Stephanie, a slender, petite, 31 year old pediatrician, is a fashion mess. She looks and dresses like a child. She apparently has no social life, and has dedicated both her working and free time to helping sick children. While this is certainly admirable, it does not make for a balanced life, and Tim Gunn and former model Veronica Webb determine to help her.

Tim and Veronica give her 20 minutes to get ready for their first meeting, and she picks a Rainbow-Brite like number that is way too colorful. The photos of Stephanie’s fashion choices from the prior week demonstrated her need for professional help, stat!

Tim and Veronica tackle her closet, and find a mountain of inappropriate attire. The object of the game is to divide all of the clothes into four categories: Keepers, Giveaways, Throwaways, and Mend. Most of the clothes look like they were purchased at the Salvation Army. These clothes might look good on a cute, waifish, 20 year old co-ed, but they do not flatter a 31 year old professional woman. Ultimately only two items made it to the keeper rack, and even that was stretching it.

Next up, the exploration of the doctor’s underwear drawer—always the most traumatic part of this show. People, as a rule, do not like their unmentionables trotted out for millions to see. Stephanie is not as mortified as most subjects, and takes it in stride. Veronica takes her to a fancy underwear store, and the majority of time is spent bra shopping. Interestingly, women on this show don’t want to show the underwear while they are in their drawers, but seem to have no difficulty walking around on camera in their new underwear. Go figure.

Tim enters her measurements into a 3D imaging computer, and teaches her about how clothes best fit her body type. He then sends her off to go shopping for the “10 Essential Items” that every woman must have in her closet. He also gives her the first gift (there are always two major gifts)–a new pair of glasses that look proper on her face. The glasses she had been wearing looked like something an 80 year old woman would have worn in the 1950s.

Next up, shopping at Macy’s with a friend. Veronica and Tim show up to see how she is doing and pass judgment on her choices. Being petite, Stephanie has great difficulty finding anything that fits her diminutive, thin frame. They eventually find some good candidates, and move on to a fancy dress shop. Project Runway resident-shrew Nina Garcia shows up and puts in her 2 cents. Stephanie wants to look good at an ex-boyfriend’s wedding and picks an appropriate gown. (She had originally planned to wear an old bridesmaid dress that was as ugly as most bridesmaids dresses tend to be).

The second to last segment is hair and makeup. Stephanie looks far more age appropriate after her hair is shortened and her makeup is modified. The second gift, a necklace, is given to her prior to her runway show for Tim, Veronica, and (unbeknown to her) family and friends. She looks like an adult and is sophisticated. Whether any of this will stick, of course, is another story. For the time being, however, “Doogie” has gone on hiatus.

Want more? sirlinksalot.net — Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style