Sarah Jessica Parker's style mantra for young women: 'Trust yourselves'

Think of New York City. Think fashion fabulous. Now think about the first name that comes to mind that marries the two: the phenomenal Ms. Carrie Bradshaw.

 

Truly, seeing A-list Hollywood star Sarah Jessica Parker, who portrayed the fictional character from 1998 the hit television series "Sex and the City" (SATC), was like a dream come true for all her Filipino fans.

 

The television show "Sex and the City" aired from 1998 until 2004 and birthed two spin-off movies.  

  SJP in the city  

I think everyone who was at the mall opening of the new SM Aura at The Fort Bonifacio Heights last Thursday started reminiscing the good old SATC days. That glorious time when everyone followed her chicness and was compelled by her interesting and exciting story. Ms Parker is now the new brand ambassador of said mall. 

 

It is a fact that SJP, as fans like to call her, is a show stopper as well as a true fashion icon. She was dressed in an all-black ensemble, making a fashion mark on Manila, and everyone who was there knew that she's the eye-candy of 2013. Yes, we all loved her.

 

Just being herself would have been enough for almost everyone, including myself. But beholding her in the flesh is just like witnessing a work of art—the kind where fashion becomes meaningful in life, the world, and everything. Her fabulous territory isn't just New York anymore, she's already conquered us, and in turn conquered Manila. 

 

Is SJP just like Carrie? Is there any difference between the Hollywood star and the fictional fashionista? 

 

To this, SJP replied: "The choices we make are very, very different. I always thought she's much bolder than I am. I continue to be less bold but I think I learned from her, by playing the part for so long, that there is something kind of exciting about her. She always makes more bold choices, unlike me. I learned a lot from her.”

Sarah versus Carrie  

Ms Parker then admitted that, while they were essentially a far cry from one another, they still shared common traits: "The love for New York City and their enthusiasm for fashion."

 

SJP dresses for herself and not for everyone’s approval. This is why fans can’t let go of the fact that she is one of the most fabulous faces of Hollywood. Still, what this essentially means is knowing yourself and having personal style.

 

"I think the best you can do is be yourself,” she stressed. “Make choices that you feel good,” 

 

SJP confessed that it’s not just shopping `til you drop that gets you style—meaning buying a lot of clothes, shoes, and bags—but the key factor is shopping with your eyes. 

 

“It's not so much the shopping, it's for me what my eyes see,” said Parker. "I love walking in the streets of New York and seeing the people from different sizes and shape, colors, and backgrounds, smelling different food, and looking at different architecture.”

 

When it comes down to it, what makes SJP so alluring is the fact that she knows her personal style. But people who still haven’t found it yet shouldn't worry at all. 

 

SJP has an interesting insight about this matter: "Feeling like yourself is a hard thing to convey in a sound bite but I think the biggest challenge for young women is to trust themselves, to keep their own counsel and not to always look around in their peers and try to look like them, dress like them, and behave like them.”

 

For fashion to become art in life and mean the world, it must be informed by its time and environment. Style must not exist ina vacuum. 

 

“It takes a while to just accept yourself,” smiled SJP, dazzling and full of light. “But that's a complex place to arrive. It takes a while, it takes years.” – KDM, GMA News