A Facebook friend from my college days at Brigham Young University is the associate producer of a new Broadway musical opening in March called “Bullets Over Broadway.” He shared this clip of Bullets’ costume designer William Ivey Long who designed costumes for more than 60 Broadway shows over the last 30+ years including The Producers, Hairspray, Nine, Crazy for You, Guys and Dolls, Cinderella, and Young Frankenstein.
Mr. Long shares a glimpse of the theater costume design process in under 3 minutes:
Here’s a summary of his words and some basic steps for the costume designer:
1. Get a copy of the script
2. Meet with the director and ask lots of questions:
My daughters are in their school play which is the shortened and adapted version of Oklahoma! by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The costume design along with hair and makeup ideas are getting underway. In my research on this Edwardian time period, I ran across a fascinating retail catalog from 1906. This 432 page peek into history is for the T. Eaton Company Spring and Summer 1906 Catalogue. The Fall and Winter 1906 Catalogue begins at page 221.
Not only is this a superb resource for Edwardian period costumes but it also shows hairstyles for men, women, and children of the time. The first 100+ pages of each season’s catalog are filled with apparel and accessories for men, women, and children including dresses, walking suits, petticoats and other underclothing, shoes, hats, & night clothing. It is unbelievable to me to see the hundreds of items available.
I can’t fathom a retailer from 100 years ago having such a huge selection of goods because the catalogue also offers fabric, notions, watches, linens, hair goods, silverware, knives… Looks like it was the Amazon.com of the Edwardian Period!
I picked out just a small handful of images to wet your appetite, but if you love this time period or need additional costume ideas for the 1900s, be sure to click through to the full catalog.
It’s surprising how many shows end up having at least one character in aged makeup, so I thought I’d post a few tutorials showing old age stage makeup, including the last one which shows a simple technique for making the hair look gray. They each show the techniques slightly different–some are better at showing the design, some emphasize product, and some are better at showing the technique. When learning anything, it’s often helpful to get a few different opinions, so take a look and then go for it. The key is using your actor’s own wrinkles as the design and then blending the shadows and highlights. The process is basically the same for males and females.
Please comment below or on my Facebook Page, The Costume Resource, if you need costume or hair and make-up help with a specific show you are doing. I’d love to help out!
A friend messaged me asking for some ideas on a toga costume for her and her new fiance. (Congrats Lauren!)
Yes, you can make a toga using a bed sheet or curtains, if they aren’t too thick. It needs to be a fabric that is lightweight like sheets, and will drape nicely. Start with a twin sheet to see how it fits, but it depends on your size and height. You may need to experiment with the sheet size for the best results. Fold it in half if necessary. Use safety pins to secure. The three videos below show different methods for tying the toga, both for men and women.
Clothing: Consider what you will wear underneath the toga in case of a wardrobe malfunction or if you simply want a little more coverage. Items that fit snug like a tank top, tube top, layering tee, bike shorts or spankies work the best so that the toga isn’t disturbed by bulky or baggy fabric underneath.
Accessories: Find gold trim or ribbon at Walmart or a craft & fabric store to form a belt for the toga. It gives a better shape to the toga by pulling it in a bit at the waist for both men and women. Sandals or flip flops complement this look along with gold jewelry. And don’t forget something for the hair such as gold trim wrapped around the head as the first video shows, a golden floral wreath shown in the second video, or a green leaf wreath worn by the male in the last video.
Makeup: If you really want to look like you didn’t just throw on a sheet at the last minute, then follow the second video for some tips on a makeup design to go with the toga. This will really finish off the look and your costume will look intentional and stylized.
Wendy’s fast food chain is offering Shrek toys in their kids meals. If you ask for the ears, you have a great start to a Halloween costume for Shrek OR Princess Fiona.
For Shrek: add a muslin shirt or white sweatshirt that you distress and age a bit,
Fabric dye is a great product to use when refashioning clothing for costumes. You can use it to take the brightness out of a color, add richness, or add additional color. Rit Dye has helpful info on FAQs when dyeing such as what color formulas to use, how to achieve a new color over an existing color, and what fabrics dye best.
Take a look at this Rit Dye Project Page for great ideas on refashioning with color!
When wearing a wig as part of a costume, you want to make sure it is secure. Pin curls provide a foundation for the hair pins or bobby pins to attach to. This tutorial shows the proper method for securing a wig:
Making a cardigan out of a shirt is super easy. This comes in handy if you are doing costumes for a production with orphans like “Annie” or “Oliver”. You can turn these cardigans into vests if needed by simply cutting the sleeves off around the arm holes. These cardigans also work for a 50’s or 60’s look for a Halloween costume or in a show like “Grease” or “Hairspray”. They are great for large ensemble casts because they are quick, easy, and inexpensive to crank out when refashioned from used shirts or sweaters. These cardigans can be made in many ways, some even without sewing. Here are three videos that show different methods of creating a cardigan.
This tutorial shows a super simple no-sew, no-button cardigan:
This one shows how to add a bit more detail:
and this one shows how to make a cardigan with buttons:
