Jay McCarroll

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Project Runway contestant
Jay McCarroll

From left to right: Nora Caliguri, Jay McCarroll, and Kara Saun
Date of birth: 1974 (age 33–34)
Training: Philadelphia University
London College of Fashion
Resides: Living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Season: Season 1
Placed: Winner
Eliminating Challenge : Winner

Jay McCarroll (born 1974) is a fashion designer who gained fame after winning the debut season of the competitive reality show Project Runway in 2005.

Contents

[edit] Biography

McCarroll, an openly gay Lehman, Pennsylvania native, who also graduated from Lake-Lehman High School, is known for his fondness of cowboy hats, which he wears often. According to McCarroll, his first work as a designer was when his sisters were in color guard and he sewed a flag for them. Apart from designing clothes, McCarroll also likes baton twirling and color guard, having been involved with that activity since he was a child. He was a member of Field of View winter guard based out of West Chester, Pennsylvania. He designed flags and costumes for them, as well as other color guards in the Northeast[citation needed].

McCarroll, who lists Alexander McQueen as his favorite designer, dropped out of Philadelphia University without graduating in 1995. He moved to London to study at the London College of Fashion, and lived in London selling clothes in Camden Market after he graduated.[1] He sold clothing in Amsterdam before moving back to the U.S. and getting a job designing webpages for an adult video website. He started as a chat room monitor before rising to become the manager and film producer.[2]

Like the show's other participants, McCarroll was struggling to get recognition as a fashion designer before the show began airing on December 1, 2004, on the Bravo cable television network. As the winner of the show's first season, McCarroll was awarded $100,000, a mentorship from Banana Republic, and a spot in the prestigious 2005 New York Fashion Week event. However, Jay turned down the money and the mentorship[3], citing a contractual clause stipulating that the Project Runway production company would own a 10% stake of all his professional ventures in perpetuity. The company has since dropped this clause.[4]

“ Well, I need a lot of money, and $100,000 sounds great but I didn't take the money. I basically opted to pursue other financial avenues. ”
 
— Jay McCarroll

He also turned down the Banana Republic mentorship program after winning the competition, for he didn't want to immediately jump into designing a line. Jay was also quoted as saying the Banana Republic mentorship wasn't useful for someone like himself who already had experience in the business.

“ A week after I won the show, I met with two ladies from Banana Republic at the top of the Soho House, which is like, big time, And they were like, "Oh, we can give you numbers for factories to get your clothes produced." But that was totally not anything like what I needed. What I needed was someone to sit down with me and say, "Here’s how you start a fashion label." ”
 
— Jay McCarroll [5]

In April of 2008 with the help of long time friend Dave Larkins, Jay launched an online boutique and blog at www.jaymccarroll.com.

[edit] In the media

Since winning Project Runway, McCarroll has been interviewed by various media outlets, such as The Village Voice. He has had to spend part of his time living in New York, working on his new projects and trying to strengthen his position as a designer. He helped pick contestants for the second season of Project Runway, and filmed a one-hour documentary, Project Jay, which focused on his attempts to establish himself after his win. The special first aired February 22, 2006 on Bravo.

McCarroll returned to Fashion Week on September 15, debuting his new collection, Transport, with a show under the prestigious tents. "My new collection will take the fashion consumer to a higher plane of consciousness and encourage people to see fashion from a different perspective."

His collection was sponsored by the Humane Society of the United States, reflecting his anti-fur stance. He also mentioned that this was his first showing since the first-season finale of Project Runway. He changed the theme of his collection, which was initially inspired by the Pet Shop Boys' 1986 hit "West End Girls." The collection featured more of a futuristic theme and had both men's and women's looks.[6]

The entire process of his designing, building, showing and attempts at selling his Transport line was documented in a feature film called Eleven Minutes, will debut at the Philadelphia Film Festival on April 5, 2008.

It was reported on August 6, 2007, by The Daily 10 on E! that McCarroll was homeless and relying on the kindness of friends who are allowing him to stay at their apartments. “I haven’t been living anywhere for two years,” he says. “I sleep at other people’s houses. I sleep [at my studio] if I’m drunk.”[5]

However, the New York Post reported three days later that the aforementioned news of McCarroll's homelessness was actually a product of sarcasm and that, according to a friend, "Jay is not homeless. He lives in a beautiful building on the Upper West Side, and has recently been tapped to head up the re-launch of classic '80s sportswear brand Camp Beverly Hills, and also has his own line and show premiering on QVC this fall." In addition, McCarroll himself filmed a video clip poking fun at the 'news,' in which he lay on the streets with a sign saying, "Will Design for Food." [7]

[edit] References

  1. ^ JAY MCCARROLL Bio. jay mccarroll documentary (2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  2. ^ He's in and he's out (HTML). http://advocate.com+(March 01, 2005). Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  3. ^ Robin Givhan (Friday, December 9, 2005; Page C02). Baggage on the 'Runway' (HTML). pub. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  4. ^ The Near-Fame Experience. New York Magazine (Aug 6, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
  5. ^ a b Jennifer Senior (2007). The Near-Fame Experience (HTML). nymag. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  6. ^ Transport (HTML). olympusfashionweek (September 15 of 2006). Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  7. ^ 'Homeless' Hoax (HTML). New York Post (August 9 of 2007). Retrieved on 2008-01-01.

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Creation		 Project Runway
Season 1		 Succeeded by
Season 2
Preceded by
First season		 Project Runway winner
Jay McCarroll		 Succeeded by
Chloe Dao
v • d • e
Project Runway
Seasons
1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5
Personnel
Judges
Winners
Jay McCarroll · Chloe Dao · Jeffrey Sebelia · Christian Siriano
Other alumni
International Versions
Spin-offs
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