Any fashion-conscious eye who has had a chance to see sharply fashion-savvy Iranian women in all their haute couture galore around the world (especially in Tehran), knows that Iranians are by far of the most fashionable sect on the planet. (In fact Iranians single-handedly made summer 2009, an inspiring and fiercely-emotional-yet-green one.)

Now we’re delighted to introduce you to the first Iranian fashion designer, Shirin Askari, on the show of shows in fashion: Project Runway.

In the words of Project Runway’s gorgeous German host, Heidi Klum: “In fashion, one day you’re in, and the next day… you’re out.” And we believe that as long as the fresh-faced designer continues to “make it work” a la’ Tim Gunn’s request, Shirin is sure to be in for a long time to come.

The petite Askari won the second challenge: “We Expect Fashion” (and immunity for tomorrow night’s episode), which revolved around the designers creating a maternity dress for Hollywood actress Rebecca Romijn, on episode 2 of Project Runway Season 6 which is currently airing on the Lifetime network.

"I speak Farsi, but I can’t read or write it. My mom always spoke to me in Farsi growing up so that’s how I learned. I’d come home from school and want to tell her about my day, and I’d talk to her in English and she would say, “No I can’t understand you. You’ll learn in English school.” So, she basically forced me to learn Farsi. And I’m absolutely thankful for it. My senior collection for school was inspired by Persian art and architecture. I love architecture in general, and I had these pictures of Iranian architecture that I was able to draw inspiration from. Growing up in the US, it’s nice to be able to say I have this amazing culture. And I really do hope to go there and see Iran for myself. I feel that it’s a very special thing to have a culture you’re proud of. I feel blessed to have such a strong traditional background."