I fucking loved this look. Nini is the girl this season who makes conceptual stuff I really like, it seems. I hope she goes far with that big brain of hers.
lol yeah... it feels like people will attribute anything she does to her engineering degree. Yes girls she's smart but this is literally just a mood board...
I can see it if she created the 3d layout herself. It's still a really cool look into her process though!
It’s a pretty detailed brief/high level plan, not just a mood board. Yes reference images, but There’s description of concept, analysis of potential risks/challenges and possible mitigation strategies, sourcing and early budgeting of important elements, potential construction approaches…
I would suggest this level of concise, clear articulation of early plans is exactly something she would have to employ in engineering work. I work in a field where I get creative pitches all the time, and I rarely see this level of succinct detail in an early concept plan!
I loved that concept but I think making the outfit in a pink fabric was a bad idea. The Robert Wun’s look that she used as an inspiration works because of the contrast the red of the brain creats with the white of the outfit. With Nini’s look, you could barely differentiate the brain from the rest of the hat and I think it did a disservice to the overall runway. Even more different shades of pink would have been better imo.
Other than that, the conception and the construction are top notch.
I was just thinking, this seems so similar to how my brain works and also goes off on random anxieties, caveats, "what if"s and "don't do this" reminders. Especially coming out with the anxieties before the actual content (I call these "disclaimers" in my mind)
It looks organised, but I've been finding that "being organised" is kinda just a way to work with the ADHD (because if you're not organised, you will forget). I can sometimes appear super organised to others but it's only because I'm hyper aware that if I don't write something down immediately, it's not coming back to me for anywhere between 2 hours to 2 years
When she came out and her favorite bodypart was brain I was a little "girl... really?" but the look and effort that went into it are nothing less than admirable. Work.
The category was to show off your favourite body part and saying her "brain" is her favourite part is such an elitist sounding thing to say, like everyone else is so vein they like their eyes or legs but she's an intellectual so her favourite is her brain.
She really just came in and within two episodes said "I'm an engineer and I'm smarter than everyone here". So cringe.
Edit: Also the dress itself was really nothing that impressive.
Edit2: Ok the downvotes are hilarious though as if you can't understand that it could be interpreted that way. Every other queen did a physical appearance look and she (because her brain is simply better than everyone elses) thought outside the box and decided to miss the point of the category entirely.
It seems to me that Nini is most thankful that her brain works the way it does to enable her to be both practically intellectual at her job as well as creative for her drag. And good for her! She is obviously fine with putting in the work, and I enjoyed that her interpretation.
It’s not RuPaul’s Best Brain’s Race, but we’ve had PLENTY of queens who are dumb as a box of rocks and they get celebrated. Why not cheer on the nerds too?
Well quite simply because a queen calling herself stupid (Katya for example) can't be seen as elitist or superior to others while saying you are intelligent does not have the same effect.
It's like if a queen is overweight and they are saying they LOVE their curves and don't care if people tell them to lose weight compared to a skinny queen who brags about being so beautiful because of how thin they are. Same goes for someone with money problems compared to a millionaire complaining about taxes.
The side of the coin that's 'superior' (in this case their IQ being superior) is the only side that will ever come across as elitist.
I do get your point, but to me it didn’t come across as Nini wanting to flaunt her intelligence or being cerebral. Your description reminds me of Serena “I read books” Chacha and her hood reference, which is indeed not ok. For queens like Nini (and Sasha Velour for instance), their conceptual approach to looks IS what positively sets them apart from other queens. And since it’s done well, why not be happy with the fact your brain comes up with that kind of stuff?
A lot of people feel insecure/threatened by overt displays of intelligence (whether or not the person doing the displaying is actually behaving in an elitist manner). No point in reasoning with those people who would prefer if everyone operated at their own level. Anti-intellectualism is en vogue (😉), after all.
Meanwhile, as someone who hates how much STEM is glorified at the expense of the arts, this just solidified Nini Coco as my personal top choice for the crown. These notes are really self-aware and reveal so much about her creative process!
I don't think it was done that well though tbh. It's beautiful but the way it's designed it looks like they are scales almost on the gloves so it's not really for my taste.
The thing is that queens like Sasha or Yvie or Raja or Plastique who come up with looks no one else would even think of just do the looks.. they don't do a look that literally says "I think outside the box" you just see that they do.
This look from Nini was actually her saying "I think outside the box because of my big brain" but the rest of the outfit was just an ok looking outfit with no reference to the brain? I feel like Sasha Velour doing the same would have had veins incorporated into the outfit rather than just make a hat with the brain cut out.
We like an intelligent queens who tells you that without having to actually say "I'm really smart".
Girl I love my brain too because I crack myself up all the time and am endlessly curious, not because I see myself as more intelligent than others. Sometimes it’s not that deep
Well that's great, we only get one so loving how yours operates is excellent but her doing this look for this category is like being asked in a job interview "what's your biggest weakness" and answering "I'm too much of a perfectionist".
If the category was simply "what's your favourite thing about yourself?" then her idea would of been cool but when it was "Back, Sack, Pussy and Crack, your favourite body part" it doesn't read that way (to me).
She actually mentions that as one of her concerns haha. From how I see it, it’s not her bragging about being “smarter” than anyone else. I think she’s just acknowledging that her brain is her strongest asset and finding power in that. It’s less about showing she’s better than anyone and more about recognizing that the quality of her drag comes from how her mind works. ☺️
They would've known that if they read the notes 😂 I think a lot of their concerns were addressed by Nini already, tbh. You can tell when someone's trying to insinuate they think they're better than everyone else because they're smart, and I'm not getting that vibe from this queen.
That's kind of funny that she herself was worried it would read that way but when I read it that way I get downvoted into oblivion lol.
She already has a win so she's not going anywhere anytime soon so I hope that she seems more relatable moving forward and then I can forgive this choice. It might have been so different if this runway category was episode 10 instead when we'll know her better but doing it on episode 2 when we barely know the queens it's not unreasonable to read it how I did.
Your critique would make sense if they made these in the workroom and she compared herself with the others, but she made this at home, not knowing what anyone else was gonna do
Stupid people tend to get threatened when a confident smart person is a little bit cocky about their smartness lol. Just something to look into. Also, nothing cringe about knowing your strengths and hammer it in in order to create a brand for yourself.
Ahhh yes so I comment about her look being viewed as "I'm smarter than everyone" which she herself said was a concern for her and your response is to do the exact same thing and call me stupid.
I'm sure I'm the one who needs to look into it.
I put the second "I'm" in bold and italics just in case you're.... stupid.
As someone who designs and sews for living this makes me hard fr.
Omg she's coming for Ms. Velour's cerebral gig. If they get too cerebral in the same room they'd probably just create a black hole
Add in suzie toot and the universe itself would fold in in itself
I wonder if Lexi would have it out for Nini also! 😆 🤣
Ugh, love her brain
Love Brain.
People all over the world..join hands..start a love brain, a love brain
We love a cerebral queen. First we got suzie toot, now Nini?
S e r e b r a l. Cerebral
I’m calling right now. She’s gonna join the 4-wins club
Yup, top 5 at least, right up there with Jane.
100% she’s there with Jane Don’t for sure
Nini Jane and Dita as a top 3 from what I can see right now
Vita?
Myki!
I fucking loved this look. Nini is the girl this season who makes conceptual stuff I really like, it seems. I hope she goes far with that big brain of hers.
she’s putting the engineering degree to work 😭, she better werk
This has nothing to do with engineering though
lol yeah... it feels like people will attribute anything she does to her engineering degree. Yes girls she's smart but this is literally just a mood board...
I can see it if she created the 3d layout herself. It's still a really cool look into her process though!
It’s a pretty detailed brief/high level plan, not just a mood board. Yes reference images, but There’s description of concept, analysis of potential risks/challenges and possible mitigation strategies, sourcing and early budgeting of important elements, potential construction approaches…
I would suggest this level of concise, clear articulation of early plans is exactly something she would have to employ in engineering work. I work in a field where I get creative pitches all the time, and I rarely see this level of succinct detail in an early concept plan!
Nini is great 🌈
You mean those images of brains on the top right? Those are stock images lol
I mean the hat itself. I believe she said she 3d printed it you can't just use a 2d image for that
it does in that that's why her brain is her favorite part of her
The level of Cerebralism… far too much.
This girl is organiiiiiiized.
This is more details and research than my graduation thesis wtf 😭 Nini you cerebral bitch
werk nuclear photochemical engineer!
I love her
i love seeing her process!! so remarkable
I gasped at those gloves
I was so unhappy, that she didn't get to listen to their compliments about the look, cause it was amazing.
it’s very folioboard tingz love her she’s a girl after my own heart
She's the brains of the operation
She did in fact go to school for math.
I absolutely adore this. She’s great. 😊
Love a prepared bitch
I live
Wow this one really IS playing 4 dimensional chess
The brim can be removed. Wonder why she didnt do it on the stage
It says that’s for the lip sync in case she had to
she said
https://i.redd.it/twbgeh7e0pcg1.gif
🤓
I'm so I'm love with that guy 😡😡😡 so handsome and smart and good at drag 😡😡😡
I loved that concept but I think making the outfit in a pink fabric was a bad idea. The Robert Wun’s look that she used as an inspiration works because of the contrast the red of the brain creats with the white of the outfit. With Nini’s look, you could barely differentiate the brain from the rest of the hat and I think it did a disservice to the overall runway. Even more different shades of pink would have been better imo.
Other than that, the conception and the construction are top notch.
This look was so fucking cool. Love seeing how it came together.
Also cracking up at the little inspo pic of Dr. Finkelstein down near the lower left.
I legit thought her favourite body part is her anus until I saw the hat🥲
Those gloves are beautiful like glamorous mushrooms.
I guess we know what we need to do next... eliminate Nini Coco
Idk if she’s already said she has ADHD but I’m calling it
I was just thinking, this seems so similar to how my brain works and also goes off on random anxieties, caveats, "what if"s and "don't do this" reminders. Especially coming out with the anxieties before the actual content (I call these "disclaimers" in my mind)
It looks organised, but I've been finding that "being organised" is kinda just a way to work with the ADHD (because if you're not organised, you will forget). I can sometimes appear super organised to others but it's only because I'm hyper aware that if I don't write something down immediately, it's not coming back to me for anywhere between 2 hours to 2 years
I have ADHD and I can see it
She looked like a slay zombie from the last of us and i lived
OHhhhhHH the dress is the BRAIN STEM and the gloves are NERVES 🧠
i was confused / “meh” about the silhouette til just now
The Denver queens always do well or win - so I am calling Nini! Im lucky enough to live in Denver and see these awesome shows every week!
Girl really put her engineering skills to work!
When she came out and her favorite bodypart was brain I was a little "girl... really?" but the look and effort that went into it are nothing less than admirable. Work.
I wanted to like the look but I feel like it missed the mark and by a lot. The brain could have been a more obvious focal point
Her drag can go bigger for sure.
Yet the dress itself was not great. Concept yes, execution no
I really hated her idea for this runway.
The category was to show off your favourite body part and saying her "brain" is her favourite part is such an elitist sounding thing to say, like everyone else is so vein they like their eyes or legs but she's an intellectual so her favourite is her brain.
She really just came in and within two episodes said "I'm an engineer and I'm smarter than everyone here". So cringe.
Edit: Also the dress itself was really nothing that impressive.
Edit2: Ok the downvotes are hilarious though as if you can't understand that it could be interpreted that way. Every other queen did a physical appearance look and she (because her brain is simply better than everyone elses) thought outside the box and decided to miss the point of the category entirely.
It seems to me that Nini is most thankful that her brain works the way it does to enable her to be both practically intellectual at her job as well as creative for her drag. And good for her! She is obviously fine with putting in the work, and I enjoyed that her interpretation.
It’s not RuPaul’s Best Brain’s Race, but we’ve had PLENTY of queens who are dumb as a box of rocks and they get celebrated. Why not cheer on the nerds too?
Well quite simply because a queen calling herself stupid (Katya for example) can't be seen as elitist or superior to others while saying you are intelligent does not have the same effect.
It's like if a queen is overweight and they are saying they LOVE their curves and don't care if people tell them to lose weight compared to a skinny queen who brags about being so beautiful because of how thin they are. Same goes for someone with money problems compared to a millionaire complaining about taxes.
The side of the coin that's 'superior' (in this case their IQ being superior) is the only side that will ever come across as elitist.
I do get your point, but to me it didn’t come across as Nini wanting to flaunt her intelligence or being cerebral. Your description reminds me of Serena “I read books” Chacha and her hood reference, which is indeed not ok. For queens like Nini (and Sasha Velour for instance), their conceptual approach to looks IS what positively sets them apart from other queens. And since it’s done well, why not be happy with the fact your brain comes up with that kind of stuff?
Edit: corrected 2 confusing typos
A lot of people feel insecure/threatened by overt displays of intelligence (whether or not the person doing the displaying is actually behaving in an elitist manner). No point in reasoning with those people who would prefer if everyone operated at their own level. Anti-intellectualism is en vogue (😉), after all.
Meanwhile, as someone who hates how much STEM is glorified at the expense of the arts, this just solidified Nini Coco as my personal top choice for the crown. These notes are really self-aware and reveal so much about her creative process!
I don't think it was done that well though tbh. It's beautiful but the way it's designed it looks like they are scales almost on the gloves so it's not really for my taste.
The thing is that queens like Sasha or Yvie or Raja or Plastique who come up with looks no one else would even think of just do the looks.. they don't do a look that literally says "I think outside the box" you just see that they do.
This look from Nini was actually her saying "I think outside the box because of my big brain" but the rest of the outfit was just an ok looking outfit with no reference to the brain? I feel like Sasha Velour doing the same would have had veins incorporated into the outfit rather than just make a hat with the brain cut out.
We like an intelligent queens who tells you that without having to actually say "I'm really smart".
Girl I love my brain too because I crack myself up all the time and am endlessly curious, not because I see myself as more intelligent than others. Sometimes it’s not that deep
Well that's great, we only get one so loving how yours operates is excellent but her doing this look for this category is like being asked in a job interview "what's your biggest weakness" and answering "I'm too much of a perfectionist".
If the category was simply "what's your favourite thing about yourself?" then her idea would of been cool but when it was "Back, Sack, Pussy and Crack, your favourite body part" it doesn't read that way (to me).
https://preview.redd.it/dlr9nbe5apcg1.jpeg?width=2507&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2d9a2207f20cb546116db3e73d41917925d7bbe4
She actually mentions that as one of her concerns haha. From how I see it, it’s not her bragging about being “smarter” than anyone else. I think she’s just acknowledging that her brain is her strongest asset and finding power in that. It’s less about showing she’s better than anyone and more about recognizing that the quality of her drag comes from how her mind works. ☺️
They would've known that if they read the notes 😂 I think a lot of their concerns were addressed by Nini already, tbh. You can tell when someone's trying to insinuate they think they're better than everyone else because they're smart, and I'm not getting that vibe from this queen.
That's kind of funny that she herself was worried it would read that way but when I read it that way I get downvoted into oblivion lol.
She already has a win so she's not going anywhere anytime soon so I hope that she seems more relatable moving forward and then I can forgive this choice. It might have been so different if this runway category was episode 10 instead when we'll know her better but doing it on episode 2 when we barely know the queens it's not unreasonable to read it how I did.
Thanks for pointing that out!
Your critique would make sense if they made these in the workroom and she compared herself with the others, but she made this at home, not knowing what anyone else was gonna do
Stupid people tend to get threatened when a confident smart person is a little bit cocky about their smartness lol. Just something to look into. Also, nothing cringe about knowing your strengths and hammer it in in order to create a brand for yourself.
Ahhh yes so I comment about her look being viewed as "I'm smarter than everyone" which she herself said was a concern for her and your response is to do the exact same thing and call me stupid.
I'm sure I'm the one who needs to look into it.
I put the second "I'm" in bold and italics just in case you're.... stupid.
Imagine! All of this work and it just looked like a dress and a silly hat! I seriously don't get fashion 😔