Fashion Forward TV Series

As more and more runways compete for your sartorial attention, it’s easy to get lost in the mix. Nowadays, designers and creative directors are thinking outside the box to make sure as many people as possible see their latest designs. One huge arena where this is happening: your favorite TV shows. Ever been watching a show and think to yourself, “OMG I LOVE THAT DRESS”…? Exactly.

Killing Eve

If you like your Burberry and Prada with a side of psychopathic female assassin, then this show is for you. It stars actress Jodie Comer as Villanelle, a Russian hit woman with a “killer” sense of style (sorry, I had to). What catches my attention the most is the fact that Villanelle wears everyday basics on her missions and saves her chicest looks for her days off – a sort of flipping the script on the typical femme fatale formula. Costume designer Charlotte Mitchell shopped her way through Europe to procure all of Villanelle’s 35-plus looks for season 2, and if those amazing Christian Lacroix earrings Villanelle is wearing at the waterside cafe tell you anything, Mitchell knows exactly what she’s doing.

 

Insecure

There’s nothing subliminal about the aesthetic messaging of Issa Rae’s hit HBO show Insecure. The fashion takes a definite stance – T-shirts with pointed political messages, Afrocentric colors/jewelry/prints, and direct references to shows that catered to young people of color in the early 90s (Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Martin, Living Single). For Season 3, stylist Shiona Turini clothed the characters in looks that enhanced their multidimensional narratives. For example, protagonist Issa, a jeans-and-T-shirt type of girl, leaves her job at a nonprofit wearing a Dries Van Noten blazer – a clear signal that she’s moving on and moving up.

 

Younger

Two words: Patricia. Field.
If you’ve watched Sex & The City, then you know just how fabulously talented Patricia Field is when it comes to fashion. This show is all about a woman in her 40s making herself seem like she’s in her 20s, so getting the narrative across without being corny is essential (and just the kind of challenge Field can handle). Field says the best way to do this is stick to classic pieces that can last a lifetime in your closet, and use those as a base to play around with mixing and matching. Stay away from pieces that are too trendy. The shelf life is short, and you’ll look like you’re trying too hard.

 

Big Little Lies

The emotional turmoil from season one’s big lie has seeped into the Monterey Five’s wardrobes, and costume designer Alix Friedberg, who won an Emmy for her work on season one, expertly took the characters into their precarious next stage for season two. Don’t worry though – it’s not all doom and gloom. Episode 4 serves up a Studio 54-themed disco party, which Friedberg called ” a kaleidoscope of crazy.” From Renata’s overcompensating behavior to Madeline’s obsession with perfection, it’s all perfectly mirrored in the

 

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

This amazing series is literal 1950s fashion porn. Costume designer Donna Zakowska is brilliant at portraying the obsessive matching that was so prevalent during that era. Shoes and bags are always in harmony with the rest of the outfit, and 95 percent of the show’s looks are constructed from scratch. Before the show was even released, Midge Maisel already achieved an iconic fashion moment in the magenta dress and pink coat she wore on the promo poster. Quintessential 1950s, quintessential New York.

 

Empire

Dressing the Lyon family is undoubtedly a blast, and Cookie’s wardrobe alone is reason enough to tune in. Costume designer Paolo Nieddu found inspiration for Cookie’s looks from Dynasty’s Alexis, which is evident in the fact that she can pull off just about any look, and the clothes never wear her. She also gives a big sartorial middle finger to classic fashion rules. Rather than taking one thing off before leaving the house, Cookie puts two more things on. The men of Empire are also acing the fashion game, with high jewelry, sharp tailoring, and designer labels all on display. With the exception of Luscious’s prison jumpsuit, the Lyon family knows how to turn heads with bold fashion.