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RHOP's Gizelle Bryant & Karen Huger Dish on Housewives-Themed Project Runway

Project Runway is getting real! Tonight's all-new episode is Real Housewives-themed, and E! News got the inside scoop on what's to come from RHOP's Gizelle Bryant and Karen Huger.

By Allison Crist Jan 06, 2022 4:00 PMTags
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Tonight, the Real Housewives are taking over Project Runway

Hitting the catwalk in what may be the crossover of the century are The Real Housewives of Orange County's Shannon Beador and Gina Kirschenheiter; The Real Housewives of Potomac's Gizelle Bryant, Karen Huger and Wendy Osefo; and The Real Housewives of New York's Luann de Lesseps and Leah McSweeney.

Ahead of the landmark event, E! News got an inside look at what's to come from the Housewives themselves—including everything the cameras didn't catch.

Take, for example, Gizelle hitting it off with the ladies of the O.C.

"Me, Shannon and Gina went and had drinks afterward and had a ball," she told E! News. "It's always refreshing at the end of the day when you can just, like, let your hair down and just hang out with a group of girls that know exactly what it is that you go through when you are doing your job." 

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Karen, meanwhile, found herself connecting with the RHONY cast.

"I met Luann in passing so this gave us a bit more time together which is always nice," Karen told E! News, also giving a shoutout to the "super fun" Shannon. "I was so happy to finally meet Leah in person. Leah was a true ball of fun, creative bubbly energy! She and I must make plans...we would have a ladies lunch to remember."

Greg Endries/Bravo

The Housewives will be both the models and the clients on tonight's special episode, as they'll each be paired with a designer whose goal is to make them the ultimate reunion show look. 

Expect to see Karen rocking something styled "with class, elegance and a sprinkle of sexy," and for Gizelle, a look that's both glamorous and practical.

"You want it to pop," Gizelle explained. "You want it to be comfortable because, you know, it's a long day and you're sitting there forever. I always want for me to be able to look good sitting down because that's what the viewers see. Of course, we take pictures standing up, but the majority of the time, you need to look great sitting down."

Creating the "wow" factor can be difficult, though, and while there's no telling whether or not every designer will be up to the task, both Gizelle and Karen said there was one Housewife that made the assignment a bit more challenging.

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"And you guys will see that. I don't want to spoil it!" Gizelle added with a laugh, ultimately admitting, "She came from my show. And her name is Wendy!" 

The Grand Dame was a bit more subtle, telling E! News, "We are all divas with high expectations. However, when the international housewife from Potomac met the her self-proclaimed international designer, tears were flying. Enough said!"

It wouldn't be a true Housewives event without a little bit of drama, right?  

The same could be said for Andy Cohen, but thankfully, the Watch What Happens Live host will also be in attendance as a guest judge.  

"Andy was super messy—which made it so FUN!" Karen said. 

Added Gizelle, "Andy's hilarious. I totally agreed with everything he said, but, you know, Andy comes with an air of humor and shadiness and you know I love that."

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All in all, both Gizelle and Karen described their Project Runway experience as "a dream come true."

"Like, when I come out in my reveal and I'm walking the runway—what?!" Gizelle said. "I was totally feeing Naomi Campbell. Like, I was supermodel extraordinaire. I loved every second of it."

She continued, "A lot of times when Housewives get together, you never know what's going to happen, you never know what to expect. But like just the Housewives part of it, we had so much fun together."

Tune in to the Housewives-themed Project Runway tonight at 9 p.m. on Bravo. You can also catch the episode on Peacock beginning tomorrow.

(E!, Bravo and Peacock are all part of the NBCUniversal family.)

Peacock is live now! Check out NBCU's streaming service here.