Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1541330
Commercial business was booming but their lile shop on Rodeo Drive was in peril. The building was being torn down and they needed a new workroom. They found their next space while working on a commercial at Hollywood Center Studios. The studio was in the midst of a complete renovation. Antoinee says, "It was a wreck, every window was broken, there was garbage everywhere. It was a wreck." So of course, they asked if the studio had any space to rent. Antoinee and Kimberly were able to secure a room on the lot that, as time went on, became more rooms. "And then finally, we kind of outgrew it. We just couldn't take over any more space. We were scaered. We had things in two buildings on three floors." It was time to move. Antoinee and Kimberly were looking for something to rent when they came across the current property. It was an empty lot that was once the parking area for the apartment building next door. They pivoted from a rental property to, "Oh, let's just build something." They scraped together every penny they had, secured a loan, and bought the lot. A friend that Antoinee went to college with, a production designer, helped them come up with a floor plan on a paper napkin. "And so, we took our lile napkin to the architect and said, 'Do this,' and all these years later, I wouldn't change anything. I love every piece of it." That was 1998. Muto-Lile has remained in this lovely space ever since. Muto-Lile has been a signatory workroom in Local 705 for almost 30 years. For a number of years in the beginning, they were a nonunion shop. Antoinee remembers, "We really joined because we wanted our people to have And it kind of inspired us. So we thought we'd start a lile business. We did. We just did." And in 1982, Muto-Lile was born. Originally, the idea was to concentrate on couture and custom-made pieces. The hairdresser downstairs had a clientele of wealthy women he would send their way. Antoinee remembers making clothes for glamorous actresses like Nancy Sinatra, Dorothy Manners, and Binnie Barnes to name a few. Even with all the business the salon was sending their way, Antoinee and Kimberly felt as if they were "working, working, working, working, and making no money." At the same time, theatre friends who were working on commercials started hiring the duo. In the 1980s, commercials could be very elaborate, and a lot of work could be involved. The more commercial work Muto-Lile took, the more offers they got, and the more profitable the business became. "We had goen cooked up with some of these companies that made tons of commercials, and there was a lot of work. So then we kind of shied." L to R: Faux furs for Yellowjackets; historical dress design for Deadwood; Lady Gaga's Enigma, Las Vegas; nun headpieces for Pushing Daisies. 40 WINTER 2026