'Jane By Design': Five teases

Desperate Housewives star Teri Hatcher just showed up at the end of last week’s episode of ABC Family’s drama Jane By Design as Jane’s until-now-MIA mother, Kate Quimby. What else does the frothy fashion show have up its well-hemmed sleeves? EW recently pressed star Erica Dasher — she plays the show’s title character, an underage assistant to Andie MacDowell’s demanding fashionista Gray Chandler Murray — about what we have to look forward to in the season’s final five episodes, which begin tonight with “The Second Chance,” at 9 p.m. on ABC Family.

1. More Teri Hatcher drama is coming. “She just showed up at the end of the third episode, and she plays my mother, Kate,” Dasher says. “Jane’s mom left when she was very young, so Jane doesn’t really feel as abandoned as [her brother] Ben [David Clayton Rogers] does. When she comes back, Jane is very excited to have her around and wants to build a relationship with her — but Ben is very wary. That creates an interesting dynamic in the house.” What can we expect from Teri? “She plays this very free-spirited, Bohemian character, and she’s fantastic,” Dasher says. “I really enjoyed working with Teri, and I learned so much just watching her work. We were so lucky to get her! In terms of the storyline, she really shakes things up. And if we come back for a second season, she’s going to direct an episode.”

2. Eli (Bryan Dechart) and Jane finally go on a real date. “They went on this fake date in episode 3, but he steps up to the plate eventually…although it takes some time,” Dasher says of the date, which takes place in episode “The Backup Dress,” on July 17. “The date is a bit of a disaster, but it’s a fun disaster. The surprise is probably how much of a disaster it is. Some crazy things happen.”

3. Project Runway stars are coming! Season 4 winner Christian Siriano shows up in “The Online Date,” airing July 10, and Project Runway judge Nina Garcia appears in Jane’s big date episode on July 17. “Donovan Decker is designing a dress for her — Donovan always creates clothes for her,” Dasher explains. “So he creates a dress for Nina Garcia. I have to deliver it to her. I guess that’s all I’ll say about that one. But…well, it’s never that easy, as you can probably guess.” Working with Nina, Dasher says, was a dream. “She’s so sweet. It was really fun! She came to the set, she was there all day, it was such a long day. She was such a good sport. We’re all fans. Our whole costume department was freaking out.”

4. Jane throws a house party. “We have our first high school house party thrown at Jane’s house,” Dasher says. “Jane and Billy [Nick Roux] have a high school party. There are some crazy things that happen, but most importantly, there are some consequences of the house party. There are some things that get ruined.” And even though Jane is one half of the party-planning committee, it turns out she can’t make it to her own party. “Billy and I plan to throw this party, then I can’t go to the party,” she says. There’s a reason for the party. Jane is at home alone, for one reason or another. There’s no Ben and there’s no mom for a period of time, so she is just living on her own, so she and Billy decide that she must throw a house party.”

5. The season ends in London. “Here’s another teaser: I have to go to London,” Dasher says of her character, Jane, and that’s actually why she has to miss her own house party. “It’s work related. I get sent to London on a last-minute trip. We’re actually traveling to London to shoot. It’s such a dream! I’ve actually never been to London, and the costar that I’m going with, Rowly Dennis, who plays Jeremy Jones, is also going to be shooting there. He is from London, so it’ll be with a native. I’m really excited. It’ll be mostly exteriors on location.”

Tanner on Twitter: @EWTanStransky

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