Holly Poe Durbin 
The Costume Designer”s Toolkit 
The Process of Creating Effective Design

The Costume Designer’s Toolkit explores the wide-ranging skills required to design costumes for live performance in theatre, dance, opera, and themed entertainment. Arranged in chronological order to create a design, each chapter describes tools, strategies, and techniques costume designers use to create lively and believable characters within a story environment. The book provides a step-by-step outline of the costume design process beginning with developing as an artist and creating an artistic vision for a script. It covers a wide range of topics, including:

• Assessing the scope of a production


• Understanding design thinking and the creative process


• Project management and budget forecasting


• Collaborating with and leading creative teams


• Current practices in costume rendering and communication


• Mixing purchased, rented, stock, and built costumes to form a design


• Designing a garment with impact


• Fitting costumes on performers


• Combining grit and grace for a successful career

Each topic includes case studies and tips from experienced professionals, identifies vital skills, describes techniques, and reveals the essential elements of artistic leadership, collaboration, and cultural acumen.

The Costume Designer’s Toolkit is the perfect guidebook for the student, aspiring, or early-career costume designer, to be used alone or in costume design university courses.