Style: "Costume Queen"

A feature on the same lady whom Sarah & Marcia worked for in dressing the extras of "Lincoln". I liked her list &  no. 2, well, absolutely! 

Keeping It Real

Five ways I design for authenticity.
by Amy Andrews Harrell

1. Do my homework.
We use museums a lot. For Spielberg's "Lincoln," I went to the Library of Congress to research and I got to see Mary Todd's pearls that Joanna Johnston recreated for Sally Field. For "Killing Kennedy," I went to Dallas to the Sixth Floor Museum. They had huge blowups of the iconic photos so I was able to see, for example, that when Oswald was arrested and he was brought out of the police station, he was in penny loafers. They were very worn and obviously something he wore a lot. I never would have seen that in a regular photo. I was consumed of course by Jackie's pink suit and at the museum I was able to come face to face with an enormous color enlargement of the collar and saw how it was quilted so I could get the authenticity of that. I was very excited. It was another piece of the puzzle.

2. It takes a village.
Wardrobe and costume design is much more than a one-person job. I would not be able to do this without my team's friendship, talents and support. They lifted me up on this. On "Killing Lincoln" alone, I worked with [assistant costumer designer] Brad Watson, [sewing shop head] Kathy Washington, [tailor] Robert Surratt, [costume supervisor] Rene Jones, who was nominated for the Emmy with me, [set costumer] Amelia Zontini, and [uniform supervisor] Dana Bogdanski.

3. Details are everything.
We don't know how to do halfway. On "Killing Kennedy," we had Rob's belt buckle, which was a very nice silver Brooks Brothers belt buckle authentic to the period, we had it engraved for him JFK even though no one would see it. I guess it's because I'm insane, but that kind of made it real for the JFK we created.

4. Collaborate with actors.
One of my most important jobs is collaborating with the actor to interpret the character. I have to make sure the costumes fit but I also sometimes educate the actor on the costume, even how to wear the costume or how to walk in the costume. For Booth, tie pins were important because he wore a particular type of tie that needed them and so Jesse [Johnson] and I would pick them out.

5. Pay attention to the "motion" in motion pictures.
I'm very excited about the way costumes move through space. I always have been. I guess I'm a method costume designer because I just imagine the history and everything it took to bring that moment in time to life. In whatever era I happen to be designing, I picture costumes in motion rather than standing still, like how a person will look walking down the street.