With each season, the regimented world of The Handmaid’s Tale expands, drawing viewers deeper into Margaret Atwood’s dystopia. In season three, airing now, the narrative stakes are even higher as June (Elisabeth Moss) works to disrupt the repressive system of Gilead from within. The costumes are similarly amped up.
“It’s been a massive challenge,” says Natalie Bronfman, the show’s new lead costume designer, who has filled the shoes of Ane Crabtree after working with her closely since season one. “It’s rare that you have a show where almost everything is made from scratch. We don’t buy a lot of stuff.” Among the few purchases were over 500 pairs of shoes, from Aldo and Steven Madden, which were extensively modified to become handmaids‘ boots. The handmaid cloaks and bonnets, on the other hand, were entirely handmade – hundreds of them, in different sizes and lined for different seasons – using over 900 metres of wool, sourced by Bronfman and dyed to that very specific shade of crimson.
Series three has marked a significant turning point in the wardrobe of Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski), who burns down her house early in the season – destroying all of her clothes in the process. Bronfman used the opportunity to introduce telling shifts in her look.
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