Costuming Peaks – Donna Hayward in the Twin Peaks Pilot

Today, I’m returning to the Twin Peaks Pilot episode with a look at the costume worn by Lara Flynn Boyle who played Donna Hayward during the first two seasons of the show. While Donna wears only one outfit throughout this first episode, we also get a look at her costume during a picnic with Laura Palmer captured on video by James Hurley.

COSTUMING TEAM FOR THE TWIN PEAKS PILOT

Patricia Norris served as the Costume Designer for the Pilot episode. She had previously worked with David Lynch on Blue Velvet and The Elephant Man. Other film credits include Wild at Heart,  Days of Heaven, Scarface, and 12 Years a Salve.

During her career, she received six Oscar nominations, and was the only person to receive Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Costume Designers Guild (in 2007) and the Art Directors Guild (in 2011). Sadly, she died from natural causes on February 20, 2015. Lynch reflected on Norris’ impact to Twin Peaks an IndieWire.com article in June that year:

“She set the look of ‘Twin Peaks. Again, people talked about the way the characters on ‘Twin Peaks’ were dressed. She’s sort of perfect at everything she does.”

Norris was joined by Ron Leamon as Wardrobe Supervisor and Earl Lewis as Key Costumer.

Leamon has continued designing costumes for films, television series, and commercial productions for over 30 years and has spent years advocating for film production in the Pacific Northwest. In 2014, he received the Mayor of Seattle’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Film. He had also previously worked with Lynch in the costume department for Blue Velvet.

Henry Earl Lewis (credited as Earl Lewis), a fellow Blue Velvet alum, worked on costumes for a variety of productions in the 1990s (including Chips, The War Dog). He currently resides overseas as a blogger and teacher.

DONNA HAYWARD IN THE TWIN PEAKS PILOT

The first time we see Donna Hayward she is walking down the hallway at Twin Peaks High School. This will be her outfit for the entire episode, with the later addition of a green jacket.

At her locker, she has a brief exchange with James Hurley about picnic weather.

This scene was also included as a publicity shot from the Pilot episode, though it was taken from a different angle.

It appears Donna’s cardigan sweater was made in Italy by United Colors of Benetton. It was recently sold on Mercari for about $100, so replicas may be out there if you look long enough.

The sweater is made from 30% Mohair, 29% Polyamide nylon, 21% acrylic and 20% Laine wool.

I found also image of two different cardigans with different color combinations but the patterns match Donna’s on-screen sweater. I wonder if Horne’s Department Store carried the sweater or perhaps Donna went shopping in Seattle with Josie Packard.

Fellow Twin Peaks fan Igor Leoni pointed out that the Benetton sweater returns in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me and The Missing Pieces from 2014. We catch a glimpse of it when Donna hugs Laura after she appears on her doorstep crying.

We get an even better look at it in the deleted scene where Doctor Hayward does a magic trick for Laura Palmer. Donna (played by Moira Kelly) is even wearing a long red skirt.

A closer shot shows even more detail of this iconic sweater.

When in the classroom, Donna has removed her orange and brown cardigan. My gut tells me that her shirt is a vintage Pendleton as their shirts were commonly used throughout the series.

While I haven’t found an exact match, this Pendleton, one-pocket shirt was produced in the 1960s. Donna’s buttons seem to have a black-and-white marble effect similar to the buttons on the shirt above. Finding a match for these shirts is sometimes pure luck as it depends when or if someone decides to sell them via an online auction site. I typically use Picclick.com to review a bunch of images together versus using the eBay search function.

The classroom scene is the only time we’ll see Donna without her cardigan or jacket in this episode.

DONNA HAYWARD’S GREEN JACKET

Once classes were dismissed, Donna searches for James Hurley. In the script, she stops by the Bookhouse and speaks with Jake Morrissey who owns both the Bookhouse and The Roadhouse. Unable to find James, she drives to Big Ed’s Gas Farm. It’s there we see her green jacket with brown pocket accents and leather epaulettes.

The jacket screams 1980s in design but I have yet to find a match. It’s the hunter green jacket color paired with brown leather accents and oversized epaulettes. The entire coat makes me feel this is from The Jean Scene or some other 80s fashion store. I haven’t found a match yet but one will turn up.

Donna stays in her United Colors of Benetton cardigan and green jacket when speaking with Special Agent Dale Cooper at the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Department.

A publicity shot shows a different angle of their conversation as Cooper plays the VHS tape of her picnic excursion.

We get a rare look at the back of Donna’s outfit as she leaves the conference room after being shown the picnic video. Speaking of picnics…

DONNA HAYWARD’S PICNIC OUTFIT

Cooper shows the video of Laura Palmer and Donna Hayward’s picnic to both Bobby Briggs and Donna. She is wearing a different outfit that will later appear in episode 1.001 as a flashback transition scene.

Donna appears to be sporting the same brown boots she wears in the rest of the Pilot.

Another look at some details of her picnic outfit as she dances side-to-side with Laura.

I love the iconic Argyle-pattern cardigan Donna wears during the picnic. The buttons look too modern for it to be something out of the 1950s or 60s. I have yet to find a match though versions of this cardigan appears throughout the series.

For example, look at the cardigan draped over Lucy’s shoulders later in the Pilot episode when she calls Sheriff Truman during the stakeout. The sweater appears to have a color variation.

Donna’s picnic sweater reappears on Annie Blackburn in Twin Peaks episode 2.019. Notice the colors and patterns appear similar to the sweater from the Pilot. Perhaps there was a sale at Horne’s Department Store.

DONNA’S NIGHTTIME IN TWIN PEAKS OUTFIT

Donna is seen in the stairwell listening to her parents just before she sneaks out to meet James Hurley. She is only wearing her cardigan in this scene.

The scene cuts to Donna walking in her bedroom (per the script) as her sister Harriet contemplates poetry. Donna suddenly is wearing the green jacket from earlier in the day. There is a scene that is missing which would have possibly shown Donna quietly creeping down the hallway and putting on her jacket. A behind-the-scenes article from March 1989 mentioned this scene: “filming would be done in an upstairs bedroom and hallway, and in the Victorian-style living room.”

Donna will pretty much remain in her jacket, red skirt and brown boots for the rest of the episode.

We get a well-lit look at her Pilot outfit when James Hurley is pulled over by Sheriff Truman and Agent Cooper.

It also appears back at the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Department where her father is seen waiting for her as James Hurley is booked into jail.

This is a third publicity shot with Donna sporting her outfit.

In addition to a great close up her vintage shirt and awesome 1980s jacket, we get a look at her tiny earrings as she says goodbye to James. This will be the only time Donna wears this particular outfit in the series. It’s incredibly memorable – the complementary colors of red and green paired with the secondary colors found in the orange and brown cardigan. It’s perfect which is why Patricia Norris was a master of her craft.

The image of Donna from the Pilot is forever burned in my memory.