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The Bold and the Beautiful costume designer Glenda Maddox shares her fashion tips and style predictions for after Covid-19
Awards season has been a little different this year, with many events taking place virtually – including the Primetime Emmy Awards scheduled for 21 September. That doesn’t mean we can’t dream about a return to real red-carpet glam though!
If there’s one person who is qualified to give expert fashion advice, it has to be Glenda Maddox. The Bold and the Beautiful costume designer has won five Daytime Emmy Awards for her work on one of the most glamorous shows on TV. We asked her for some tips for red-carpet dressing, and her opinion on what fashion will look like in the future.
What’s some basic advice when it comes to choosing a red-carpet look?
I think the most important thing is to find a look, style and colour that really emphasises your best features. I’ve seen some red-carpet choices in the past that haven’t worked. I can’t believe they wore a particular colour that washed them out or a skirt that was too full for their size or overtook their body. You should be daring but without sacrificing the beauty of yourself. Let it shine through but be fashionable at the same time. It can be tricky because some designers can go too far.
Whose designs do you like?
I’ve always been partial to Ralph & Russo from London. Almost every red-carpet look they have had is amazing because they have an architectural feel but it’s also very feminine. It’s glamorous and tasteful, but also a bit avant garde. Just beautiful.
Do you have a favourite look of all time?
I wouldn’t say I do, but I have always liked Charlize Theron’s red-carpet style. She’s gorgeous and has a classic look with a bit of edginess to it. She always looks amazing.
Have you ever helped dress The Bold and the Beautiful stars for the red carpet?
Some are very comfortable and have their own ideas but then there are other actors who will come to me and I will help to source gowns. We have different style houses in LA that I pull gowns from. Monique Lhuillier is one designer we work with quite a bit on the show, and Heather Tom wore a design of hers one year.
Tell us about your own red-carpet looks.
I very rarely get to design my own gown for an awards’ event because I’m always so busy with the show I leave myself out. The year before last, however, I was able to design my own dress and my tailor created it. We won an award that year, so it was amazing.
How do you see fashion changing in the future, once things go back to normal?
I think you’re going to see an explosion of fashion; things are going to become over the top and people are going to be so excited to dress up again. Some designers are already designing specifically for when this happens because they need that escapism. They need to have that feeling of a dream within reality.
It feels like there’s already so much creativity in these times. Do you feel it?
I do! There was a competition in New York to design a hat, when lockdown first started. The idea was to design hats based on a story. I was really going to enter but then work started again. You feel like you’re going to explode because you have all these ideas.
What fashion advice can you give in these crazy times?
Just try to have some fun. I love it when people wear a mask to co-ordinate with their look, for example matching it with the fabric of their pants. Let’s just embrace this and make our masks a fashion statement that will make us stand out.
The Bold and the Beautiful is on weekdays on Eva (DStv channel 141) at 17:30 and 23:30 with an omnibus on Saturdays at 16:00 and Sundays at 23:00.
