Bridgerton costume designer John Glaser reveals the thoughts behind the key looks for season 3 (and a susprise Australian influence!)

Bridgerton season 3 arrives with plenty of juicy emotional backstory, focusing on the will-they/won't-they friendship between Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan). After a summer of traveling around Europe, Colin returns to England as a mature, eligible bachelor. Meanwhile Penelope is determined to find a husband and break free from her controlling mother, the gold-digging Lady Featherington.

As ever, the show's bold visual style plays a key role. Remixing the iconic fashions of Regency England, Bridgerton combines Jane Austen-style 1810s silhouettes with a bolder color palette and extravagant accessories. These costumes are packed with meaning, from the Featherington family’s intentionally garish color scheme, to the Parisian trends popularized by the local modiste (aka dressmaker), signaling which debutantes are following cutting-edge fashion.

So while we do see plenty of young women in those classic Empire-line white gowns with flowing skirts and modest gloves… they also wear a full Sephora’s worth of 21st century cheekbone shimmer and eyeshadow, with Queen Charlotte critiquing their eligibility in a foot-tall, jewel-encrusted wig.