Reynolds Woodcock, the fussy 1950s London couturier played by Daniel Day-Lewis in Phantom Thread , is ostensibly the star figure of Paul Thomas Andersons latest movie. Yet, throughout the film, Woodcock is gloriously upstaged by a variety of supporting characters: namely, the elegant dresses of his own design, and the women who wear them.

Enter Mark Bridges, who has designed the clothes for each of Andersons films, including Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood, The Master and Phantom Thread.

Embedding himself in sartorial history, Bridges used the sudden opulence of post-World War II Europe to imbue the House of Woodcock with necessary contradictions: The patterns are customary and militaristic, worldly and modern, marked by both lace and heavy, rich fabrics and colors. Bridges and his team created more than 50 costumes for Phantom Thread, including wedding dresses, ball gowns and casual daytime looks.

Bridges drew inspiration from the British fashion world, creating regalia based on research and archeology from the era. He was given access to the famous dresses housed at Londons Victoria and Albert Museum including pieces by Givenchy, Balmain, Balenciaga, Charles Frederick Worth, Victor Stiebel and Norman Hartnell. We could touch [them], see the fabrics, the New York-born Bridges told HuffPost. But, also, finding incredible knits and tweeds and things already in existing garments from the period and being able to use that as a costume [during scenes set] in the countryside [made the clothes feel] a little more lived-in [...], which Paul really loved. We had both sides of it: I had to do a movie story, and then I had to do a fashion-house story at the same time.

Ahead of the movie opening in wide release on Jan. 12, Bridges walked us through the designing of four key looks from Phantom Thread, in which Woodock finds a muse in Alma Elson (Vicky Krieps), whose initial meekness gives way to unlikely resolve. As the impetuous Woodcock incorporates Alma into his life, their romance becomes a game of wit and light sadomasochism. But, amid the lush drama, we never lose sight of those dresses.

The Crimson-and-Lace Debut