Sandra Gray

Sandra Gray is a fashion and costume designer known particularly for her work designing and building costumes for wrestling.

Gray was born 27 June 1956.[1] Her mother was in the Army, and won a sewing machine in a bingo game while on the base that she passed to her daughter, and Gray taught herself how to sew and make clothes for herself and her friends.[1][2]

In 1994, while living in Marietta, Georgia, Gray was engaged to make a costume for Marc Mero.[2] Mero stated that Gray answered a newspaper advertisement,[3] although Gray recalls being approached by Mero's girlfriend at the time Rena Greek, who had heard about her sewing skills.[1] The costume that Gray created established Mero's signature character, Johnny B. Badd, based on Little Richard.[3] As a result of this commission, and due to word-of-mouth from Mero, Gray became a successful designer and costumier specialising in wrestling wear.[1][2] With the support of Miss Elizabeth and Lex Luger, she signed an exclusive contract with World Championship Wrestling which was acquired by the WWE in 2001.[1][4] Gray was employed as costume designer for World Wrestling Entertainment until 2015. Gray got hired at All Elite Wrestling in 2019 as their in-house seamstress.[5][6] In her job, she was often seen on the WWE reality programme Total Divas.[1][2] She was succeeded by Sarath Ton, a former independent wrestler known as Mikaze.[7]

Gray's other wrestling clients include Layla El, Nikki Bella, Alicia Fox, Cameron, Dustin and Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler and Allie.[1][2][8][9] She originated Naomi's trademark glow-in-the-dark costumes in 2016,[10] and created wedding dresses for Naomi's 2014 wedding to Jimmy Uso and for Penelope Ford's on-screen marriage to Kip Sabian on AEW Dynamite in February 2021.[11][12] Gray has also made cheerleader uniforms, including the inaugural cheerleader uniforms for the Houston Texans squad's debut in September 2011.[1]

In 2016, Gray opened a shop in Riverview, Florida, selling both her original designs and vintage clothing.[1]

References
  1. Vician, Eric (31 August 2016). "WWE seamstress opens Riverview store for local 'divas'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  2. Lawrence, Kelsey (21 March 2015). "Meet Sandra Gray, the Veteran Seamstress of the WWE". www.vice.com. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  3. Boone, Matt (27 June 2021). "Marc Mero Shares Origin Story Of His Johnny B. Badd Character In WCW". ewrestling.com. eWrestling. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  4. Ounpraseuth, Jason (3 June 2021). "AEW Lead Seamstress On How Lex Luger And Miss Elizabeth Got Her Hired By WCW". Wrestling Inc. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  5. Haverford, Joey (20 July 2019). "10 People You Didn't Realize Were Employed By AEW". TheSportster. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  6. Giri, Raj (6 May 2015). "Longtime WWE Employee Leaves The Company, Talent Responds". Wrestling Inc. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  7. Middleton, Marc (13 May 2015). "WWE Hires Indie Wrestler As New Seamstress". Wrestling Inc. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  8. Lambert, Jeremy (28 September 2021). "Cody Rhodes: My Gear Is Not Inspired By Homelander From 'The Boys,' But I See The Parallels". www.fightful.com. Fightful. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  9. Currier, Joseph (21 March 2019). "Former Knockouts Champion Allie signs with All Elite Wrestling". Wrestling Observer. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  10. Cassada, Carol (8 June 2020). "Naomi: 10 Of Her Best Instagram Posts". TheSportster. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  11. Vulpo, Mike (21 January 2014). "Total Divas Stars Trinity McCray and Jonathan Fatu Are Married—See the Exclusive Wedding Pics!". E! Online. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  12. Fishman, Scott (3 February 2021). "Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford on Their AEW 'Beach Break' Wedding". TV Insider. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
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