[1] After graduating, Carter returned to her hometown, working as an intern for City Stage's costume department and then the Santa Fe Opera.

[9][10] Aside from her work with Spike Lee, Carter also designed costumes for Steven Spielberg's Amistad (1997) and several of John Singleton's films, such as Rosewood (1997) and Baby Boy (2001).

[2] She further designed costumes for the American television drama series Being Mary Jane on BET Networks, created by Mara Brock Akil and starring Gabrielle Union.

[12] She traveled to southern Africa to draw aesthetic inspirations and received permission to incorporate traditional Lesotho designs into the film's costumes.

[14] Carter won 2 Oscars for Costume Design for Black Panther and Wakanda Forever, making history as the first African-American in that category.