A Lesson in Carefree Style From the People We Meet on Vacation Costume Designer

Costume designer Colin Wilkes had only four weeks to shop for around 92 looks in Netflix’s hit movie People We Meet on Vacation, and she did not disappoint. The job quickly turned into a team sport, with an international search commencing across Los Angeles, London, Germany, New York, and Barcelona to find the perfect combination of free-spirited elegance that the main character, Poppy Wright, embodies throughout the film.

Gathering inspiration from New Orleans, Tuscany, Barcelona, and more, Wilkes created high-end looks that turned heads, felt effortless, and maintained attainability, all while using bold colors (trend alert) and statement pieces to provide visual story cues to fashion and rom-com lovers alike.

In the first scene, Poppy describes how carefree you can be on vacation and how you can turn into a different person. How did you choose to express that through the film's costumes, and how can our readers tap into that energy for their next vacation?

I approached each vacation as if [Poppy] were developing her own persona. I loved this idea that Poppy, she read, she watched movies, she's into music, and so she was gathering this inspiration from all of these different places. So, for example, a film set in Italy would be an inspiration; the beautiful women and the elegance of Italian fashion would be an inspiration for the way that she would dress. A painting she would see would be inspiration for the colors. And then I thought, “Who is this persona that she wants to inhabit?” She is this carefree, free-spirited person who uses clothing as a form of self-expression. We were really able to use costume design as a way for her to paint that picture of herself.

I think what is so fun about going on vacation and becoming a new version of yourself is that you can pack it in; it's premeditated. It can be this fun exploration of getting to experiment in new ways. Whether that's accessorizing and making that be the statement piece, or the statement piece [is] one very simple dress. I think that by the end of the movie, [Poppy] had crystallized her way of experimenting with how she dresses and expresses herself through clothing.

It's funny you mentioned that a statement piece can be jewelry or it can just be a beautiful gown. I felt that with the chartreuse dress that she wore for the rehearsal dinner, and I realized it was just the dress. There weren't really any accessories. I thought that was such an elegant look. Is there any story behind sourcing that specific dress?

This was a big moment cinematically, and so I was like, will it detract if we add more? How does the dress speak for itself? And sometimes less is more. I think in terms of sourcing that dress, it was scripted as a green dress. I knew I didn’t want to do Atonement green, I didn't want to do neon green, so that chartreuse was this color that I feel like didn't have a place yet in the cinematic history of iconic dresses. And I was like, this is a great place to slot this in. I loved how it was a wrap dress that was so perfect in the way that she walked, in the way that it just was beautiful on Emily [Bader], too.

Speaking of the accessories, that was a huge part of Poppy's effortless style: having a more dressed-down outfit but then adding some great accessories. Some that I was obsessed with were the seashell necklace in the opening scene, the charm necklace on the camping trip. It was all just so perfect for each moment. Even the belt at the airport, the earrings at the wedding—she had the best accessories. Where did you pull that inspiration from? And where can I find such amazing pieces?

My assistant costume designer Rachel [Hranka] was on the ground [in Los Angeles] when we were in Spain. There's an incredible vintage world here in Los Angeles, and honestly, when you dig, you can find beautiful pieces. I think those statement pieces are forever. They will always have a place to come back and make their moment. We rented a lot of it, and then we had people on our crew who have private collections that rented us some of the rings.

A lot of it we sourced. It was vintage that we found in L.A. and Madrid. We kind of assumed the Poppy narrative of “What is the thrill of the find?” So we would go into these places that our incredible shoppers in Barcelona knew about and would talk [to shop owners] about what we wanted, and we would find these beautiful pieces—that extends to the purses, too. It’s really special when you can find something that already has a special quality that you feel like no one else has. That was the way that we like to think about Poppy sourcing her jewelry and accessorizing, like “Okay, these are combinations and stacks that you won't see anywhere else.” You can buy [one of] them as premade, but most of them were just things I put together. We had so much jewelry, it was nuts by the end! I would just spend hours putting little combos together and seeing what worked.

That makes me think: How can our readers tap into that personal style intuition as opposed to following the big trends?

That's what's so special about fashion being such a personal expression because everyone will gravitate toward something else. I like to think about building an outfit, much like Poppy, as something that can be very simple when you're traveling with a carry-on. Everything can be your capsule collection, and accessories are the bold statements. I like finding things, for me, that are a little bit more architectural, but I know for somebody else they might really gravitate toward gold-encrusted, gem-inlaid pieces.

I think it's really just about what you're channeling for the vacation or the event. “Theme matters” was such a big phrase that was tossed around when we were designing. At the end, when [Poppy’s] on the plane and she's flying away, she has that beautiful statement piece on. It was this moment where I was like, “Okay, she's this royal Egyptian queen, and she's just encrusted in these jewels.” Encouraging people to think about theme and the whole outfit, including the accessories as a piece, will help them find their own voice.

What were the vibes of the three main cities of the movie—New Orleans, Barcelona, and Tuscany—and how did they inspire the looks? What were you picking up from those cities that informed how you dressed the characters?

Tuscany: I really wanted to pull from a color palette that felt very soft, like summer. You could feel the breeze. It felt like a lot of paintings you see; there's just a quality of the light at a certain time in the summer that is very romantic. I wanted to pull that color palette of the butter yellows and the things that would feel part of that landscape. Also, just the retro big statement earrings and the scarf. It felt like she was very much dressing for that kind of like “I live in a villa for a week; I'm hosting.” She has that beautiful seashell hot set that was like a little mini crop, and you don't see it, but she had a beautiful '60s ring belt on and a men's white button-front linen shirt. It's just mixing the combination of things and how they all go together.

New Orleans, of course, I wanted this disco-ball fun room of Studio 54 meets rhinestone cowgirl, which felt really appropriate for that year that they were there. We went all out there, which was really fun because that was a moment where, visually, Alex and [Poppy], really contrast. I wanted them all to feel retro in their own way and nod to a different era, which was fun.

For Barcelona at that moment, emotionally, the energy is so romantically palpable, like that sexual tension. I knew that it needed to be more elegant and refined with where they were. I also wanted to pull in Gaudí, [who is] all over that city. You get these organic shapes that are really sculptural, and I wanted the dresses to have that same standalone quality. Her ring has this organic mushroom [shape] and her purse was also this beautiful fan, and it really reminded me of the architecture. And so also in that color world too, the red and chartreuse fit in there with the murals and the tiles and the artwork. I mean, it's a city that is alive and full of expression, love, and love of life.

With Alex, you mentioned how he contrasts Poppy. How did you approach styling him as a male character?

So much of Alex’s wardrobe was about what Poppy was wearing and how they visually contrasted in the frame. I worked a lot with thinking about color in that way, how [Poppy and Alex] were visually contrasting when they were next to one another, what scenes, what moments we really needed that contrast to be sharp.

For instance, you see in the Tuscany scene, he is a little bit more elevated than we've previously seen him in the linen shirts, but he's in a dark shirt and she's in a light shirt, and it's this moment of emotional clashing. That's what I was thinking about a lot in terms of his color journey. But also, I wanted to make sure that we were seeing him as the more masculine, heartthrob that Tom [Blythe] is by the end. And also, Sarah’s influence on him, right? Over time, when you're spending more time with a partner, you're being influenced, especially by women who care about fashion. They typically buy shirts for their men, so you see that he's being informed by these outward things. He's becoming more mature in the way he's dressing while still sticking to his formula: staple pieces and darker colors. Sometimes we see him in lighter colors. But it's just normally like the button-front and the straight-leg pant and a sensible shoe. I think that's why that crisp, beautiful white linen shirt with the cream suit was just so stunner on him.

Going back to some of Poppy's looks: She looked so chic at the airport, and I was like, "Whoa, I show up to the airport in my matching sweat set.” How can one balance feeling both comfortable and chic when they're jet-setting around the world?

Having something that you can be mobile in that is still very classic and doesn't wrinkle easily. Those were wool shorts [on Poppy]. I think that there's a bit of sensibility to her. I was thinking of what's easy for her to move in, what still looks classic and really chic. It's about having simpler lines and elegant staples that can all go together.

For Barcelona, we talked about the gorgeous wedding wear, but what do you think Poppy would wear for a regular day in Barcelona, maybe going to the Sagrada Familia or the Picasso Museum? She obviously was very inspired, as were you, by art and architecture. What do you think she might have worn on those occasions?

As a New Yorker, there's a sensibility that she would have in her footwear, like a statement sneaker. I mean, we had a lot of Sambas that we were trying on throughout that were bold colors. And then I think a statement necklace or a belt or a headscarf that was also a bold color. But I'd like to think that when she's traveling abroad in a city that there's a lot of mobility happening.

Were there any fashion or style Easter eggs throughout the film that viewers might have missed?

I mean, of course, there's the nod to How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days with the gown. When she's in the spin studio, she’s in a Vail shirt, which, in the book, they go on a Vail, Colorado, trip together. The red cowboy boots were also a nod to the book because there is a moment when Poppy is wearing red cowboy boots and puts them up on the dashboard. White tees for Alex were also mentioned several times in the book, so I wanted that classic, iconic American male look.

Where would Poppy shop? What were some of the specific places that you were sourcing from for the film?

Los Feliz Vintage in Barcelona. Oh my god, they have Nadia, who is one of the owners. She has an incredible archival collection, which she let us go into. But the store is incredible, too, and you can shop online.

I think that shopping small, artisan jewelry makers is a huge plus. Anywhere she went, she would research the artists there. We used a lot of Barcelona-based [artists], which there's so many incredible artists that make jewelry and clothing. She's pinning all of the vintage places that exist in the places she goes. I think it's about exploring a place in this way, right? What are the treasures that I can find from this place, because it's a visual scrapbook that I can wear to be reminded.

I love what you just said because people collect key chains or magnets, and Poppy's collecting jewelry and headscarves.

[Poppy] actually wore one of my bracelets that my grandma got for me when I was 6 years old that she had bought in Egypt, and in Tuscany, that was her bracelet. And it was just kind of like my little piece of the puzzle where I'm like, "This is a special piece for me," but also, this is the way that Poppy thinks about all of her pieces. "Oh, I found this in the back of a weird hole in the wall place in Rome, and this shop owner showed it to me,” which was the experiences we were having when we were shopping in Barcelona. That's the thrill of travel, really getting in there and seeing what people have because there are so many treasures that already exist.