July 08--Chicagoan Laurie Underwood is one of 16 fashion designers vying to create the best outfits on the upcoming season of "Project Runway," the Lifetime network announced Tuesday.
Underwood, 29, is the designer at Chicago-based Wanda Grace. On the label's page, Underwood said she likes "dresses, pencil skirts, color, and ladylike details." She said she knew at age 9 that she wanted to be a designer.
Underwood, a Detroit native, said she's a 2006 graduate of the Illinois Institute of Art -- Chicago, where she realized she had design potential.
"During my senior thesis class in design school, I could sense that it was unexpected that I would complete my work successfully by both the students and the instructor. I'm not even sure what I thought at the time," Underwood said on her designer page on mylifetime.com. "I decided to just focus on the process of designing my collection, rather than worry about how it would turn out."
On "Project Runway," designers create an outfit each week that's judged by Heidi Klum, Marie Claire creative director Nina Garcia, designer Zac Posen and a celebrity guest. Celebrity judges this season include Bella Thorne, Tracee Ellis Ross and Paula Patton, according to Lifetime. Mentor Tim Gunn also will return.
The show winner receives $100,000 to launch a design business. Season 14 of "Project Runway" premieres Aug. 6 on Lifetime at 8 p.m.
