After rewatching every single episode of Sex and the City, both movies, and the recent And Just Like That reboot series I’m feeling overwhelmingly inspired to dress more like Carrie Bradshaw. Mixed prints, fur, feathers, leathers, and all textures. I don’t know if I’ll carry a plastic bird bird (that doesn’t even have a strap, I feel like that bag could have been something she could have gotten away with if it had a strap) but I can say that I’m starting to question my “neutrals only” mantra.
The way SJP dresses in the series is so fun, it feels like her outfits are alive; like she spent an hour putting them together, then another hour doing her hair and makeup, and an hour prancing around her apartment (wearing heels of course) doing fabulous things before going out in her fabulous outfit. Even the way she wears pearls and beads and heels to write her articles is inspiring. The romanticized way she sits in her window perch on her Macbook in a cool outfit has me questioning my at-home clothes. Is it excessive to put together a full outfit if you’re going nowhere? Or is it limiting and perhaps detrimental to your soul to wear your shitty old sweatpants at home?
The way SJP dresses in the series is so fun, it feels like her outfits are alive; like she spent an hour putting them together, then another hour doing her hair and makeup, and an hour prancing around her apartment (wearing heels of course) doing fabulous things before going out in her fabulous outfit.
And on top of these questions, what about the beauty that is neutrals and dressing in more quiet luxury? The monochromatic looks and the soft textures, the more organized and simple dressing. The kind that doesn’t scream at strangers when you’re walking down the street? The kind where you don’t know if the perfectly crisp perfectly cut white T is $30 from Amazon or $500 from The Row. It’s been a bit now since the celebs like Sofia Richie (and there are others) inspired the quiet luxury trend, the boasting of those soft neutrals and more plain dressing, but is it time to jump into more bold looks?
I’m finding myself stuck in the middle of these two identities, Carrie Bradshaw and Sofia Richie. I love the idea of putting together interesting outfits and I’ve always been one to appreciate a look even if it’s something not everyone would wear; actually I have always thrived in those outfits. A funky chunky shoe, a button up affixed crooked to make it look interesting, a super oversized blazer reminiscent of David Byrne–I find those pieces and the moments they create in outfits fabulous. But SJP has me wondering if I’ve indexed too heavily on the simple outfits. I’m finding myself spending time wondering how to mix opposing prints, how to lean into logos, and wondering if I have enough faux fur in my closet. Yet while I love the fabulousness of the heels no matter what mindset (except when Carrie had her hip surgery and had to wear flats) that’s a line I have to keep myself from crossing. No one is wearing heels on the island I live on and I push it enough with my Chanel bags in the local grocery store. Also, I broke my toe at 22 working in sales back when we wore pencil skirts and heels only and laughed when men made jokes about our bodies. I’m ready to reclaim the heels, but I’m not quite ready to throw all practicality out the window.
Picking a side
But then there’s something so calming about a quiet luxury look, one with simple tones–often complementary and carefully curated. A simple wardrobe, or a capsule one can bring so much peace with lack of options, but I don’t fall into that category either. I don’t have one perfectly crisp one t-shirt, I have about ten. And I finding that magic balance of tones and cuts and fabrics can actually take quite some time. But these ‘fits are easier to rewear, and there’s a scalability and reuse aspect to that that I quite like.
I’ve decided that I can be both. That I can be Carrie Bradshaw and I can be Sofia Richie. I can mix patters and do crazy things combining unsuspecting pieces, but I can also lean into the unassuming and generally tranquil items in quiet luxury. I can have a look one day and an entirely different look the next. I don’t have to be just one thing.
When it comes to fashion I see so many women getting taped into these boxes of their own limitations; they think they need to only buy or wear what “works for them” or what they’re “comfortable with.” And I just don’t believe that. I don’t believe in the limiting mindset for anything, but especially not when it comes to how you express yourself in the world. And if we’re supposed to be dressing for ourselves and not other people then the excuse (that I am guilty of using) that we “don’t have anywhere to go or anyone to see” is moot. It’s far more important to dress your body in a way that represents how you want to feel, and there doesn’t need to be another person who sees what you’re wearing for your outfit to mean something, for it to have a purpose.
I’m going to keep thinking about the tension between these two style icons and their subsequent themes of dressing, but moreover I’m going to practice how these inspirations make me feel. Let me know if you’re more drawn to one or the other, and how you think about dressing for yourself!
Shop the inspo
SJP/Carrie Bradshaw
Sofia/Quiet Luxury
Image credit: Vogue
Fendi pink sequin Baguette
