Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
With a healthy dose of ridiculousness and not much practicality, the fashion in the ‘Sex and the City’ spinoff is still the main character.
Date June 23, 2023
It’s impossible to predict what kinds of outlandish outfits will come from And Just Like That… — and that’s what makes it fun. On June 22, the polarizing Sex and the City revival came back for season 2. Just two episodes in, the dramedy is already treating viewers to a feast of entertaining, surprising, and often unwearable fashion, courtesy of costume designers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago.
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Case in point: The first episode finds the ladies headed to the Met Gala (!), the sartorial equivalent of the Super Bowl. “How did they get on the guest list?” you may be asking. And Just Like That… bothers not with such logistical explanations. Instead, it lets clothes do the talking. So far, we’ve seen: excessive accessorizing, bags that look nothing like bags, and of course, dangerously high heels on the streets of New York City.
Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
In this delightful flurry of collective costuming chaos, it’s easy to miss the details of individual characters’ looks. So here, we’ve gathered them for you. Buckle in: Below, we present the best, kitschiest, and most eye-catching (for better or worse) outfits from And Just Like That… season 2 so far.
Most View-Obstructing
Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
Some risks are just worth taking. Such was the case with Charlotte’s friend Lisa Todd Wexley and her irrefutably hazardous Met Gala outfit. The theme of the fictional ball is “Veiled Beauty” — which sounds pretty realistic, actually — and since Wexley is equal parts fabulous and fashionable, she takes the dress code to heart, wearing a spherical Valentino headpiece that covers her face. When her husband asks, “Can you see in that thing?” she promptly replies, “Who needs to see?” Anna Wintour would be proud (…or at least take notice).
Most Sustainable
Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
In all her reckless shopping habits (who spends $40,000 on shoes?!), Carrie Bradshaw has long been a champion of outfit repeating. And after a tailoring catastrophe leaves her with no dress for the Met Gala, our scrappy protagonist turns to her closet. The result? Carrie dons the Vivienne Westwood wedding gown from the first Sex and the City movie, where Big infamously left her at the altar. A creative way to reimagine bridalwear, a reclamation of a painful memory, and an ode to the late designer? It’s the outfit re-wear to end them all.
Most Non-Conforming
Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
Say what you will about Miranda’s love interest Che Diaz (the internet certainly has), but their advocacy for their own outfit formula is undeniably admirable. In episode 1, the non-binary comedian has a debate about their fashion in their forthcoming TV show, which is based on their real life. The costume department wants them to wear an embellished blazer and a bright blue stripe in their hair. When Che says they’d rather just look like themselves in jeans and a T-shirt, they’re body-shamed. Even still, Che has courage in their convictions, insisting on wearing what makes them comfortable. Let’s be real: In this universe, advocating for just a T-shirt and jeans is kinda radical.
Most Coastal-Grandmother-Gone-Wrong
Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn/Max
Our dear, sweet Miranda. Now living in California with Che, she’s venturing into self-discovery, dealing with her alcoholism, and finding new, fulfilling hobbies. Look no further than this laid-back ensemble she wears to clean up a public beach. Donning a tote bag, a flowy undone button-up and a pair of relaxed jeans, it’s a notable alternative from the corporate Miranda of years past. (Nothing says reinvention like a green bucket hat!) But after losing her phone on this do-gooder outing, Miranda must feverishly rummage through bags of seaweed and trash, ruining her outfit and replacing her Diane Keaton-esque ease with a worried frenzy.
Most Unwalkable
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Podiatrists, look away. Bradshaw’s fixation on hard-to-walk-in footwear is yet again front and centre in And Just Like That… season 2. When Charlotte comes over to her apartment in episode 1, Carrie is wearing an oversized sweater and poaching an egg in her kitchen. (“Did you know that stoves aren’t just for storage?” she quips.) It’s a decidedly practical look — so of course, it can’t last long. In the next scene, when they leave Carrie’s place to ostensibly walk Charlotte’s dog around the block, she has traded the pullover for an intricately embellished gown, a slanted chapeau, and a pair of sky-high stilettos. This ensemble? For the infamously unforgiving sidewalks of New York City? Why, Carrie, why?
Most Bird-Like
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Sure, this may seem obvious. But Carrie Bradshaw is a woman of ample Avian-adjacent fashion. We had the Judith Leiber swan bag of SATC season 2. She once carried a clutch made entirely of feathers. And to the aforementioned Met Gala, she donned a striking feather decal to complement her bridal dress. The above-bedazzled pigeon clutch by JW Anderson, however, takes the cake, because it is so utterly camp. It has no straps. Instead of a zipper, its wing flaps open. With a purposely inconvenient shape, it seems it can’t carry much more than a stick of gum. Even still, as Carrie shops with it cradled in her arms, she’s blissfully unphased by the ridiculousness of it all. Perhaps no accessory is more fitting for the And Just Like That… universe.