...On what we can expect for the season ahead:
"In the second half of this season, Olivia will often be in darker clothes as the story line darkens. There is a lot of intrigue and behind the scenes scheming going on between the characters and both Kerry and I have worked rather hard to be true to Olivia's palette but sometimes some of the things that have happened in the story have made us want to use darker tones.
...On Olivia's favorite designers:
"I felt that the first season was all about the Tory Burch trench, the second season became about coats in general: Escada, Armani, and Dior. This season it has been about the Prada purses, Burberry and Dior coats, and lots and lots of gloves by Gaspar, our local, custom-made glove company."
...On the meaning behind all that white:
"The idea of white being used in the show came from the pilot script, which the amazing Shonda Rhimes wrote, [and] she discussed being a 'gladiator' and 'wearing the white hat'. These lines had a huge impact on my design process, and the whole idea came from those fantastic lines that she wrote. However, the use of color to tell the story had grown over these three seasons, and we try to tell the story throughout the use of color. How does a character feel? What is happening in a particular moment? So when Mellie is jealous, she wears green, [and] et cetera."
...On crossing over to the dark side:
"The themes of the second half of the season are darker than ever before, the relationships are becoming more and more complicated and difficult, and to express this darkness we have been using a lot more dark: grey, navy blue, and YES—even black."
...On Olivia Pope then versus now:
"From the very beginning, Kerry and I decided that the Olivia Pope from the present, who has her own company and her band of gladiators, had to wear pants. So that meant that in flashbacks, Olivia would be a skirt lady, and even dresses. The only time we have broken this rule is when Olivia attended the Christening, as we felt that as she was to be Godparent to the baby, she would dress up to go to the church. Additionally, to help the audience understand quickly that we are in a different time, we do not use Prada purses in flashbacks, as she usually carries a Goyard or Ralph Lauren purse."
