‘Project Runway’ Designer Wendy Pepper Dies at 53

Wendy Pepper, a contestant on the first season of Project Runway had died at the age of 53.

Pepper was an artist based in Washington, D.C., whose real name was Anne Eustis Pepper Stewart. According to a Washington Post obituary, she died peacefully on Nov. 12 and was surrounded by her family. The cause of death has not yet been revealed.

According to the obituary, she is survived by her parents; her daughter, Finley Stewart; her three brothers; her sister and nieces and nephews.

The University of Washington graduate was a finalist on the first season of Project Runway in 2004. She also appeared on the second season of Project Runway All Stars in 2012 and 2013, reports E! News.

“A finalist on season one of Project Runway, Wendy designed and hand-sewed exceptionally beautiful clothes for children and adults,” her obituary reads. “She was a chef, a writer, and a life-long entrepreneur. Her wit and humor were unmatched, as was her generosity of spirit.”

Pepper was born in Dayton, Ohio. Her funeral will be at a Georgetown church on Dec. 1.

“I realized I was a designer when I was living in Nepal,” she said in an interview for Project Runway All Star. “Dyeing some yarn, I suddenly turned to these people that I was living with and I started to drape the yarn. ‘Oh my gosh, this is so much fun, I am creating this whole sort of experience with these women.’ For me, fashion is communication…That’s when I knew this was my life’s work.”

According to The Picket, Pepper ran a boutique in Shepherdstown, West Virginia in 2015. “I like to live and work in my community. I feel like it’s an open door for people to come in and experience the world of fashion,” she said at the time.

Photo: Lifetime