Open for SATC gossip

Are these books a best kept secret? 🤫💋

Jan 22, 2024

Earlier this month, LA-based celebrity auction house Julien’s went live with its ‘Unstoppable: Signature Styles of Iconic Women in Fashion’ auction, and amongst Bruiser Woods’ velour onesie from ‘Legally Blonde’, Nicole Kidman as Joanna Eberhart’s sequin evening gown from ‘The Stepford Wives’ and Joan Collins as Alexis Colby’s engagement ring from Dynasty, is THE tutu as worn by Sarah Jessica Parker AKA Carrie Bradshaw in the opening credits of Sex And The City (well not THE, one of five to be precise). It sold for $52,000 when the auction closed on Thursday 18th January, four times its estimated selling price.

Costume designer and living legend Patricia Field famously found the tutu in a five-dollar bin, and along with SJP, had to convince producers it was the right look for the show’s opening sequence. The rest is history.

This, combined with the fact that I was lucky enough to be exposed to a SATC trivia board game which I had no idea existed on New Year’s Eve, reminded me of two books that my mum gave me as Christmas presents many moons ago. Along with having watched the series more times than I care to admit, these books have been the source of much of my useless SATC knowledge, with each one being dedicated to each movie.

The first film came out in 2008, and I remember going to my local cinema in High Wycombe with a group of friends, dressed up in what I felt was my most Carrie outfit—a pair of knock-off Dior Extreme gladiator sandal heels from New Look, a high-waisted puffball skirt printed with pink roses from Topshop, and a neon lime green vest. I wish I had a photo of 16-year-old me, complete with hair extensions, trotting along to the Odeon in this ensemble (although it’s probably for the best I don’t). I think we all went to Wagamamas afterwards, and the aftermath inspired me to text my ex-boyfriend.

Anyway I digress. I’ve held onto these books for years, and even though I’ve carted them around for countless house moves, I actually can’t remember the last time I looked at them. I wanted to share some of my favourite bits with you from the first one. If this newsletter goes down well, maybe I’ll do a follow-up for the second book. Enjoy.

Samantha’s paddle!
“Michael wanted the number on Samantha’s paddle to be 69. Christie’s didnt have a 69, but they did have a 969—a position I’m sure Samantha tried at least once in her life.” Eric Cypers, co-producer
Sex meets Vogue!
The only scene in the film not fashion-directed by Patricia Field is Carrie’s Vogue photo shoot. With the script having to be approved by Ms Wintour herself, once signed off, she offered up the real Vogue creative team for Carrie’s wedding eleganza. “She complimented me on what she liked and told me what she thought could be better, then closed her email with, ‘I hope you find these suggestions helpful—if not, throw them in the trash where they probably belong,’ which I thought was incredibly classy,” writes the movie’s director Michael Patrick King.
Westwood’s handwriting!
Vivienne actually penned the note which accompanies Carrie’s now infamous wedding dress delivery post-Vogue shoot. “I loved the idea that the wedding gown comes from Vivienne Westwood. It’s perfect—if you follow the Cinderella thread throughout the movie. It’s the fairy godmother, a colorful, outrageous older woman, who gives Cinderella the dress. Come on—how Vivienne Westwood is that?” Michael Patrick King
Proenza Schouler beef!
“Carrie’s dressed in Proenza Schouler, which is a small fashion house, so they had only one sample. We used it once, but when we needed it again they sent us the wrong shoes and the wrong vest. Finally, we got the right outfit and raced it to Sarah Jessica’s trailer—just in time.” Molly Rogers, costume designer
Crystal-ball-crayon!
“When Carrie is coloring in the Cinderella book, she’s coloring Cinderella’s shoe blue, which is a reference to the Manolo that Big places on Carrie’s foot at the end of the movie.” Michael Patrick King
“When we started thinking about the right shoe for Carrie’s wedding, I asked Michael Patrick, “Is it about a Manolo? Because that might not happen today. It’s nice for nostalgic reasons, but since the show went off the air, there have been a lot of other designers who have done some exciting things.” He said he just wanted it to be the perfect shoe. We talked to the people at Manolo about our ideas, and they produced all these incredible shoes. They did two colors of blue—one lighter and one this true electric blue with a pewter buckle on it covered in rhinestones. It was just perfect. Also, I begged Jeremy Conway, our production designer, to place the official seal of New York on this floor, so he and his team created it. It was so magnificent.” Sarah Jessica Parker
Boozin’ on the (VIP) job!
“After this scene was shot, we needed to do a reshoot, but the wardrobe department learned that Carrie’s tie-dyed dress was being used in a Vogue photo shoot in the Mayan jungle. A wardrobe assistant had to fly to Mexico, pick it up, and come right back. She had a margarita at the airport.” Melinda Relyea, costume designer
Carrie is not a phone person, OK?
“We deliberately chose to stick with the pink phone Carrie had at the end of the series. Carrie is not a phone person, so I asked our props department to break off a bunch of the Swarovski crystals and then duct tape it to make it look barely held together.” Sarah Jessica Parker
The look to end all looks!
Top wedding dress facts as follows…No duplicates were made of this dress. Costume designer Molly Rogers sent DVDs to Bernard Arnault of a specific Christian Dior she wanted for Carrie, to no response. Patricia Field fell in love with a Zac Posen number, which Charlotte ended up wearing as a bridesmaid dress in black.
The honeymoon muff!
“I begged Michael to let me bring the muff. I thought, What would Carrie have packed to travel with her new husband? Everything she wears in Mexico would have been packed for her honeymoon, which made it all the more depressing.” Sarah Jessica Parker
Cut scenes!
Anyone recognise either of these? Clearly the book went to print before the final cut…
Humping dogs!
“We auditioned only two dogs for the role of Samantha’s dog, and the one that we ended up choosing, Gidget, had to come back twice, and at different times of the day, so we could make sure she could hump on cue. She’s a star.”
“I’ve never really worked with animals, and now I know why. Gidget was the biggest star on the set because she got to go home first. But I love that Samantha finds this mutt that needs love and care. Her life involves family, and I like what the dog represents for her character.” Kim Cattrall
That Marc Jacobs LV!
“In real life, I am a bag person. I love bags. When we were filming in New York, I had all my designer bags there with me, and one day Sarah Jessica thought the bag I was carrying with me was from Louise’s wardrobe. It wasn’t! I don’t have this Vuitton bag, but I want it.” Jennifer Hudson
The NYE fit!
“To me, my New Year’s Eve outfit is quintessential Patricia Field. I’m wearing a vintage Halston sparkly sequined hat and a vintage pajama pant with a vintage fur coat on that I wore on the show. I loved pulling that old coat out—I reached into my pocket and there were cigarettes in it from when we wrapped in season five and Carrie still smoked! My shoes are very expensive white kid leather boots with black trim. When you mix vintage pieces with a nice shoe, that’s when girls think, I can do that.” Sarah Jessica Parker
Secret FROW!
“There was a big debate about who should be sitting in the front row for the fashion show. We all had our favorites. Fern Mallis, the president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, is there, as well as Kelis and Lil’ Kim.” Patricia Field (Side note: has anyone ever spotted them in the movie? They aren’t even in this photo…another cut scene perhaps)
Say yes to the desk!
Carrie’s desk, chair, and computer [from her original apartment in the TV series] had been given to the Smithsonian Institution. It was these last three items that proved the most difficult to retrieve. Initially, the Smithsonian said no. “I was on the phone with this gentleman at the museum,” remembers Parker, “and he said, It’s understood that when you give us something, it’s a deed for life.’ But I am a very superstitious person, so I said I understand that, but we can’t reproduce the desk. It will never be the same.’ I told him we would do whatever was needed to return everything to them safely. He said, ‘Will you sign a deed for life after this? And I said yes.”
Fake fat!
“For the pooch scene, Patricia Field put me in these pants that were too tight at the waist, and the top was too tight on my arms, which made them look bigger. With the shooting schedule the way it was, I couldn’t pull a Robert De Niro and actually gain weight.” Kim Cattrall
Totally believable!
“This outfit—which Carrie wears from the time Charlotte gives birth all the way through the scene where Big proposes—had to be something that you wouldn’t get tired of seeing, but it also had to be something she would believably wear when writing. The wardrobe department came up with this pale green Nina Ricci slip dress and paired it with the Dior Extreme shoes. Then they made the jacket, which is a vintage Givenchy jacket that they deconstructed and combined with a leather Members Only motorcycle jacket. Its a perfect example of the craft and thought that the wardrobe department put into everything.” Michael Patrick King
Miu Miu coded eyewear!
“On the surface, the glasses Carrie finally wears in this scene are a funny commentary on getting older—and not accepting it. But, on a deeper level, they also represent the idea that she can finally “see” who she is—and where she is in her life.” Michael Patrick King
Fashion trumps logic!
But is it realistic that the characters’ wardrobe budgets would have expanded to the level they did? “Every character is a little more stylish in the movie than she was in the series,” says King. “As a writer, initially I wasn’t sure how realistic it was to have Miranda dressing the way she does, for example, but then I think about Carrie bringing that mille feuille dress to Paris in the finale. You had to wonder how she got it in her suitcase, but it turned out to be a defining moment of the series. Sometimes fashion trumps logic. So for the film, I decided to just go for it. The girls are still grounded.”
Choose your fighter!