With Euphoria season two finally hitting our screens, the stunning fashion and iconic looks from the characters is all anyone can talk about. While the show deals with some pretty heavy topics, the outfits, hair, and make up also play a huge role in the popularity of Euphoria, with people all over the world recreating the looks of their favourite characters.
Let’s take a dive into the characters’ wardrobes, and find out what costume designer Heidi Bivens has said about the fashion in season one, and what we can expect from season two.
Where did the inspiration come from?
Bivens looked to real teenagers for inspiration and told Fashionista that she would sit outside high schools and watch teenagers leaving ‘to see what was really going on with how they dress.’
The clothes from the show are a mix between current high street fashion and vintage pieces. Many of the costumes were sourced by Bivens from the Los Angeles area, and she also uses Instagram as inspiration.
In season one, Bivens wanted the costumes to be as accurate as possible in terms of price range and tried to ‘be really consistent with what kids can actually afford.’ However, if you have a good eye for fashion, you may notice that in season two Lexi is wearing Miu Miu. Bivens’ reasoning behind putting Maude Apatow in designer? She wanted to have fun, and simply said ‘F*ck it, she looks great in it.’
Bivens told WWD: ‘The first season, it was my intention to keep it feeling grounded enough that it felt like these characters could really wear the clothes, whereas the second season verges more into fantasy.’
The actors had a say in their costumes
Some of the actors from Euphoria get pretty involved with what their characters wear. Alexa Demie is known to mood-board for Bivens, pulling together ideas for her character, Maddy Perez. Bivens explained to WWD that Demie even went fabric shopping with her for Maddy’s iconic New Year’s Eve dress, and said that it’s always great when you have a cast member who loves to get involved, citing Demie’s ‘great instincts.’
Demie is not the only cast member to play a role in what her character wears. In the New Year’s Eve episode (season two episode one) you will notice Hunter Schafer’s character Jules wearing a star choker necklace and it turns out the actress and model made it herself. She was given a piece of green ribbon by Bivens and sewed the star trim on while on set.
But what about the boys? Jacob Elordi, who plays Nate, has some pretty clear instructions on what he wants his character wearing. Bivens told Interview Magazine that she decided there would be no skinny jeans in season two of the show. However, a pair made its way into Elordi’s trailer and he left a hilarious note (which has since gone viral online) which reads: ‘No more skinny jeans, please!’
The story behind the most iconic looks
Maddy’s Carnival Look
This is without a doubt one of the most iconic outfits of the entire first series of Euphoria. In season one episode four, Maddy rocks up to the town’s carnival in a purple two piece with cut-out pants and a teeny tiny bralette. An outfit that Bivens calls ‘outrageous.’
It is in this costume when Maddy says perhaps her most famous line. After being told off for what she is wearing by her controlling boyfriend Nate, Maddy takes drugs and, while his father, Cal Jacobs, is being crowned the winner of the chilli cook-off, Maddy turns to face the crowd of people and proclaims: ‘I’m not supposed to be here right now because I’m dressed like a h**ker and none of you like me, but I just wanted to say congratulations.’
She then proceeds to knock over his pot of chilli and sashay off. Like we said, iconic.
The set is from I.AM.GIA but was only available in black and white. Luckily, Bivens got the brand’s permission to copy it and made it in the deep purple colour you will recognise Maddy pulling off flawlessly.
Rue’s Hoodie
While it may not be the most fashion-forward look in Euphoria, Rue’s hoodie is a staple of the narrator’s wardrobe and is basically all we see her wearing in season one. Once belonging to her father, the burgundy zip-up is ‘probably one of the only things she owns that she knows where it is,’ according to Bivens.
Bivens explained to Vogue that Rue will not be wearing that hoodie as much in season two just to ‘make her character feel more well-rounded.’ She said: ‘I think there was a lot of clinging to old memories in the first season, with the death of her father, and while that sweatshirt didn’t disappear – it definitely is still around – I think there’s just so much opportunity over the passage of time for us to show something besides just that sweatshirt.’