Keia Bounds started her career as a fashion designer, and now she’s behind the most iconic looks in the Michelle Buteau-fronted Netflix series, Survival of the Thickest, across its three seasons.
Even more, Bounds kicked off her journey in television, working on The Chappelle Show, where her career took off before she went on to work on other series, including Nurse Jackie, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and more.
“I had a mentor—well, she ended up being my mentor, but to start, she just saw me doing my job as a set costumer, actually dressing the background,” Bounds recalled to AFROTECH™ Culture. “She was like, ‘You do such a great job at building these characters for background,’ and she was like, ‘When you decide that you’re ready to be a designer, I want you to work for me.’”
Once she was ready, Bounds made the call, and it wasn’t long before she joined her mentor on the set of Nurse Jackie. Now, she’s calling the shots and opening the door for others through her role as the lead costume designer.
On building her reputation and client relationships
Making it in the world of fashion is no easy feat, which is why building trust has always been the recipe for Bounds’ success.
Her mindset is about ensuring that any artists she works with for Survival of the Thickest, and any other show she works on, understand that it is all about collaboration.
“Being able to build those relationships and help people understand that I know where they’re coming from as a designer, from the beginning, like wanting to have your own line, wanting to get exposure, and all of these things, and being on the other side of it, and being able to help people do that is so amazing,” said Bounds.
Bounds was hand-selected by Survival of the Thickest co-creator and executive producer Danielle Sanchez-Witzel to serve as the lead wardrobe stylist and costume designer for the show’s run, including the third and final season.
“I had a connection with Tasha Smith already from doing BMF and working with her as a director there, and then just random connections continued to happen,” she explained. “Like Amy Aniobi was on Rap Sh!t, and I had her kind of backing me up as a good designer, and then just showing my work and explaining how I would handle characters differently than what had already been presented to them. I think Michelle (Buteau) and Danielle really felt like I had something different. I had a different approach to designing this world, so I think they leaned into that.”
Using her power to highlight Black-owned brands
It was both second nature and necessary for Bounds to include Black-owned brands like BruceGlen and Brandon Blackwood in Survival of the Thickest.
“I do think it’s important, again, being a Black designer myself and knowing the lack of representation that we can tend to have sometimes, and not have this platform. I think it’s the only right thing to do,” said Bounds. “Not to mention, the talent that’s out there that just needs to shine, and I just love BruceGlen so much. They’re just so delightful to work with and just talk to, and they’ll jump on a call with me and invite me to things. They’re just amazing, and they just get it. They get that everybody deserves color. Everybody deserves to feel good in their clothes, and so they made that part easy for me.”
Bounds spoke to the silent language that resonated throughout Survival of the Thickest because it had a writer’s room that was 100% Black and women of color directors, and how that ecosystem trickled down into her work.
“It’s just like, we get it. We just know what we’re missing and what we need,” she shared. “Something as simple as why a bamboo earring works. Like, everybody’s not gonna get why you need a good hoop or why a good hoop could close off an outfit, or things like how most women are driven to this hourglass shape, right? And the importance of a waistline. I think that’s in any culture, in any race and nationality. But, I think with Black women specifically, the way we’re built, I think being able to highlight our best assets, I think we all get that we have things to highlight.”
With Survival of the Thickest coming to an end with its third and final season, Bounds said her biggest takeaway is the personal ability to push herself even further.
“I always feel like I can learn and grow,” she said. “I think that’s a forever thing. But I think that’s just like asking for what I know is needed, whether it’s because I’ve had designers that I’ve worked with that have created things for me that have never been created before. That even changed the trajectory of their lines and their designs. So, just learning about the influence that I’ve had through this show has been a wild experience.”
