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You can’t tell the story of “Sex and the City” and its revival/sequel “And Just Like That” without spending an inordinate amount of time discussing the fashion. Over the course of the original show’s six seasons, Carrie Bradshaw became a universal style icon. She inspired generations of women to waltz around New York City in tulle dresses, all while carefully dodging potholes in their Manolo Blahnik pumps. Styled by the inimitable Patricia Field, Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker) delighted in getting dressed. Her style was immaculate, quirky, vibrant, romantic: she’d stop by McDonald’s in a pink Oscar de la Renta frock or go wedding-dress shopping with a belt tied around her bare stomach. Throughout the series, as well as in the three “Sex and the City” movies that followed, Field and Parker set trends, launched design careers into the stratosphere, and created an endless stream of iconic looks. Now, the “And Just Like That” outfits carry on that legacy.
With costume designers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago on board, Carrie still enjoys fashion on “And Just Like That,” but the writers also use it as a mechanism to communicate her state of mind. When she wears a stunning tulle skirt and black headpiece to Big’s funeral, it’s to make her late husband proud. As she throws Big’s blazer over her shoulders before heading out in a cocktail dress, her outfit suggests she’s healing from his sudden death — and finding space for his memory (and belongings) in her new life. Later, as she starts to date and feel like herself again, she’s back in a Norma Kamali ruched blue dress that fits impeccably well; it’s so quintessentially her that fans dubbed it the “Carrie dress.” And her Moncler x Pierpaolo Piccioli look in season two, episode six recalls the glamour of her tulle dresses from the previous series — and takes it to another level. Who else would wear a theatrical puffer coat and gown for the bomb cyclone but Carrie Bradshaw?
Fashion is obviously sacred to Bradshaw, but other characters have memorable style moments, too. Miranda Hobbes’s colorful halter dress and Seema Patel’s leopard look could’ve been right at home in the original series. In season two, episode two, the characters dress up to attend the fictitious, “Veiled Beauty”-themed Met Gala: Lisa Todd Wexley in a breathtaking red Valentino gown and Charlotte York Goldenblatt in a bold corset top and skirt.
At times, their looks carry a greater significance. Think of Rock Goldenblatt’s unconventional styling of their Oscar de la Renta dress as they prepare to share their gender identity with their parents. Or Miranda’s uncharacteristically sexy halter jumpsuit as she steps outside a stale marriage to flirt with Che Diaz at the bar.
Ahead, check out the best “And Just Like That” outfits so far from seasons one and two.