Meet the team of drag performers behind Philly queen Sapphira Cristál’s larger-than-life ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ looks

A 4-foot-tall wearable pumpkin. Sixty-pound flower petals that open and close like an umbrella. A full-body bodysuit encrusted with gold chains.

Those are just a few of the pieces that Philadelphia drag queen Sapphira Cristàl has worn on Season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, where she will enter Friday’s finale with the most consecutive challenge wins in show history. Cristál, a classically trained opera singer, is equally known for commanding stage presence and stately drag, the latter of which was cooked up by a team of nearly a dozen of Philly’s drag performers and nightlife costumers.

That’s right: It took a gayborhood to prepare Cristál for her stint on Drag Race.

Contestants on the show compete to become “America’s next drag superstar,” a title that has catapulted many to mainstream stardom — but not before they spend thousands of dollars on outfits, wigs, custom nail art, and other materials to compete.

And while Drag Race’s innate secrecy can make it difficult for former contestants to reveal just how much goes into appearing on the show, those who worked with Cristál said she wanted to use her opportunity as the first queen to rep Philly to spotlight as many local makers as possible.

» READ MORE: What to know about Sapphira Cristál, Philly’s first true ‘Drag Race’ contestant

“Sapphira made it very clear to us that she wanted this to be a celebration of artists in Philadelphia,” said Iris Spectre, a local drag queen and designer who was tapped to work on the project after performing in the now-defunct drag troupe Philly’s Foxes with Cristál.

It all started last April, when Cristál and bearded drag queen Eric Jaffe — who managed the design team — called Spectre and several others into a room, where they were asked to sign nondisclosure agreements before even learning what they’d agreed to.

Then “Jaffe just mouthed the words ‘drag race’ and we all started screaming,” said Joy Taney, a drag king and close friend of Cristál’s who did airbrushing for five runway looks. “We probably shook their South Philly rowhome.”

From there, it was a six-week sprint to complete everything before the summer production. Every look was a team effort.

Take Cristál’s fairy-tale-inspired pumpkin look for the “Mother of all Balls” episode: Drag artist Miss Thing conceptualized the look and made the inflatable skirt alongside designer and part-time drag queen Sabine Strosser. Then, Spectre constructed the stem-like bodice alongside drag queen and costumer Edith Poussard. Taney airbrushed everything.

» READ MORE: Philly queen Sapphira Cristál wins first episode of ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’

Before Cristál takes the main stage for one final runway and lip sync before (hopefully) clinching the crown, The Inquirer asked Spectre, Taney, Strosser, and Miss Thing to break down some of Cristál’s most breathtaking looks.

What the judges said: Though she didn’t walk away with a win, Cristál’s fellow contestants placed her in the top three of the week. Judge and original Queer Eye for the Straight Guy fashion expert Carson Kressley fawned over the details, and guest Isaac Mizrahi told Cristál she had a “really special way of moving.”

How it came together: Miss Thing said production gave Cristál a list of fairy tales to pick from; she initially wanted to be the pumpkin carriage from Cinderella. When that didn’t work, they pivoted. The corset is made from foam and worbla (a thermoplastic) while the skirt is coated in PVC and inflated by two battery-powered fans.

“It’s like a wearable bounce house,” said Strosser, who constructed the pumpkin inside her South Philly bedroom.

One surprising detail: Since the look was constructed in separate parts — and in secret — Taney and Spectre made two custom dress forms with Cristál’s measurements that were shuttled between locations. To do so, they had to cast Cristál’s body in Saran wrap and duct tape, Taney said, like one big drag mummy.

Taney said their roommate and partner also had to sign NDAs just for being witness to the pumpkin.

Favorite part: The sheer magnitude of the pumpkin. Though it can deflate to fit inside a Trader Joe’s tote, the skirt is wider than Taney’s 5-foot-3-inch frame.

What the judges said: Michelle Visage called the look “a masterpiece,” while in an episode of the Drag Race aftershow Pit Stop, host and RPDR alum Trixie Mattel said the outfit was so stunning it made her want to quit drag.

How it came together: Spectre designed the look, which comprises 10 separate pieces of airbrushed neoprene. Spectre said that Drag Race production only covers the costs of shipping eight bins to Los Angeles, “so every piece was made with the mindset of ‘How do we pack this?’”

One surprising detail: Spectre said the flower petals work “just like a LEGO orchid.” They attach to a backpack Spectre constructed out of PVC and are supported by a galvanized steel rod and framed by wire, so each petal can open up and collapse down. Spectre said the look comes with six total petals but Cristál could only wear four onstage because they couldn’t fit through the runway’s entry.

Their favorite part: For Taney, it was getting to work with Spectre, who got their first airbrush from Taney during the pandemic. The two had always been good colleagues, but working on the look made them closer.

“We would get too tired to act like professionals all the time, so we started acting like ourselves and venting,” said Taney. “Now I can talk to Iris about anything that feels vulnerable.”

What the judges said: Cristál was the winner of this episode. Kressley said the outfit gave the “wink-wink, nod-nod we love about drag.”

How it came together: The challenge for this runway was to specifically incorporate chains into the outfit, so Strosser said Cristál specifically sought out Miss Thing and her to create the look because of their “youthful perspective.” All of the chains were hand-sewn onto the bodysuit.

“I wanted to give her insane sex appeal … I was like ‘Girl, you have a banging body … Let’s show [it] off,’” said Miss Thing.

One surprising detail: Strosser and Miss Thing had never designed for Cristál before working on the project. Now, she’s become a repeat client.

You can watch Sapphira rep Philly during the final episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 16 at 8 p.m. Friday on MTV.