Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet featuring Taylor Swift Thrift, a curated sale of pop culture-led, pre-owned fashion, will debut this Saturday (October 25) at the annual folk festival Żejt iż-Żejtun.
Hosted by former Louis Vuitton publicist and Żejtun resident Marcus Brewster, the one-night-only event presents expertly sourced investible and covetable vintage apparel for sale from some of the most famous fashion houses in the world.
Conceived as a crucible for unique finds, quality garments and a kinder-to-the-planet alternative to disposable high-street fashion, Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet is “pre-owned luxury through the lens of popular culture,” Brewster says.
“The closet’s namesake Carrie Bradshaw has become the byword for a particular kind of clothes-conscious woman whose personal style boldly combines designer labels, vintage pieces and streetwear. If anyone, Carrie is the godmother of the current thrifting movement. Her high-low fashion sensibility − the confidence to mix couture with pre-owned apparel – has influenced the way women dress today.”
Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet owes its name to the fictional fashionista of Candace Bushnell’s Sex and the City novel, as well as the films and TV series starring Sarah Jessica Parker. A continuation series, And Just Like That…, concluded its three-season run earlier this year.
Carrie’s style, individualistic and highly unexpected, was developed by series costumer Patricia Field, nominated for five Emmy Awards (including one win) and six Costume Designers Guild awards (including four wins). So important was Carrie’s wardrobe to the character, and so important the looks in fashion history terms, actress Sarah Jessica Parker had it written in her contract that she got to keep the clothing.
Taylor Swift Thrift
A special feature of Saturday’s Closet will be a pop-up sale of Taylor Swift Thrift, looks influenced by and interpreting the pop star’s latest album, The Life of a Showgirl. Swift’s lead single The Fate of Ophelia and self-directed video shows the singer channelling a number of historical and retro-inspired styles: from Busby Berkley to burlesque, and from 1960s girl group a go-go to Bob Mackie Y2k sparkle.
Swift’s impact globally has been such that a German art gallery reported a surge in attendance this month with Swifties seeking out Friedrich Heyser’s painting of the Shakespeare character.
Last week, a vintage T-shirt worn by Swift in behind-the-scenes footage from her video shoot inadvertently sparked a massively successful fundraiser for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Over a million dollars in donations to the Aquarium’s Sea Otter Program were raised after her fans sold out a reissue of the 1990s tee design.
To celebrate the release of the album, which set new streaming records at launch this month, Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet will be offering thrift-y interpretations of Swift’s showgirl aesthetic. Think sequins and fringe, beaded bralettes and lace-trimmed rompers, and the vibrant red, Halloween orange and pale opalite blue colour ways of the album’s art direction.
In addition, among the collection’s many nods to Swift-lore, the sale will showcase Ophelia dresses “in both the Heyser and John Everett Millais floral versions” says Brewster of the Wiesbaden museum and London Tate paintings which inspired the Grammy-winner’s video.
Aside from anything Swift related, the debut of Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet promises designer finds including Armani, Roberto Cavalli, Dolce & Gabbana and Emilio Pucci. Even local design talent Charles & Ron.
“But it’s not just about the labels,” Brewster says. “There’s an elevated taste level to these garments, evident in fabrication, finish and finesse.”
Tay-Tay fans (and their stylish mothers) are invited to shop and enjoy both the Carrie Closet and Swift Thrift selections. In addition, a wide selection of second-hand books, CDs and DVDs will be available at the event catering for the rest of the family.
Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet featuring Taylor Swift Thrift will preview from 3pm on Saturday afternoon October 25 and will be open until 11pm. The pop-up, the latest attraction to be announced for Żejtun’s annual folk festival, will be located at 60, Triq San Girgor, Zejtun
About Żejt iż-Żejtun
The 19th edition of Żejt iż-Żejtun will take place on Saturday and Sunday
The festivities begin on Saturday evening at 7pm with a grand procession led by the Grand Master, accompanied by traditional drummers, dancers, and villagers carrying olives to the steps of the parish church of St Catherine V.M. After the reading of the proclamation, the harvest is blessed with joyful bell-ringing.
The event continues with presentations on olive tree varieties, demonstrations of olive pressing, and the serving of freshly pressed oil with traditional olive-flavoured pastries. In addition to pure olive oil, visitors can purchase honey rings, Maltese bread pudding, qassatat, carob syrup and recipe books featuring olive oil.
All activities take place in a vibrant atmosphere filled with folk music, dancing, Maltese crafts and the sale of olive trees and agricultural products.
During the festival, St Catherine’s parish church, the oratory, the canonry and the parish hall − home to the famous painting of the beheading of St Catherine − will be open to the public. Visitors may also explore the band clubs of Żejtun, hosting exhibitions connected to the town’s heritage.
The celebration continues on Sunday morning from 8am with the blessing of animals in Żwieten Garden (St Gregory’s Garden), featuring an exhibition of donkeys and sheep, traditional children’s games, music and market stalls.
For more information and updates, visit the Facebook page of the Żejtun local council.
