A Must-see movie for fashionistas on the go
For fashionistas and women on the go, a lot of movies are a must-see. Two years ago, it was The Devil Wears Prada, while this year it's Sex and the City.
These movies hold up a mirror and often poke fun at the trends that we take so seriously. Yes, the plots are fun and the acting amusing, but really, we are going to see the clothes, the sets and the styling.
Sex and the City does not disappointing
For years I watched that show and felt sorry for Carrie, holed up in her small, gloomy apartment, puffing away, curled up in a hard chair, surrounded by flea market furniture. No one understood how she could afford all those Manolos on her freelance writer's pay, let alone hire a decorator or even a painter, for that matter. I remember when Aidan offered to renovate her apartment. He was a furniture designer, after all. Then we saw his cottage. Cute, but no way would I let him loose on my place.
Now, five years and a few successful books later, Carrie has hired a decorator. By the end of the movie, her apartment is transformed to reflect her wacky fashion sense. Gone is the floating shelf over her bed, the faded neutral walls and Spartan furniture. In their place, designer Jeremy Conway and set decorator Lydia Marks have given Carrie vibrant blue walls (Electric Blue from Benjamin Moore) and floors stained deep walnut, with accent rugs in chocolate and white. Right on trend: Blue and chocolate is the single biggest colour combo of this decade. The bedroom has Dupioni silk drapes to the floor, a Chinese blue-and-white porcelain lamp and a white Parsons table.
The wall over the bed is covered in small photos and prints hung salon-style.
At the other end of the room, gone is the small tube TV that perched in the corner on a wobbly table. The new anchor on the feature wall of the sitting area is a sleek flat-panel TV hung at eye level. Surrounding it are built-in cupboards and bookcases. There are settees upholstered in linen, a round mirrored coffee table and a dressing table, also mirrored, with a white upholstered retro chair. It's all very It-Girl glam.
Uptown, on the Upper East Side, is the penthouse with what is supposed to be the closet to end all closets. Mr. Big surprises Carrie with a custom-built dressing room/closet that left me cold.
More like a bathroom than a dressing room, there was way too much etched glass and chrome for me. The living room, with its classic bones and French doors leading to a private terrace really was, as she said, real estate heaven.
As always in Cinderella tales, there is a moral to the story: You can have the prince or the penthouse, but not both, it seems.
The movie does not show us where they end up living. Just as she ditched her Vivienne Westwood couture bridal gown in favour of a no-name vintage suit, and traded the society wedding for lunch at a diner with the gang, I fear Carrie's vibrant blue walls and mirrored tables will have to go. I think Mr. Big needs neutral walls and deep sofas. More comfort, less bling.
But her girly apartment proves that, just like our heroine, small can be truly chic.
