And Just Like That, Carrie Bradshaw Is Back to “It” Bags

At this point, And Just Like That... is far enough into production that an increasingly vocal camp of Sex and the City fans have made up their minds: Carrie Bradshaw’s style just isn’t what it used to be without the legendary costume designer Patricia Field. And despite the fact that Sarah Jessica Parker has been pulling out look after look, Carrie’s detractors may have spoken too soon. On Tuesday, the paparazzi caught Parker in character wearing none other than a bag from Gucci’s Balenciaga remix, marking one of the collection’s first appearances in the wild since it became what’s so far proven the fashion event of the year.

Carrie, of course, has sported countless “It” bags before. But there are several factors that make her latest stand apart. For starters, in the month that production of And Just Like That... has been underway in New York City, Carrie’s only real fashion moments so far have involved throwbacks to the original Sex and the City series and movies. Even then, only one could really be described as major: the same sequined purple Fendi Baguette that she memorably forfeited over to a robber in season 3. For many, the bag’s reappearance brought a sigh of relief. Up until then, the character synonymous with trendsetting accessories had been sticking to an array of WNYC radio station totes.

In fact, Carrie hasn’t shown much promise of trendsetting at all just yet. Field’s replacements aren’t new to her work, nor even the franchise: Molly Rogers is Field’s protégée, while Danny Santiago was her co-costume designer on the Sex and the City movies. Still, it’s hard to imagine Field ever would have had Carrie debut the Gucci x Balenciaga while wearing a bohemian-style sleeveless dress atop a button-down with a Lisa Frank-like lion on the back.

Now, though, Carrie’s wardrobe has made for a moment even for those who aren’t SATC fans. Gucci x Balenciaga has scarcely been spotted since the houses made the unprecedented, and ultimately wildly popular, move to come together this past April. (They may both be owned by the luxury conglomerate Kering, but it still came as a shock to see two of the biggest logos in fashion willfully intermingling.) Maybe Carrie’s closet still has some clout after all.