Chatting With A Set Customer
Have you ever wondered what it must be like on a television of film set with access to fun outfits and accessories? I think I always imagined it was like a gymnasium sized closet organization system with everything you could ever need or a version of Cher’s automated closet from the movie Clueless where a customer just dialed up the perfect outfit for an actor’s character.
Well, I’ve learned that my imagination was way off when I talked to my sister-in-law, who is actually a Set Costumer is Los Angeles.
Set Life
The reality of making a film or creating a show is much different from what I imagined for years. My sister-in-law, Jessica Peter, brought me back to reality and shared that it requires a lot of organization and logistics.
Most projects have a trailer or room that stores all of the outfits for the actors. It is also the workspace for laying out and preparing each character’s look and where repairs and alterations happen. It is not a large space so it needs to be organized for everyone to function well in, work fast and keep production on time.
As Jessica described the workspace that she and her other costumers worked in the more we discovered there are a lot of closet organization tips and tricks they use that anyone can try at home.
Costumer Tips To Use At Home
Color coding
Grouping like accessories and clothes by color makes it super easy for a costumer to find something that will visually work in a scene whether it’s for the star or a background actor. Color coding at home can help you pull an outfit together fast and also allows you to see what colors you tend to wear.
Prepping outfits
Costomers utilize clothing racks to set out the next couple of days outfits for each actor. This helps keep the project on pace and it could save you time in the morning if you set out your outfit the night before.
Visibility
It’s important for costumers to find what they need fast and in a smaller space, taking advantage of the vertical storage is key. Hanging items like jewelry, ties and other accessories saves time from combing through bins of items. In your room or closet you could hang your jewelry or scarves on a peg board or command hooks. If you arrange them by color it would be visually appealing and easy to find what you want to wear.
Categories
Grouping like items together is essential for keeping the set trailer or room organized. Jessica likes to arrange accessories by size starting with smaller items then moving to larger items. This is a great way to sort your accessories and clothing items at home. I love to organize tops by sleeve size starting with tank tops and up to long sleeves.
Label
Labeling is so simple and so helpful on and off the set. It takes the guesswork out of everything. You can find a cloak on a set or just find winter socks in your home closet. Jessica said labels help costumers that might only be helping out for a day or two find what they need without having to ask a lot of questions. Labeling helps everyone so label, label, label.
One System
One of the biggest takeaways from my conversation with Jessica was sticking to the one system. She did not mean that there is one system for all Set Costumers in the industry. She mentioned it always goes smoother for the costume department to stick to the organization system set up by the person that started the project. Instead of different members of the department trying to use their own systems, sticking to one system or process helps everyone stay on the same page. Even if the system isn’t perfect, it’s better for everyone to be on the same page to find the items they need.
Final Thoughts
I wish you all could have been a fly on the wall for our conversation about sets, costume organization and home organization. It was a lot of fun!
But I think it’s important to note that on a set efficiency helps the production stay on track and Jessica’s job fun and less stressful. Try to bring those same things to your closet!
Try these closet organization tips so getting dressed or packed for a trip is less stressful and more fun!
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