Have you ever wondered who the lucky person is that gets to decide what the Gossip Girl [1] gang gets to wear each week? It's costume stylist Eric Daman, who also once assisted Patricia Field on the set of Sex and the City. He recently stepped out from the background and chatted with WWD [2] about his enviable job. Daman started out as a buyer at a boutique in Paris and went on to be an overnight model discovered by photographer Steven Meisel (his first modeling job was with Kate Moss). He eventually followed his dream of styling, and what he has done with Gossip Girl is a fashion phenomenon. The proof is in the pictures [3]. Here are the highlights from his interview:

[4]

• Eric on whether it’s more important for characters to look approachable or aspirational: It should be a little bit of both. I always make sure I mix some of the higher-end looks with something from a less expensive brand. I use stuff from Forever 21 and H&M all the time. You will always see someone wearing a $5,000 dress with a pair of Nine West shoes. That is how people dress today anyway.
• So, do the actors have a say in how their characters dress? I’m not a fashion Nazi. Blake [Lively] and Leighton [Meester] love to give their input, but they understand that I am there to help them create and develop their characters.
• Naturally, the Gossip Girls' individual styles have developed dramatically. It’s funny because they came into this as these fashion-naïve kids from LA who moved to New York in order to portray these true New Yorkers. They are like New Yorkers now — real, fashionable New Yorkers.

To hear more from Daman, and to see some wardrobe photos,

• Eric's thoughts on doing his own apparel line? I’ve thought about this a lot, actually. I would want to do a mass line, like something for Kohl’s, Target, Charlotte Russe. Then I would like to do a higher-end, capsule collection for a store like Bendel’s or Barneys. Again, it’s all about accessible fashion and mixing it up.