Meet "Team Gay" from "Project Runway Season 7"

Let's face it — the last season of Project Runway was pretty much a bust. The challenges were dull, the designs were uninspired, and there was no consistency with the judges.

Perhaps it had something to do with the show moving to Los Angeles, which is always a debacle (remember Laverne & Shirley?), but there was definitely something ... missing.

There's reason to be hopeful about Season 7, though, as the show will return to New York, and it appears that our favorite judges will be back.

Premiering on Thursday, January 14, 2010, at 10PM ET, host Heidi Klum, mentor Tim Gunn, judges Michael Kors (leading designer) and Nina Garcia (fashion director for Marie Claire magazine) will be joined by 16 new designers vying for a shot to make their way to Bryant Park and show their collection in front of top industry insiders during New York Fashion Week.

There are only three four out designers that we know of so far this season, but hopefully we can get at least one to Bryant Park. In a hilarious and oddly heartwarming twist, when we got in touch with the publicist for the show, she told us that some of the straight contestants specifically requested to be on "Team Gay" as honorary members!

Let's meet the four out designers, and the three gay allies. Will one of them help us erase the memories of last season?

Ben Chmura (Team Gay)
Age: 30
Hometown: South Meriden, CT
Profession: Designer
Favorite Designer: Nicolas Ghesquiere and Marc Jacobs