Make a song and dance about Emma Pillsbury's cute retro look from Glee

The school guidance counselor shows the way with her 60s style.

It’s back! After the seemingly never-ending mid-season hiatus of four months, toe-tapping TV sensation Glee is back on the box. It returned last night in the US with part two of season one (to be screened in the UK on Monday 19th) and already we’re seriously in the swing of Glee mania (yup, we’re self-confessed Gleeks). And while we’ve already paid homage to the preppy onscreen style of ballad-loving leading lady Rachel (Lea Michele), we’re now switching from student to teacher as we’re breaking down the cute ‘n’ quirky fashions of Emma Pillsbury (Jayma Mays).

The fashions in Glee are just as important for switched-on style mavens as the song and dance numbers and school guidance counselor Emma embodies this trendsetting status. Though interestingly, it’s not the most obvious of stand-out styles. There are no designer labels, no cutting edge catwalk cool and no larger-than-life drama, instead her look is an unashamed throwback to more demure and delicate times, taking its inspiration from the 60s with vivid primary colours, cute twinsets and jewellery your gran would be proud of. It’s feminine, conservative and oh so cute.

The show’s costume designer, Lou Eyrich explains that the inspiration for Emma’s old school style was a combination of Jayma herself (who before Glee turned up in everything from Heroes to Ugly Betty) and the character, especially Emma’s obsession with germs. “We wanted to make her look like everything’s so neat — perfectly ironed and tucked-in shirts with matching belts, shoes and pins,” she reveals. “We wanted to make her stand out from the other teachers. She’s always so happy and excited, so we wanted her outfits to represent that sunny disposition.”

“In the pilot, we made her look much more teacher-y. Now we’re having more fun with her character, keeping her bright and unusual. Quirky is the word. Emma’s also always in stacked Mary Janes or T-strap heels. It takes the outfit down from being too stylish or too sexy. It makes her look prim and almost old-fashioned.”

Old fashioned it might be, but still it has enough modern attitude to have audiences eager to recreate the Emma look. This is thanks to Eyrich sourcing much of Emma’s wardrobe from high street stores such as Anthropologie and J. Crew (the yellow outfit almost being top-to-toe J.Crew) rather than just vintage boutiques, helping it not seem too crusty and out-dated but fun and adorable.

And the yellow ensemble worn in the pilot episode is just perfect for sunny, summer styles. Yellow, whether worn light in a lemon or moodier in a mustard is bang on-trend right now and so we’re breaking down Emma’s look for all you Gleeks out there. Unfortunately much of the J. Crew originals, such as the J.Crew Penelope Mary Janes and the J. Crew scattered gold-rimmed bauble necklace are no longer available, but we’ve rummaged around for some similarly striking lookalikes bursting with Emma’s vintage feel.