So you want to be a… costume designer

Killing Eve costume designer Charlotte Mitchell discusses mixing creativity with practicality, the buzz that comes from creating a fictional world, and why aspiring costume designers should embrace a slow-burning career

Although she’s known for her work on season two of BBC show Killing Eve, costume designer Charlotte Mitchell didn’t start out on a TV set. After studying Fashion/Textiles at Central Saint Martins, she worked her way up the industry from high street buyer to fashion designer, before realising, at 27, that the world of fashion wasn’t the perfect fit. After deciding to switch over into costume design, Mitchell spent time on set at a daytime soap, as well as doing a stint in theatre and at period costume house Cosprop. Now a fully fledged costume designer, she’s worked on shows including Harlots and Endeavour, as well as several films.

Here she tells CR why it’s essential for aspiring costume designers to spend time learning their trade and explains why it’s a job that requires as much practicality as it does creativity.