The ‘Mindy’ Designer

"Mindy just loves clothes," says costume designer Salvador Perez, the man responsible for giving Fox's The Mindy Project its sartorial sizzle. 

The Cage

"This is just sort of a big closet," Perez says of the storage locker that holds 10,000 pieces of wardrobe used to dress Mindy Lahiri and her posse. Kaling's character — an undeniable clotheshorse — has her own space, while the rest of the cast — including Chris Messina, Ed Weeks and Ike Barinholtz — have another. 

Color Wheel

"This is really like my paint palette," Perez says of the massive storage space, which holds colored, textured and patterned pieces from the likes of French Connection, L.K. Bennett, Tory Burch and Kate Spade that have become staples for both Kaling and her small-screen counterpart. "We put her in colors that most people are afraid of. And on Mindy, they're just magical."

Custom Coats

Fans of the show may notice Mindy's penchant for colorful, fall-worthy coats that tend to make us long for changing leaves. Turns out, Perez designs and constructs each one himself.

"I try to make them look wintery but without heavy fabric," he says. He scours L.A. fabric stores including Mood and International Silks & Woolens for vintage fabrics and buttons, and then uses a unique lining for each. "I love my linings," he says of the '60s-inspired, Pucci-esque prints. "No one sees them but we know they're there. If you're gonna take time to put a lining it, make it fun."

Foot Candy

In Kaling's cage, shoes fill an entire back wall. "The shoes we don't see as much because Mindy is more about comfort in shoes," Perez says. "But she does love a big heel. She loves Ferragamo. When it's a party, we throw on a Jimmy Choo with a little sparkle."

Sal’s Office

From the outside, the Edith Head Costume Department on Universal's Burbank lot looks like a run-of-the-mill self-storage facility. But inside is a veritable treasure trove of style — halls are adorned with sketches by the likes of Emmy-nominated costume designer Cate Adair, glass cases are filled with hundreds of pieces of vintage costume jewelry and garment racks line entire walkways. There's even a room devoted to vintage fur. "My home office is different," Perez says with a smirk.

Tagged

"We tag and label absolutely everything," Perez says, noting that Ziploc bags are bought by the thousands. "Because when there's 35 pairs of blue jeans in a room, it can become chaos."

Mood Board

Inside his office just across from The Mindy Project's wardrobe cages, Perez has tacked up a mood board featuring everything from Vogue editorial spreads to Oscar de la Renta ads. "This one is really about texture," he says of his most recent tear. "It changes all the time."

More Mood Boards

Fabric swatches, headshots and office inspiration.

The Trailer

"This is the working closet," Perez says of the wood-floored, air conditioned wardrobe room on wheels. There, Perez keeps two episodes worth of gear for each character. Other features include a stacked washer and dryer, a TV that has never been turned on and an iced tea maker that hasn't yet left its box.

Mindy’s ‘Line’

Inside the trailer, each character has a "line" of clothes for each episode. Within Mindy's style stash lies BedHead pajamas, Marc Jacobs plaid tunics, Trina Turk pinafores and commando thongs ("10 percent of my budget is underwear," Perez says). Two major standouts include a dusty pink leather biker jacket by Burberry and a black Giambattista Valli cocktail dress brought in from Kaling's own closet. "The bars lock down so that nothing falls off when we travel." 

Bags of Baubles

Earrings are organized by color and hung in organizer bags on Mindy's "line." Says Perez, flipping through the stock: "We have red, turquoise, gold metallic …" 

And Real Bags, Too

"There's a multitude of presents in here," Perez says of the drawers and cabinets that are solely reserved for every girl's biggest weakness: designer bags. "She's a New Yorker. You don't travel in New York without a great bag." Cross-body styles are a Kaling favorite so she has the freedom to move her hands and, uh, act. So how does Perez protect the thousands of dollars worth of Chanel, Hermes and Celine merch that lives in the trailer? "We nondescriptly put them in the drawers. We don't want them to be obvious. If anybody came in here we'd be killed." 

Primary Colors

Birkin bags, anyone? Perez keeps his wardrobe room stocked with a selection of the coveted Hermes style — which can run up to $25,000 a pop and take years of mulling through waiting lists to snag. Of course in true Mindy fashion, there's nary a black Birkin in sight. How many does Perez have? "I stopped counting," he says. "Accounting hasn't stopped counting. But I have."

A Constant Shopper

"She's constantly shopping," Perez says of his boss. "The other day she had a photo shoot and on her way home she went by DVF because they were having a sale. So she started texting me photos. She's very involved. She will find a great piece, and then my challenge is to mix it into her wardrobe."

The Mindy Project

"The fun part of this job is getting to be that creative every single week," said Perez.