‘The Gilded Age’ Costume Designer on Re-Creating Extravagant 1880s New York | Behind the Seams

[@StarLight-sl9ok]

Fantastic show with absolutely stunning costumes. Can’t wait for the next season! 😍

[@heffawtf150]

I love the costuming on this show, it’s amazing

[@77supanova]

Incredible work by an incredible and supported team of artisans!

[@Lizcameron14610]

Amazing & Gorgeous work ~ Thank You All!!!

[@dustincecil9640]

bravo! loved this video!!!! i love thinking about a team of costumers screaming together watching tv.. :)

[@Eva-ch2wz]

Love the costumes in the show!! Well done!! 👍

[@goodmeasure777]

The costumes are beautiful.

[@inconspicuous-mammal]

My favorite pieces are the formal gowns. I loved Marion's pale green dress with the burgundy flower on the front and Peggy's butterfly dress from Season 2

[@gemstonesparkle7915]

In my opinion, a good example of “design choice” that isn’t harmful to the overall accuracy and experience of watching period dramas.

[@jcancer147]

I find this fascinating 👏 👏

[@jelsner5077]

That Easter episode was GAW-jess!

[@Stephaniegraceful]

Thank you I love the show

[@liv97497]

The costumes are objectively beautiful but I don't know why as a whole they've never been able to dazzle me. I think it has something to do with the dissonance between the tone of the show and the creative direction of the costumes. Julian Fellowes has a very grounded, very realistic approach to writing period pieces and to me that really clashes with the mixture of authentic/modern in the costumes (when it comes to fabric, prints, and appliques). It's always felt slightly off to me. That kind of approach works in Bridgerton, for example, or in The Great, because everything is fantastical and whimsical and not very much based on reality, but here, it sticks out like a sore thumb everytime I look at the screen - it's like seeing an iPhone in the middle of a scene. On the other hand, Downton Abbey works because they try so hard to be as authentic as possible, it's the gold standard in period costuming. I don't know if anyone else has the same perception, but while I can appreciate the craft and the beauty of the gowns themselves, it always feels to me like there's a little piece missing.

[@cadaver6665]

Good observations. I think you're correct - there's nothing anarchronistic about the world, so some of the materials and shapes used feel off in the show. I do like some of the dresses, and the menswear is good, lots of awesome hats too. But the dresses I like are mostly on the old guard, as they tend to be more inspired by museum garments. Bertha's dresses fit her character I suppose, but just don't take me to the 1880's at all. I don't really understand why the designer here says some things are exciting for a modern audience and some are not - obviously some things might be more exciting to her and that's fair as they obviously let her take all the liberties she wants to. Historical clothing and aesthetics are exciting as they are to a whole lot of people, especially to the ones who watch period drama to begin with.

[@glittermytimbers]

I was so distracted when the ironwork dress came on screen and it was screen printed or something like that. (The real dress had a different texture for the black woven in custom for each piece.) My lovely patient friends had to listen to lots of rants at that point 😂

[@mistymarshall5438]

Fashion historian Raissa Bretana of Vanity Fair covered this show and she pointed out that the costumes are symbolic of the clash between the old money and the new money: I.e. Bertha's clothes are too ahead of their time because she's supposed to represent the future of the US, while Agnes' clothes are more accurate for the time period because as old money, she refuses to let go of the past. Plus comparing "Gilded" to "Downton" is apples to oranges: one is at a time when the US is growing as a nation after the Civil War, while the other is about the world changing radically and rapidly (for better and worse) after WW1. So I think it's easier to stay authentic to 20th century clothing.

[@liv97497]

@@mistymarshall5438 I don't mean to compare the clothes themselves, only the approach to the costume design. Both shows were created by the same person and both feel very much essentially his, yet the creative direction of the costume design is completely different. I *personally* don't think that mixing modern elements works here - it has always taken me out of the show. The reason I brought up Bridgerton and The Great is because I think it works in those cases. I could've compared The Gilded Age to other Julian Fellowes shows, like Belgravia or The English Game, but I don't think many people have seen those, so the reference would've been lost. I love Raissa but even she couldn't make me love this lol

[@mistymarshall5438]

@@liv97497 I think the less said about Bridgerton, the better.

[@hwizell7478]

Hung in both salons John Singer Sargent painted Madame X shoulder #thegildedage

[@tb22k]

😅😅😅