Season 9 will feature a whopping 20 designers in the premiere episode (don't worry, swift cuts are sure to happen early) with a wacky outdoor challenge and guest judge Kim Kardashian.
Mentored by everyone's favorite fancyman Tim Gunn, meet the 20 hopeful designers who will try to "make it work" in front of Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia and Michael Kors in the latest season of Project Runway.
 Oliver Green Oliver has a fabulous accent, only rivaled by Malan Breton. His closet features a prized, very Mister Rogers–esque sweater that he bought for a mere five pounds! |
 Laura Kathleen Laura Kathleen's style icon is Marilyn Monroe. You'll spot a huge poster of the film icon on her closet wall. She also loves vintage items and the label St. John. |
 Kimberly Goldson Singer Kelly Rowland provides some musical motivation to Kimberly when she's designing. This self-taught designer wore her own design to her audition. |
 Julie Tierney Julie loves tweeds and stripes and in her Southwest sportswear-inspired pieces. Guest judge Seth Aaron Henderson called her presentation at her audition Fashion Week–ready as a collection. |
 Joshua McKinley Joshua is one of the few people who have removed their shirt during a casting session, and we thank him for this. He listens to Katy Perry while designing. |
 Joshua Christensen Always on the go between his home base of L.A. and Vegas, Joshua loves staying comfortable in T-shirts. He loves working with bright colors. |
 Fallene Wells If Fallene's name sounds familiar, Disney movie fans, it's because she is named after Bambi's girlfriend. This Denver, CO resident impressed the guest judges in her audition by creating her own textiles. |
 David Chum David claims that his entire teenage years were riddled with bad fashion choices. The worst offender? Wide-legged JNCO jeans. |
 Danielle Everine Danielle is currently an intimates designer for Target. One of her recent collections was inspired by suiting. |
 Cecilia Motwani Cecilia only wears clothes she makes. Only. Her supermodel muse is Cindy Crawford. |
 Bryce Black Bryce Black worships at the altar of Gaga. Flip through his designer portfolio, and her name will be the answer to many design inspirations and client aspirations. |
 Bert Keeter His dream celebrity client is Oprah. He recently returned to fashion designing after a stint in retail, during which he used to sketch ideas on the back of register tape. |
 Becky Ross This Portland, OR native first started making clothes for her Barbie dolls. You'll never see her wearing something white or boring — she is all about the color, including making sure all of her closet hangers are all of the same color. |
 Anya Ayoung-Chee Anya walks into Season 9 with some serious bragging rights: she lives in tropical paradise (Trinidad and Tobago) and competed in the 2008 Miss Universe Pageant. |
 Anthony Ryan Auld This Southern boy is known for wearing skinny jeans and boots. Impressively, he found a pair of Gaultier glasses in France that just happened to be his very own prescription. They're his most expensive fashion splurge — and correct his vision! |
 Amanda Perna Amanda's favorite purchase? Rain boots. She is the one person praying for rain, just so she can show them off. She also been known to form crushes on shoes. |
 Viktor Luna Viktor has a pair of church shoes in his ridiculously organized closet. His most expensive clothing purchase? A Prada shirt. |
 Gunnar Deatherage Gunnar is a hairstylist by day and a self-taught designer by night. His closet is filled with lots of jackets (he loves dark colors) and unique jewelry finds. |
 Serena da Conceicao Serena has a photo of a Marc Jacobs bag on fire in her living room. She is careful to note that it is not Marc by Marc, so watch out! |
 Rafael Cox Rafael has a marching-band jacket in his closet. This prompts the question, "What instrument did he play ... and is it just a coincidence that he kind of looks like Prince in his publicity shot for the show?" |
For a more in-depth look at the designers -- including their portfolios and house visits -- head over the official Project Runway site.
Season 9 of Project Runway premieres on Thursday, July 28 at 9pm on Lifetime. Will you be tuning in? Leave a comment!