling all mattered, while Daniel Vosovic’s immunity meant the remaining four were effectively battling for three places in the final four. Chloe Dao conquered unfamiliar menswear with a dashing ensemble for Nick Verreos, earning the win. Nick’s suit for Daniel V., however, suffered from fit and construction problems and sent him home. By turning competitors into clients and models, the assignment tested technical range, taste, communication, and friendship under maximum pressure.

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#17: A Single Bolt of Fabric

“Seeing Red”

A brutally simple premise stripped the returning designers of their usual safety nets in Season 20. Each received fabric from the same scarlet bolt and just one day to create a runway look that unmistakably reflected their identity. With color and material neutralized, silhouette, construction, texture, and styling had nowhere to hide, producing everything from basket-weave outerwear and sculptural ruffles to sleek draping. Brittany Allen stood out with athletic separates with contrast topstitching, earning the win and $10,000. Hester Sunshine’s ambitious ensemble was criticized for uneven finishing, leading to their elimination. Equal ingredients rarely create equal results, and this clever experiment made creative identity the only real advantage.

#16: The Heidi Klum Sleepwear Challenge

“We’re Sleeping Wear?”

Before anyone could reach for a sewing machine, the Season 16 designers spent the night atop the Empire State Building in matching pajamas. Their assignment was to create fashionable sleepwear for Heidi Klum Intimates, using textiles created by hand and drawing inspiration from the landmark. That deceptively cozy brief demanded comfort, commercial appeal, original surface design, and enough polish to satisfy Heidi as judge and client. Michael Brambila won with a dusty-rose bias-cut chemise featuring Art Deco motifs. Deyonte Weather’s loose teal look read as “frumpy” to his model and impractical to the panel, sending him home. Apparently, pajamas can be ruthless.

#15: The Unconventional Challenge

“My Pet Project”

The Season 9 workroom became a craft-store fever dream before a single seam was sewn. At Petland Discounts, the designers received $300 and just 30 minutes to gather everything needed for an unconventional runway look. Tim Gunn discouraged fabric-like shortcuts and allowed muslin only as infrastructure, forcing everyone to turn store stock into convincing fashion. Olivier Green fashioned a dog-bed lining into a top and paired it with an ombré hamster-bedding and rabbit-bedding skirt, earning the win and immunity. Anthony Ryan Auld’s mini dress made of seeds nearly stole the prize, while Joshua Christensen’s safer interpretation failed to impress and sent him home. The assignment delivered exactly what this series does best: ingenious transformations and glorious chaos.

#14: The Burlap Challenge

“The Fashion Farm”

Models in potato sacks set up a Season 7 assignment that sounded like a practical joke. After arriving at a farm, the designers learned that their models would choose their designers and serve as clients for party looks intended for an industry event. They had one day to transform the coarse material using supplies selected from a farm stand. The results proved remarkably varied: Anna Marie Lynett used potato stamps, Amy Sarabi softened the texture through panels with darkened edges, and Jay Nicolas Sario produced a sleek, fluttering cocktail dress that won the challenge. Later, “Hard Wear” sent the cast to a hardware store to fetch materials for an unconventional outfit and matching accessory. Humble supplies rarely looked this runway-ready.

#13: The Day-to-Blacklight Transformation Challenge

“Blacklight or Daylight?”

One flip of a switch turned the Season 15 runway into a glowing laboratory. Inspired by Transitions lenses, the designers had one day and $200 to create a look that worked in ordinary illumination, then transformed under ultraviolet lamps. A dedicated testing room and reactive supplies made fabric choice as important as construction. Erin Robertson mastered both versions with a pale-blue organza dress whose exquisite beading, piping, and bra details emerged under UV, earning her a “Marie Claire” spread. Cornelius Ortiz’s emoji reveal was another standout, while Kimber Richardson’s floral mini sent her home. More than a novelty, the assignment rewarded designers who built surprise directly into the garment.

#12: The Couture Gown Challenge

“Couture du Jour”

Paris became more than a glamorous backdrop when the Season 3 designers were handed one of the show’s most technically punishing briefs. Working at Parsons Paris, they had two days and €300 to create hand-finished evening gowns before presenting them aboard a Seine riverboat to Catherine Malandrino. Back in New York, the same garments faced Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia, Michael Kors, and guest judge Richard Tyler, so the designs had to survive travel, refitting, and two separate presentations. Jeffrey Sebelia’s audacious yellow plaid gown, complete with streaming ribbons, secured his second consecutive win. Vincent Libretti’s ill-fitting creation sent him home. The assignment transformed a dream trip into a ruthless test of technique, stamina, and spectacle.

#11: The Hershey’s Store Challenge

“Eye Candy”

A five-minute shopping frenzy at Hershey’s Times Square store unleashed one of the show’s sweetest displays of ingenuity. With no budget and only one day, the Season 4 designers transformed store merchandise and actual sweets into runway garments, making material manipulation the real test. The result was a rare runway packed with texture, color, and genuine fashion. Jillian Lewis took the biggest edible risk with a Twizzlers-covered bodice, while Rami Kashou won with a polished look built from Twizzlers plastic and York Peppermint Pattie paper. Elisa Jimenez’s design sent her home. The season later applied similar makeover magic to denim in “Even Designers Get the Blues,” won by Ricky Lizalde.

#10: 3D Bridges

“The Runway’s In 3D!”

In New York, there is no shortage of inspiration for designers to draw from and incorporate in their design. This threefold challenge asked them to do exactly that and draw from the bridges of New York when creating their pieces. Added on to that, the outfit had to be new and experimental - avant garde, you might say - and some form of 3D printed materials had to be incorporated in the design. While the designs were over the top and stunning, the 3D printed aspect was minimally used to add a flare and texture to the designs.

#9: Flower Party

“Flower Power”

While cotton is originally from a plant, most designers stay away from using actual flowers as more than accessories next to their designs. This challenge had designers creating the full dress out of flowers and plants directly from the New York Flower District. As with other unconventional challenges, actual use of fabric was a no-no, but the designers could attach the flowers to a muslin base if needed. A portion of this challenge was repeated in season 11, but we think the best results came from season two. In addition, earlier that same season, “All Dolled Up” challenged the designers to create life-sized looks for the My Scene Barbie collection, with Nick Verreos’ winning design reproduced for the doll.

#8: Lights

“When I Get My Dress in Lights”

The perfect dress with just the right smile can be said to light up the red carpet, and leave it up to this episode of “All Stars” to take that to a whole new literal level. Designers were tasked with creating an avant garde look that incorporated a lighting element and were given access to a range of supplies, including neon glow tape and LED lights. Designers used the materials to create their own textiles and add accents. The smartest paired them with white fabric that stood out for a dramatic punch on the dark runway.

#7: Sarah Jessica Parker

“I Started Crying / Money Changes Everything”

Thanks to “Sex and the City”, Sarah Jessica Parker is a style icon known for her exquisite taste in fashion, especially shoes. But that’s not what we got when she was invited on as a guest judge. Instead, designers were asked to be inspired by her own low-priced clothing line, Bitten, and create a two-piece outfit using $15 worth of materials, so that it could be sold at a reasonable price to consumers. The winner, of course, would have their designs sold at an actual store in the same month the episode was aired. Who says you can’t be fashionable and thrifty? And where’s the follow-up episode for “And Just Like That?”

#6: Newspapers

“Fashion Headliners”

What’s black, white and read all over? The designs from this week’s episode! Outfits for this challenge were to be made of newspaper - though muslin could be used as long as it wasn’t seen for infrastructure. As in many other challenges and many other seasons, several of the designers are very adept at taking something that isn’t fabric and making it look better than most traditional ones we could buy at the store. Irina Shabayeva won with a belted trench coat whose textured collar and cuffs convincingly mimicked fur, while Carol Hannah Whitfield’s dramatic red gown and Logan Neitzel’s sleek sheath showed how varied the results could be.

#5: Spare Parts

“Fashion That Drives You”

Automobiles are generally how models get to the runway, not what they wear on it. For this season five challenge, the designers were asked to make their outfits out of unconventional materials one would be more likely to find in an auto repair shop - or even in a car factory. Car seat covers for fabric, metal accents, woven seat belts; who knew a Saturn hybrid could yield so many pieces of fashion before the rest headed to the junkyard? This made us look at our own cars in a whole new light!

#4: Design Your Own Fabric

“There’s a Pattern Here”

We admit, this challenge is a staple on almost every season of the show, but that doesn’t stop it from being impressive or memorable. Specifically, we’re talking season 8, where Mondo’s pattern came with a shocking personal confession on his end. Not only was his pattern of black pluses against a purple and yellow background striking as a pair of pants, but also when paired with the personal meaning behind the fabric, it’s really hard to top this fashionable design. Mondo won the challenge, becoming the show’s first designer to claim three consecutive victories.

#3: The Grocery Store

“Innovation”

Talk about starting this show off right; the best runway challenge to date was arguably their first. In this premiere episode, the designers were taken to a grocery store - instead of a fabric shop - and asked to create fashionable outfits out of anything they could find among the shelves. And while this challenge was repeated in season five, we still have to commend the creativity from the first episode. Austin Scarlett best embodied that ingenuity, winning with a sculptural corn-husk dress. Years later, Heidi Klum cited the design as proof that restrictive materials and parameters could still produce something genuinely original.

#2: Drag Queens

“Good Queen Fun”

Drag queens and “Project Runway” were basically a match made in heaven and we’re actually surprised it took five seasons to get there. However, when it finally did happen, they had a rather fitting judge for the panel: the one and only RuPaul Charles. Rather than working with their normal models, the designers were tasked with dressing Drag Queen clients who knew exactly how to wear their feminine outfits with the right amount of flair. In case you missed it, one of the queens featured was Acid Betty who would later go on to appear in season 8 of RuPaul's Drag Race.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Art to Avant-Garde, “The Art of the Matter”

Pairing Designers with Art Students Tested Interpretation and Imagination in Season 9

Heidi’s Baby Challenge, “It’s Fashion Baby”

Kidswear, Mom Looks, and Baby Dolls Made for Delightful Entertainment in Season 10

Carats & Couture, “Million Dollar Runway”

Over $30 Million in Jewels Inspired Some Serious Runway Glamour in Season 12

#1: The Rainway

“The Rainway”

We know, we know, it’s yet another avant garde challenge, but trust us, you’ll want to hear about this one. This time, instead of a runway, the models and designs walked down a rainway. In other words, the runway will have full-on water effects and the clothes must be waterproof. So we we’re in for a show of rain slickers and rubber boots, right? Not even close! Instead we were greeted with an array of unique designs and shapes and one very memorable color-changing dress we all wish was in our closets.

Which “Project Runway” assignment would you volunteer to tackle—and which one would have you fleeing the workroom? Stitch your thoughts together in the comments!