Costumes and Coffee

The Costume Designers Guild, IATSE Local 892, has launched its Pay Equity Now campaign, which focuses on achieving parity with their male-dominated creative department head counterparts. To give a brief background, the Costume Designers Guild consists of professional costume designers, assistant costume designers and costume illustrators working in film, TV, commercials and other media. Its membership is 87% female, and the guild says that they are 65% lower on the IATSE pay scale than male-dominated creative department heads, according to Pay Equity Now. Seeking to expand upon the #NakedWithoutUs campaign that the Costume Designers Guild has used for the past several years, Pay Equity Now is about education that will hopefully lead to industry-shifting change and a better quality of life for Costume Designers. Tune in as Terry A. Gordon, President of the Costume Design Guild (Local 892), discusses all of the details of the campaign and our goals going forward. Pour up a cup!

From quick changes and incredibly tight deadlines to recreating the most popular moments in news and culture, Costume Designer Tom Broecker has been doing his thing behind the scenes at SNL since 1994. His work has earned him 17 Emmy nominations and six wins, a Peabody, five PGA nominations and 10 CDGA nominations and two wins. This year, he’s up for another CDGA for his brilliant work in season 48, episode 10 of SNL featuring Aubrey Plaza as guest host. Pour up a cup and tune in as he shares how the universe lead him to Costume Design, his fascinating design process and more.

With two big films to hit theaters over the weekend - "The Book of Clarence" and "Lift," I had to sit down for coffee with Costume Designer Antoinette Messam. Pour up a cup and tune in as she shares her thoughts on the importance of research in costume design, relationship building with costume rental shops around the world, building a global costumes crew, her love for textiles, color theory and so much more.

Join me for coffee with Costume Designer Jen Caprio. You can currently see Jen's designs on Broadway in the hilariously funny musical "SPAMalot" and on the legendary children's show "Sesame Street".

Tune in to the latest episode of Costumes & Coffee with Costume Designer Dominique Dawson, who showcased her talent and artistry in Donald Glover's highly anticipated psychological thriller series, "Swarm." Dominique has had an expansive career bringing her talent to projects ranging from Roberto Patino's "DMZ" to Ava Duvernay and ⁠Colin Kaepernick⁠’s "Colin In Black & White." During our chat, Dominique shared everything from her start at NYU, why she chose costume design over directing, and how she's inspiring the next generation of designers. She also gets into her research of stan culture (which included lots of Beyonce references) and the inspiration behind looks for Dre, Marissa and Ni'Jah. Plus, she shares what it was like working with a star-studded cast including Chloe Bailey, Billie Eilish, and Nirine S. Brown.

Fans are raving over Costume Designer Helen Huang's work in Netflix's new hit series "BEEF." Join us for coffee as she breaks down the inspiration behind each character's costumes, the importance of highlighting diversity within the Asian community and the personal experiences that prepared her to successfully take on this role. Pour up a cup!

Today, we're having coffee with "The Last of Us" Costume Designer Cynthia Summers. She shares what it's like to design a video game turned TV series, develop a post-apocalyptic world, and the collaborative process with Special FX Make Up for creating the Clickers - those infected by the zombie-ant fungus. Cynthia’s credits include designing “The L Word,” “Swan Song,” “A Series of Unfortunate Events,” “The Babysitter's Club” and more. She even dishes on “Goosebumps,” an upcoming series she’s designing for Disney. Cynthia’s experience and ability to teach the techniques of design are top notch. Grab a cup and tune in!

Join me today for coffee with "Abbott Elementary" Costume Designer Susan Michalek. Picture this. You've gathered all of the clothing and accessories for an upcoming fitting. Instead of placing things on the rack, you place everything in a pile and the actor selects the pieces he or she loves the most to fit. Once pieces are selected, you collaborate with the talent to put together all of the changes that for the episode. It's a far departure from what we're used to, but it's the genius of Susan Michalek. She shares this, what it's like to work with an award-winning cast and so much more. Pour up a cup and tune in!

Today, I’m talking to CDGA nominee Natasha Newman-Thomas. You’ve seen her work in Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” music video and the recent Von Dutch documentary on Hulu. We get into the details of her award-nominated work in Yeah, Yeah, Yeah’s “Spitting Off the Edge of the World” video, and how she brought back the fun of iconic rock star energy with the designs and styling. She also shares the unique story of how she landed in Costumes after going to helicopter school. Yep, helicopter school.

Today, we’re having coffee with Carrie Cramer. Carrie is an artist and Costume Designer who has worked on a number of projects. And today we’re highlighting the fact that she is a CDGA nominee for her work alongside Jason Rembert for Lizzo’s "Watch Out For The Big Grrrls". We discuss her experience in reality TV (We all remember MTV’s “Singled Out” right?), her passion for creating ceramics and oil paintings and the clothing line she created with Daniel Tosh “Boys Wear Pink Too”. Pour up a cup!

BEL-AIR is back tonight for an incredibly stylish second season, and we’re talking to artist behind the looks! Tune in to the latest episode as I have coffee with Costume Designer QueenSylvia Akuchie. QueenSylvia takes us on her journey from law school to costume design, and her start as Tyler Perry’s right hand in Costumes & Wardrobe. She also gives us impeccable insight into the careful thought she put into showcasing wealth, heritage and style for the looks this season. And how locally sourcing pieces helped her bring authentic storytelling to the screen. Pour up a cup!

Tune in to the latest episode of the podcast as I chat with Costume Designer Deirdra Govan. Deirdra shares the insight behind the costumes for Harlem season 2 - the inspiration behind each of the ladies’ unique style, and the conscious effort she made to avoid “window dressing” the guys. As a member of Local 892 and the vice president of Local 829, Deirdra shares insight into some of the most pressing issues designers face today. Plus, hear more about she’s creating “an opportunity zone” and “legacy of access” for future artists everywhere. Pour up a cup and tune in to this enlightening conversation a great conversation.

Check out the episode which features a conversation with Costume Designer Johnetta Boone. We discuss how her remarkable career, the life experience she has that lends itself to designing the stories of diverse characters, her process for uniquely dressing a multitude of cowboys in “Yellowstone” for 16 million viewers and so much more. Her wisdom and insight are gold. A quote she shared so eloquently: “My color does not transcend my title (as Costume Designer). My skin color does not dictate the kind of work that I do…because I am able to contribute to all environments.” That’s a mantra! If you’re currently working in the industry or aspire to, this conversation is for you. Tune in!

Today, we’re talking to Costume Designer Trayce GiGi Field about her work in Rian Johnson’s new series Poker Face, her recent NAACP Image Award nomination for her designs in A League of Their Own and so much more. She has designed two hit series streaming simultaneously on two different networks - and with another show in the works - Trayce offers some guidance and fun stories about her journey in costumes. Grab a cup of coffee and tune in!

We’re back with more coffee and conversations! Kicking off season 3 of the podcast with Quita Alfred, the Costume Designer of the new hit drama "Women Talking,” which has earned Quita a nomination for this year’s Costume Designers Guild Awards. She brilliantly shares the research and inspiration behind the costumes in “Women Talking," a particular affirmation that I believe we all should tap into and some of the invaluable wisdom she’s gained through the process of the project. Grab a cup of coffee, tune in and don't forget to subscribe for the latest.

Check out the latest conversation with Costume Designer Phoenix Mellow. We discuss what inspired her to pursue a career in Costume Design, her process for a more sustainable design process and the inspiration behind the looks in the second season of “The Sex Lives of College Girls” on HBOMax. Her advice for aspiring designers is top tier! Pour up a cup and tune in.

Listen in today as I chat with Jenna Tyson, fashion stylist to rapper Flo Milli and NBA player James Harden. We discuss her bond with legendary trailblazer Misa Hylton, her experience at the Misa Hylton Fashion Academy and the inspiration behind some of her most recent creative hits. Jenna has also been assistant designing for a series that’s a part of one of the hottest TV franchises. Pour up a cup of coffee and tune in!

Pour up a cup of coffee and check out my latest conversation with the Costume Designer Jaclyn Banner. We discuss her journey from Wardrobe Stylist to Costume Designer, her unique design range and her inspiration behind the costumes in Hulu’s latest series ‘Kindred,’ based on the novel from award-winning science fiction author Octavia Butler. She drops a lot of gems. Enjoy!

I love exploring the intersection and history of costumes and fashion. After all, how would we know if it's an original idea without something to reference? The next episode of the podcast features Colleen Hill, Curator of costumes and accessories at The Museum at FIT, New York. We chat about what she does as a museum curator and her latest 90s-inspired coffee table book. We even get into some fun costumes trivia like... - Which 90s sitcom character was scripted to be a fashion student at FIT. - What decade mixed metals became a thing. - What vintage collection pieces she looks for when shopping. Grab a cup and tune in!

Join me for coffee with Costume Designer Leslie Kavanagh as she dishes on her career and all of the costume details from season 5 of Hulu’s hit series “The Handmaid’s Tale.” We chat about everything from the role of color this season to designing and developing ‘The Plums’ to indicate a new social classification, which hasn’t been done since season two. Leslie shares her experience costuming hundreds of background performers, creating the details of the Commanders’ uniforms, and her collaboration with Elisabeth Moss. Leslie also goes into detail about creating a show-stopping funeral look and how she depicted the evolution of the characters by designing new fashion-forward, yet conservative silhouettes. Grab a cup of coffee and tune in! You don’t want to miss it.