SOHO — A dozen intrepid shoppers determined to snatch up deals before anyone else could get their manicured paws on them flocked to the first sample sale of popular "Project Runway" winner Christian Siriano on Friday morning.
Tops and dresses with Siriano's signature flounces on sleeves and collars were deeply discounted at $40 and $65, respectively.
The Maryland-born New York transplant Siriano, 25, was famous for his use of the word "fierce" on the 2007 fourth season of the hit TV show. When he liked a design, he often deemed it "fierce." If he was not a fan, he called it a "hot tranny mess," to the chagrin of one feminist magazine. He later apologized to LGBT anti-defamation organization GLAAD for his use of the word "tranny."
Siriano's February show at New York Fashion Week received positive reviews, including from The New York Post, which called the collection Siriano's "fiercest effort yet." He launched his first line at Fashion Week in September 2008.
The pint-sized designer became a big enough a household name to be parodied on "Saturday Night Live" by comedian Amy Poehler, who he said did a great job.
"I thought it was SO FUNNY," he wrote in an email to People. "Amy Poehler looked exactly like me which is kinda scary, but fabulous."
Kelsey Breining, a PR account executive for Siriano, said his fans are drawn to his youth and sense of fun.
"They just love him," Breining said.
For those uninitiated in the world of sample sales, studio manager Jenny Chen explained that diehard shoppers rush in first thing in the morning, grab what strikes them, strip down in the communal dressing room, make their purchases and hurry off to work.
"There are people who follow only specific designers, and there are people who love a good deal and come to every single sale," she said.
The sale, which Siriano shares with designers Lyn Devon and Karolina Zmarlak, runs at 463 Broome St. until 6 p.m. Friday.
