vintage | Clothes on Film – Part 2

Recently we were fortunate enough to get our hands on Amber Jane Butchart’s new book, her ‘Fashion Miscellany’, which has just been published by The IIex Press. If you don’t already know, Amber is a contributor to Clothes on Film and will soon be teaming up with editor Christopher Laverty for an evening of Jazz Era discussion at the British Library. Her book, by the way, is flippin’ brilliant. If you care even slightly about what we wear and why, AJBFM is an indispensable purchase. The layout of it is simple enough. It’s basically designed as a dip-in-and-out for research, or whenever you fancy a flick though. We’d call this…

MILD SPOILERS Costume designer Michael Wilkinson’s main accomplishment with American Hustle has largely been overlooked in favour of praising him as some kind of vintage stylist with an eye for provocative gowns and desirable heels. The truth is he has carefully brought to life a world, not of parties and glamour, but cheap sex and dirty desperation. The costumes in American Hustle do tell a story, particularly through their ever darkening colour palette, yet Wilkinson’s deftest skill is reflecting an era when fashion was as confused as the politics surrounding it. American Hustle is an unapologetic tale of low down dirty double-crossers whose clothes, like them, were a lie. A…

As is often the way with costume designers, Stephanie Collie is something of an unsung hero. We will not reel off her entire back catalogue, but it does include South Riding (2011, TV), Telstar (2008) Peter’s Friends (1992) and perhaps most exciting of all, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998). Now, anyone old enough to remember when Lock, Stock arrived will remember just what an incredible influence its Mod inspired costumes had on the world of fashion. You could not pick up a men’s magazine of the time without seeing some guy in slim trousers and a jersey polo shirt. Stephanie Collie invented this look, thus providing one of…

How changing body shapes can affect the appearance of period costume.

With exclusive insight from costume designer Catherine Marie Thomas, we analyse Sandra Bullock’s low volume, big impact wardrobe in The Proposal.

A brief but worthwhile and exclusive clip about the costume design of Boardwalk Empire.

Clothes on Film talk exclusively to costume designer of The Artist, Mark Bridges.

Potiche confirms that Catherine Deneuve will always be Belle de Jour, only now with added sense of humour.

On the eve of Boardwalk Empire: Season 2 commencing, we had a chat with the show’s costume designers John Dunn and Lisa Padovani.

Does Japanese period costume reflect on contemporary fashion? We appraise the hipster style of Norwegian Wood.

With exclusive insight from Leesa Evans, Clothes on Film takes an overview look at the art of comedic costume in Bridesmaids.

For those of you lucky enough to live in LA, literally racks of costumes have just on display at The FIDM Museum.