6 Easy Ways To Steal Teagan’s Signature Crew Girl Style This Fall
The show's costume designer breaks down how to master her “delicious athletic preppiness.”
Another semester at Easton Prep is on the way. Netflix announced that a second season of Crew Girl is in the works, and Miku Martineau (who plays Teagan Tao) shared her excitement about returning to the fictional town of Eagle's Cove. “There’s so much left to explore with the characters, the romances, and the rowing team — it’s going to be a ride for sure,” she says.
For fashion girls, a new season means seeing more of Teagan’s coveted aesthetic, which costume designer Candace Cruikshank describes as “delicious athletic preppiness.”
Cruikshank — whose impressive resume includes Virgin River and Josie and the Pussycats — tells Elite Daily that the overall style direction was heavily influenced by the script. “It was honestly about the character, the writing, and Teagan’s move — coming from LA and going to the East Coast,” she says. “And then it was about Miku and dressing her body, and what she would feel comfortable in. She's got this swagger, and she's just a cool girl.”
Even though Teagan wears a variety of brands, Cruikshank says her Crew Girl wardrobe embodies a lot of Ralph Lauren. “That was my biggest influence. I find his stuff to be so classic, yet he hits the trends in a great new way.”
If you want to build a Crew Girl capsule collection this season, the costume designer says, “For Teagan, you need a flirty skirt, really baggy sweatpants, a nicely fitted cropped bra, a couple of skin-tight dresses, and collars. It's all about collars for the preppiness. The more the better.”
Below, Cruikshank breaks down the exact essentials you need to master Teagan’s signature look.
Flirty Skirts & Bodycon Dresses
One of Teagan’s most memorable looks from the show was her fall formal dress, which turned as many heads as Rachael Leigh Cook’s red ensemble from She’s All That. Cruikshank shares that the one-of-a-kind gown was actually her own daughter's prom dress.
“What happened with the red dress is we tried on many, many, many dresses. Miku’s a tiny girl, so when we were getting into the more fluffy ones that Amber and Sage were wearing, she was really drowning in them,” she says. “Once we saw her in that red dress, no one could unsee it. It just features her so well, and all the femininity that we hadn't explored yet.”
While Teagan may be most comfortable in her athleisure and baggy pants, Cruikshank wanted to show off her flirty side with cute skirts and form-fitting dresses. Adding a few of these to your wardrobe for upcoming parties and events is a guaranteed way to turn some heads.
Baggy Sweatpants For Everyday
Even when Teagan wasn’t at practice or working out, she was wearing baggy pants. Her go-to look almost always consisted of a form-fitting top and loose pants. If you want the Crew Girl aesthetic, you need a variety of comfy bottoms that include sweats, track pants, and even preppy trousers to wear with your favorite baby tees.
For the perfect fit, Cruikshank says to buy pants that are a few sizes too big and sew them in at the waist. “We just tailored them down to fit her perfectly, so that they would sit on her hips,” she says.
Nicely Fitted Crop Tops & Camis
The other part of Teagan’s go-to OOTD is a form-fitting top. She switches it up between a crop top, baby tee, and camisole when she’s not at school, headed to practice, or hanging out at home. The key is to find something that’s tight and flirty to juxtapose the bagginess on bottom. “One of the things that we love to do with Teagan is have the oversize, but then bring it in,” says Cruikshank.
When one of Miku’s looks was a little too large on set, the costume designer used a body piercing jewel to tuck it all in. “It created a nice cute pleat in the small of her back so that the silhouette brought her right in,” she says. “I don't think you saw the back [in the show], but it turned out really, really great.”
A Trusty Sports Bra & Leggings For Practice
When Teagan is headed to practice, she’s often seen wearing a sports bra, leggings, or a bodysuit. These athleisure pieces are essential to the Crew Girl aesthetic because they show how dedicated you are to the sport. Because authenticity was so critical for these scenes, Cruikshank admits putting together the team looks was the scariest part of the job.
“I wanted to make sure that they looked legit. I didn't want to make it fashionable when it didn't need to be fashionable, but I also didn't want to make it really boring,” she says. “I ended up connecting with Justin [Nakatsuka] from Row West on the island, and he actually makes all the unisuits — the one-piece suits that they wear — for the Canadian rowing teams that compete. We connected him with our art department, and we came up with what you see on screen.”
Easton Prep-Approved Collars
For Teagan’s Easton Prep style, you want to channel Ralph Lauren with plenty of collars and blazers. Even if the brand isn’t in your budget, you can find similar preppy essentials that fit the Crew Girl aesthetic by pairing a cropped collared tee with baggy tailored trousers or a flirty mini skirt with an oversized blazer.
Getting to match the Easton Prep uniform to each character’s personality was “so lovely” for Cruikshank. “Before they came to me, they were training, so they had a lot of time to bond together and see where they were in the echelon of things,” she says. “Some of the characters lean more into the clothing than others. Juliet [played by Olga Petsa] was one of my favorite characters to dress because she's so great, fantastic, and whimsical.”
Only The Essential Accessories
According to Cruikshank, they went “super duper minimal” on Teagan’s accessories. “Miku's such a beautiful girl that even just putting a little sparkle in her ears changes everything. She doesn't need anything, and that's rare.” The only additions you may want for her Crew Girl basics of a baby tee and baggy pants are a jacket or hoodie for comfort and necessities for rowing like hats, sunglasses, and sneakers.
Rowers online may have some issues with the technique in Crew Girl, but the costume department tried to make the uniforms as authentic as possible. “Oakleys are the big look for rowers. I know there are a lot of really opinionated ones out there, but we connected with 776BC, which is a company in Australia that is run by an Olympic rower. They were a huge part of [the team’s] look as well.” Even if you’re not a part of your own club, you can channel Teagan’s style with similar add-ons.
