The Bear's costumes have garnered a cult following, and here's how you can recreate them

Costume Designer Courtney Wheeler reveals all

the bear costumes
(Image credit: Disney)

The Bear may not be obviously about fashion, since it follows the journey of Carmen (played by Jeremy Allen White) and Sydney (played by Ayo Edebiri) as they launch their own restaurant. In fact, you'll mostly see the characters in their chef's whites. However, their unassuming, everyday style outside of the kitchen has garnered a small, but strong following.

The standout pieces? Carmy's classic white t-shirt, his Ralph Lauren nautical-inspired jacket, Sydney's sailor outfit and her sleek black outfit from Season 3, amongst others. Behind these iconic outfits, you'll find Costume Designer Courtney Wheeler, who, with the help of the cast, makes sure each character expresses their own personal style and evolves through their journey.

Here, she takes me through the creative process, and should you wish to recreate these looks, you can shop them below.

The costumes in The Bear have been the unsung heroes of the show, how do you explain their success?

I think because it’s a show where, even though it’s not about fashion, the characters have a point of view and an ease in their dressing that appeals to people. It feels like the person you’d pass on the street, that maybe you want to stop and ask where they got a piece.

Which outfits from the latest season have been a hit with viewers?

I’m getting frequently asked about Carmy’s vintage Filson vest from his time in Copenhagen and his Ralph Lauren jacket. Sydney’s Ever funeral look and her sailor outfit from her meeting with Shapiro. Honestly waiting for someone to ask me about Fak’s ties because that’s my real pride and joy.

How have Syd and Carm's styles evolved throughout the series?

Our other characters like Richie and Marcus have more of an evolution through the series. Richie of course wears suits now (along with Sweeps and Fak) and Marcus has also changed what he’s wearing in the kitchen. Big graphics the first season, and then as he becomes more serious about his career path – he’s cutting out that noise when he’s at work but also being influenced by his experiences: meeting Carmy, going to Denmark.

Carmy & Sydney are pretty constant in terms of their point of view. Especially Carmy, he’s pretty settled in how he approaches dressing. Sydney, we may not use a season 1 sneaker or something that Ayo & I decided Sydney is done with, much like what we do in our own lives, things get put away for a while and we play with new items or rediscover other pieces in our wardrobe.

Same goes for Sydney. With this season we are seeing a lot of our characters in settings we’ve never seen them in before so that’s the difference. Sydney is interviewing and meeting these industry legends and so she’s dressing up more than we’ve seen her. It’s still very much her, just more polished when it’s called for.

the bear costumes

(Image credit: Disney)

How would you describe their styles?

Carmy is very classic, very well worn, but great quality and perfectly cut. Carmy approaches each piece in a considered way when he buys it, so later he doesn’t have to think about what he’s wearing at all. He has a uniform and because of that he can be dialed in at work.

Sydney’s style is definitely more about self-expression and experimentation. She gets a lot of joy from what she wears and putting it together. It’s a way to show a little of who she is without speaking. From her passed down vintage shirts & her bandanas to her more coveted, elevated pieces. She’s thinking about composition, something that comes naturally to her and why she’s such a great chef.

Do Ayo and Jeremy get any input in the costumes they wear on the show?

Totally, all of our cast does. A show is a collaboration and at the start of every season, and as we move through the season there are always check ins and discussions in the fittings about what feels right for our characters and what might be interesting to try. It really makes for a fun fitting, but also helps the actors get into their characters in a very natural way.

Seasons 1-3 of The Bear are now streaming on Disney+

Shop The Look

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Sydney's Paloma Wool puffer jacket from Season 1.

(Image credit: Disney)

Shop The Look

the bear costumes

Sydney's Comme Des Garcons nautical jacket from Season 3.

(Image credit: Disney)

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Carm and Syd in Season 2.

(Image credit: Disney)

Shop The Look

the bear costumes

Carm's NN07 jacket, which is restocked soon.

(Image credit: Disney)

the bear costumes

Carm's Ralph Lauren jacket in Season 3.

(Image credit: Disney)

The Bear costumes

Syd's sleek black look in the Season 3 finale.

(Image credit: Disney)
Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.