cbswatchmagazine.com:
Gossip Girl costume designer Eric Daman on dressing the stars and cultivating real style
HE’S the reason your teenage daughter (and possibly even you) wore a headband awhile back. As the costume designer for The CW’s buzzworthy teen drama Gossip Girl, Eric Daman is a fashion force to be reckoned with. Over a glass of prosecco, Daman, who earned his stripes working with Sex and the City’s famed wardrobe designer Patricia Field, dished on what it takes to look like a Girl, the people who inspire him, and why confidence may be the most crucial accessory of all.
Watch!: How did you originally think of characters, style-wise?
Daman:
Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) was a lot of Kate Moss-very carefree, tousled and sexy. She could wear whatever $500 pair of jeans and H&M shirt were lying on the floor and look beautiful.
Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) was much more Jackie Onassis and Anna Wintour, meticulous archetypes from an Old World hierarchy. It’s changed as they’ve grown as characters and stars. Serena is still carefree, boho chic but I’ve taken her out of jeans and now she’s in Hervé Leger dresses. And Blair has grown out of headbands but she is still retro, with clothes that are a little more structured and severe.
Watch!: Speaking of headbands, did you have any idea that you were starting a hair accessory mania?
Daman: For me, Blair was “headband girl”-I feel like that character needed the headband the way Linus needed his blanket. She put it on every day and it was her crown. But I don’t think any of us could have known it would turn into a phenomenon, with Henri Bendel selling out of headbands every weekend! So much has changed since Sex and the City, when Facebook and Twitter weren’t even up. Now there’s this great hybrid of wireless communication and social networking.
Watch!: How much thought do you give to viewers emulating the characters’ style?
Daman: I feel a lot of responsibility to make sure everyone can be a part of it, so I mix affordable things with really unaffordable things. There needs to be something in there that girls can connect with directly, so they can say, “I can get that.” People who want to dress like Serena aren’t going to wear a neckline down to their navel, but they can wear a BCBG T-shirt like she does.
Watch!: How many outfits are you putting together per show?
Daman: Just the main characters add up to about 55-85 outfits an episode. Serena goes to school, then she has an after-school outfit, then she has a gala, then she goes to school the next day …
Watch!: Do the main characters ever wear anything twice?
Daman: The boys do sometimes. The girls, never. It’s all new, all the time. Sometimes they will wear a pair of shoes twice, but not very often. We borrow about 40 percent of the clothes, and those go back to the designers. The other 60 percent are purchased, and they get catalogued and put into a giant warehouse owned by Warner Bros.
Watch!: What if one of the girls is dying to keep something?
Daman: If it’s borrowed from a designer, a lot of times the designer will give it to them. If I’ve bought it, I will have someone call the store, put the same item on hold, and the girl will go buy it.
Watch!: How tricky is it to dress teenage stars provocatively but also keep them looking slightly age-appropriate?
Daman: It’s a fine line. We’ve pushed the boundaries pretty far, but it’s a fairy tale-it’s hyperreality. Blake and Leighton are a little older, but when we are dealing with Taylor [Momsen], that requires a little more finesse. When she started the show she was 13, and you’re dealing with that prepubescent angst of someone who sees the other girls in their 10-inch Louboutins and 3-inch skirts and is saying, “I need to look like that.” Now she’s 16, but those clothes still don’t really fit the character.
Watch!: Is it boring by comparison to dress the guys?
Daman: I love dressing the guys! Dressing Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) is a dream come true. Here’s this wealthy straight character pulling off pink ascots, swilling bourbon with a stripper on either side of him. He’s so rich and confident he just waltzes around.
Watch!: In your book, You Know You Want It, you stress the importance of confidence when it comes to style. Does this really go further than a credit card with no limit?
Daman: For me, having style is 50 percent [about fashion] and 50 percent confidence. As long as you feel good, you can wear anything you want and look amazing. It works both ways, though-clothing gives people confidence. If spending $500 on a bag or a pair of sunglasses makes you feel better, that’s great. I’d much rather a girl have her sunglasses make her feel great than take a Xanax.
Watch!: Any tips for bolstering confidence?
Daman: I love tabloids and I read them, but be aware of the message, which points fingers at every bulge and is very negative about women’s bodies. You have to remember that actresses have stylists. Everything is tailored. She has a chef. She hasa trainer. She has a nutritionist. And on and on. Normal women don’t have those luxuries.
Watch!: Are there any absolute fashion dos?
Daman: Be properly measured for a bra and invest in three great ones. I learned from Pat Field on Sex and the City, while we were dressing Sarah Jessica Parker, how important underarchitecture is. It enhances whatever you put on top. Also, get a great pair of jeans that are age and body appropriate. Jeans are like the new black-you can wear them day and night, depending on the shoes and accessorizing. I wrote a whole chapter in my book about them and getting the right fit. It doesn’t matter what the label is; I have girlfriends for whom J Brand is the perfect jean, and others whose perfect jeans are H&M.
Watch!: What do you never want to see a woman doing?
Daman: Wearing those “invisible” clear plastic bra straps. Let’s start with this: They’re not invisible. Also, having your thong hang out above your jeans. It’s not sexy.
Watch!: What would thrill you as a next adventure, post-Gossip Girl?
Daman: An Oscar!
Thanks to youknowyouloveme.org
I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of years from now he is "Chace Crawford, Tony Romo's brother in law"... 
), but I had it if needed... 
