When we think about Carrie Bradshaw, Charlotte York, Samantha Jones and Miranda Hobbes, we wonder: how can a 90s/2000s sitcom about four rich white friends in New York City still have a cultural impact twenty plus years on? There’s Friends and Seinfeld, but unless you’re talking about getting “the Rachel” or wearing dad-core windbreakers, there’s really no other show from this era bloated with sitcoms aside from Sex and the City that has had such a choke-hold on the fashion community at large.
Which episodes do we return to when we’re craving a rewatch? When you’re finished scrolling through the most recent batch of Carrie Bradshaw-inspired outfit Tiktoks, take your pick from this specially curated selection of SATC all-time greats.
Season 1, Episode 4: “Valley of the Twenty-Something Guys”
I love Carrie Bradshaw’s hair and its wild quality at this point in the show. We also get some Alaïa action with a red fitted blazer after the title on Carrie. To top it off, Miranda gives us a reason to love the idea of wearing ties.
Season 1, Episode 5: “The Power of Female Sex”
Season 1 episodes are so satisfying in part because of the grittiness and in part because of the outfits. This episode features some truly bizarre fashion choices. For example, the hostess at Balzac who has a top hat cocked to the side. Standouts here are a khaki skirt suit, a bright blue feather boa, fluffy purple feather silver Dolce & Gabbana sandals and a mercurial silver slip dress. We also love the very fun, very late 90’s pink dress with a cardigan set Amalita has on in D&G.
Season 1, Episode 10: “The Baby Shower”
There’s a wealth of iconic lines, looks and moments in this episode. None of the girls know how to drive a rented car. There’s a real girl’s girl moment where Sam defends Charlotte without pause when Laney steals her baby name. We see some of the best of Y2K eyewear, and a cropped sweater on Samantha reminds us of Jacquemus cardigans. Somehow, Carrie makes a tube top look easy to pull off twice.
Season 2, Episode 1: “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”
The image of the four women lounging in cheap seats at a Yankees game in fantastic coats is a classic. Carrie trying to navigate her pain in the never-ending struggle to find the balance between diving back into dating and letting yourself grieve is one we can all relate to. Not to mention we get the infamous outburst from Miranda who wants to know how it happens that “four such smart women have nothing to talk about but boyfriends?”
Season 3, Episode 1: “Where There’s Smoke…”
Drunk Charlotte dancing to Donna Summer on Long Island and hot firefighters? This one has it all. Sam has a Marilyn Monroe set of curls on her head and Miranda’s coiffed pixie is the stuff of dreams. But Carrie in the Casadei Python Boots, plaid skirt, sheer blouse and fur coat strutting down the street Dior shopping bag in hand? Legendary. Meanwhile, Sam lurks in the firehouse looking for the kind of pole you don’t slide down in an emergency with her electric blue leopard print dress and matching fur-collared coat. It’s iconically campy. Not to be beaten, Carrie wraps this fashion fest up with her date with the politician in a periwinkle one-shoulder dress, white Comme des Garçons coat and feather slingback Jimmy Choos. It’s enough to knock a fashion lover out.
Season 4, Episode 5: “Ghost Town”
In this episode, we get Carrie in her Starfish Marni trench and Prada printed black and white skirt. This is a lesson in mixing patterns. There is also a lesson in how the things that we did, the people we knew and the things we saw haunt us in the now. Is it time to offer peace? Fight about the Mallards? Throw some plates in some gorgeous lingerie sets? In any case, it’s nice that SATC features a same-sex relationship, albeit for a blip – though some would argue that it changes Sam for the better.
Season 4, Episode 8: “My Motherboard, My Self”
Though this episode deals with difficult issues, it does begin with a rather Tiktok-friendly Carrie ensemble that would do numbers today: micro shorts, tube top and a long suit jacket with newsboy cap. Miranda’s mother passes away in this episode and her grief is juxtaposed well with Samantha’s inability to orgasm. Turns out they both need to let go. Samantha’s iconic line at the funeral (“I’m not going to find my orgasm in this town”) is as fabulous as her funeral dress, despite the circumstances.
Season 6, Episode 5: “Lights, Camera, Relationship!”
Season 6 is kind of Carrie’s demure era. Unfortunately, it’s her Berger era as well. And though Carrie’s straight hair is – like its texture – a bit of a flop for me, there are a plethora of wardrobe wins in this one. Sam really leans into power suiting with her kelly green skirt suit and white sequined top. Carrie’s casual outfit when walking with Brady and Miranda is effortless. Somehow she pulls off khaki capris to the tune of today’s blokecore. The winner of this episode is the Prada spiral bust dress in brown to black ombré on Carrie. The blue horseshoe broach and long sleek ponytail are perfect accessories. Berger’s chaotic motorcycle driving and obvious inferiority complex in the face of his girlfriend’s success is….not.
Season 6, Episode 9: “The Ick Factor”
Carrie Bradshaw is being romanced and dresses the part. Every time she’s lounging at her lover’s lavish home listening to his poetry, she’s donned in silk slips and cardigans. Miranda, on the other hand, is preparing for her marriage to Steve and goes from comfy, carefree sweats and hats to a power suit. I’d be remiss not to mention Carrie’s Oscar de la Renta moment oozing Audrey Hepburn and Dior’s New Look. Carrie and the Russian plan to head, ironically, to the ballet, a performance they were better off missing, as it probably would not have lived up to the standards of Mikhail Barishnikov – the actor playing the Russian and ballet royalty.
Season 6, Episode 18: “Splat!”
Miranda gives it to Carrie straight in this episode on the eve of Carrie moving to Paris. Sam has a rotation of wigs and headwear that are as experimental as her. Charlotte shows up and shows out with her housewife finery: her coquettish black dress with pink bows, black button-down shirt and pearls and a peach nightie she wears while washing the floor! Miranda is dressed austere in dark colors but when she confronts Carrie in a black coat and hat with a green ribbon, she radiates confidence. Carrie has a host of great looks, the best of which are the flapper-inspired frock by Marc Jacobs and her double breasted Dolce & Gabbana coat.
Carrie Bradshaw: A Forever Style Icon
Not only did Sex and the City blow audiences away with its frank conversations about all things taboo, it also directly involved the fashion industry in its narrative. At the center of those fashion conversations is the show’s controversial protagonist, Carrie Bradshaw: a forever style icon.
Whether you want to watch our favorites or binge-watch the full 6 seasons, the show is currently available to stream on MAX.
