CHRISTIAN SIRIANO WINNER OF "PROJECT RUNWAY"

A clothing collection rich in feathers propelled bird-like designer Christian Siriano to victory on last night's season finale of "Project Runway" on Bravo.Siriano is the fourth winner of "Project Runway" and, at age 21, the youngest to ever win top prize on the fashion-design reality series."You're uber-fierce!" declared the show's host and executive producer, German supermodel Heidi Klum, as she hugged a tearful Siriano moments after she'd informed him that he'd won.

Yeah, I just won – it's really crazy," said Siriano, a petite pixie from Annapolis, Md., who was known for his flamboyant, up-swept hairstyle and fondness for the word "fierce," which he used to describe his own fashion designs throughout the season and which came to define his high-spirited competitiveness and self-confidence."Fierce" could also describe the competition between the three finalists whose collections, unveiled Feb. 8 under the Fashion Week tent in Bryant Park, wowed the show's three judges – Klum, designer Michael Kors and Elle magazine's Nina Garcia, plus guest judge Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice. The judges chose the winner later that day, but their decision was kept under wraps until it was televised last night.

Of the three finalists, local gal Jillian Lewis, 26, of Selden, Long Island, was the first to be dismissed by the judges last night, leaving Siriano and Rami Kashou, 31, of Ramallah, West Bank, Israel, as the last contestants standing."I really appreciate the experience, so thank you," Lewis told the judges as she left the "Project Runway" stage, although backstage she admitted, "I was so disappointed and so let down."Though he lost, Kashou was grateful for the high praise his collection received. "I loved your collection," Klum told him, while Kors lauded the "cohesiveness" of his collection.

"I thought it was lovely," said Beckham of Kashou, but she was more effusive about Siriano's clothes, some of which were painstakingly constructed with feathers."I loved everything that you did," the pop singer, English style icon and wife of international soccer star David Beckham said after watching Siriano's models present his clothes on the Bryant Park runway."You have a flair for the drama," said Kors, obviously delighted by Siriano's work.And later, after he'd won, Beckham praised him again, saying, "I would be honored to wear any piece of your clothing."