And Just Like That, Sex and the City is back: what will Carrie Bradshaw and the crew be wearing in the HBO Max sequel?
Groundbreaking in its frank, often explicit depiction of the love lives of a group of 30-something Manhattanites, Sex and the City changed the way a generation of women approached sex, relationships and urban existence. But matters of the heart and metropolitan New York weren’t the show’s only focal points. Fashion played such a central role that the series could easily have been titled Sex, Style and the City.
The styling of the series, which ran from 1998 to 2004, was the work of New York costume designer Patricia Field. A prominent figure in the city’s subculture from the 1970s until 2016, Field operated a quirky boutique under her own name, which was frequented by the likes of Patti Smith and Debbie Harry during the heyday of punk and New Wave.
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In 1995, Field worked on a movie with Sarah Jessica Parker and the two instantly clicked. When Parker was cast to star as SATC’s narrator and protagonist, Carrie Bradshaw, she suggested Field be brought on board to help shape the series’ look. Field has said her goal was not to turn the series into a televised fashion show, but to express the core quartet’s personalities and mindsets via their attire.
“We were telling the stories and showcasing the characters through the way they dress. It’s a storytelling situation,” Field told Fashionista in 2018. Typically that meant prim preppy apparel for WASP princess Charlotte (Davis), pantsuits and similarly sober gear for high-powered lawyer Miranda (Nixon) and bright, bold garb for sultry PR doyen Samantha (Cattrall).
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Carrie’s wardrobe, meanwhile, allowed for the most imagination and would prove endlessly influential. Thanks to Carrie’s championing on SATC, Manolo Blahnik heels, the Fendi Baguette and an eclectic mash-up of cheap n’ chic vintage finds coupled with high-priced designer apparel – Field’s signature – became style staples of the early 21st century.
A sequel to SATC will soon screen on HBO Max. Called And Just Like That, it reunites Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda, though Samantha will be absent. Field was also unable to return, as she was otherwise engaged, costuming the latest series from SATC creator Darren Star, Emily in Paris. Instead, the costuming has been handled by Field’s protégé Molly Rogers, who worked on the original series “from start to finish”, according to Field, per Women’s Wear Daily; the pair also collaborated on the wardrobe for the film The Devil Wears Prada.
Initial press images and paparazzi shots from the set of And Just Like That suggest that Charlotte’s style remains as classic and refined as ever, and her fondness for designer dog accessories abides.
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Miranda’s dress sense has softened along with her hair colour: gone is the stiff corporate tailoring replaced by supple dresses and separates. In the shot above, she sports a Gerard Darel silk tie-dye dress with a Paco Rabanne Pacoïo tote bag, though in the hero pic released of the three stars together, she still looks sleek in an Altuzarra blouse, Vince trousers, vintage Bottega Veneta clutch and Manolo Blahnik BB pumps.
Contemporary Carrie maintains her love for mixing new and recent seasons with vintage apparel. In fact, numerous items seen on the show two decades ago make a reappearance, most notably a replacement of the purple Fendi Baguette in series three, a studded biker belt from California leather goods brand Streets Ahead and the blue satin Manolo Blahnik pumps Carrie wore while marrying Mr Big in the 2008 SATC movie.
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Carrie’s love for Manolos is far from monogamous in the new series, however. Much has been made of the character’s new-found fondness for footwear from Celine. But we really shouldn’t be surprised by her lack of singular devotion to Blahnik. As devotees of the series will know, Carrie always was fickle with her affection.
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- Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon and Kim Cattrall lead SATC, but Manolo Blahnik heels and Fendi Baguette bags defined the show too
- Patricia Field, who’s currently working on Emily in Paris, passed the costume design baton to Molly Rogers; they also did wardrobe for The Devil Wears Prada