A dark green shirt spotted with noir lace from The Haunted Mansion is encased in plastic wrap. A garish Hawaiian smock covered in hibiscus and sketches of crab shacks is for the housekeeping staff at the Old Key West Resort. There’s even a tawny maternity blouse for Animal Kingdom cast members, complete with a zippered pocket.
“That’s so the animals can’t get in the pocket,” Pat says.
And the vast collection of costumes multiplies quickly, since design teams are constantly reworking the details, looking to Pat to comb the planet for the precise design and fabric—not to mention the perfect vendor to mass produce the intricate designs.
“They’re always pumping out new designs, new ideas, everything,” Pat says. “It’s hard to keep up with sometimes.”
Pat starts to head back to her office at MGM Studios, one of the more popular Disney theme parks for its mind-numbing roller coasters and rare movie memorabilia.
Pat’s daughter, Michelle, explains the unique location. “The concept is MGM is a working studio, so it makes sense for them to put offices there.”
Foot in the Door
Pat’s dream Disney career didn’t begin at the glamorous MGM Studios. She started sewing young, creating wedding gowns and wild outfits for a local drag queen before chasing a childhood dream to work for Disney. She eased into the competitive Disney employment line as a salesperson in the Caribbean Beach Resort gift shop. After a year in retail, she heard of an opening in costuming. Pat snapped up the opportunity, draping and pinning a muslin blouse on a mannequin during an “audition” for the job. She nailed it.
She started stitching scattered garments for the Magic Kingdom and Epcot rides, including a worn backpack for a particularly unlucky safari-goer who was chased up a pole by wild animals.
“I had to make his polka-dotted boxers, too,” she says, rolling her eyes. “I actually sewed each white dot onto the red fabric.”
Later, Pat took on larger projects like a stretchy suit for an animatronic milk carton on Epcot’s Food Rocks, a show about the fabulousness of food.
“The outfit was Spandex,” she says, laughing.