SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers fromThursdays finale ofProject Runway.
Read at your own risk!
Project Runwayseason 14 came to a close on Thursday with four very distinct New York Fashion Week collections.
Credit: Lifetime
(For the full episode rundown,read our recap.)
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: First of all, congratulations!
When they announced you as winner, what was your initial reaction?
Okay, Ashley, dont freak out.
I was just like, Are you guys kidding me right now?
And now that youve had a little time for it to sink in?
It feels amazing to be able to share it with the world.
Going into the show, who did you feel was your biggest competition?
At that point I thought I needed to keep myself going and have a go at find that confidence.
There certainly is a confidence in your final collection!
How did it feel to be the first designer to show a plus-size collection forProject Runway?
Its so amazing to be able to hold that title.
Did you feel any additional pressure because you were thefirstto do a plus-size collection for the show?
You know how some people say they specialize in something, but they dont do it very well?
In the makeover challenge, I really didnt show that, and I needed to make up for it.
I think the judges would agree that you did make up for that.
You wanted them on all the models; what made you decide to use less of them?
Heidi really loved the headpieces, and she wanted them on every model.
But Zac and Nina asked what was more important was it the clothing or the headpieces?
I knew the clothing was the main thing.
Zac had a great idea of maybe not doing the first couple, but the remaining have headpieces.
I thought that was a perfect idea.
Lets talk about your other final collection decision: pastels.
You were so good with prints throughout the season, what made you go with pastels?
I always love pastels.
In the beginning of creating this collection, I was buying my fabrics and I couldnt see colors …
I couldnt see what colors I wanted to use, so I was just buying white material.
Finding my inspiration for this collection and then knowing that I wanted to use pastels just worked out.
Speaking of things working out, what was your favorite look of the season?
My favorite look would have to be thePolaroid challengeand thefirst challenge, which I won.
[Laughs]
And your least favorite?
It would be themakeover challengeor theHallmark challenge.
What did you learn fromProject Runway?
I learned a lot about myself from being there.
I didnt learn a lotwatchingmyself on TV, [but I did] going through this whole experience.
So whats next for you?
Were in the beginning stages of negotiating deals with big-name companies right now.
Its only up from here.
