MY FASHIONABLE LIFE: KIM CATTRALL
The actor, 64, on her biggest style regrets and the unlikely pieces she’s kept from her Hollywood roles
The actor on her biggest style regrets, Hollywood momentos and her unapologetic approach to femininity
I MOVED TO NEW YORK AT 16. That’s where I became aware of fashion. I grew up between Liverpool and Vancouver Island, Canada. I went to New York by myself for theatre school and it was a beautiful awakening. Walking around in the early 1970s, there were so many bold style choices – hemlines, colours, materials. It was an eye-opener.
I WAS A TOMBOY AS A KID. But my mother was interested in fashion so that had a huge impact. She worked at Lewis’s, an art deco department store in Liverpool, and hosted fashion presentations, reading out models’ names and what they wore.
FRIENDS INFLUENCED MY STYLE THE MOST. One of my roommates in the 1970s studied fashion at Parsons School of Design. She’d bring home fabrics and magazines – pure fantasy and expression. Our flat with a balcony was across the street from a club, and we’d watch glamorous people arriving in limousines in incredible clothes. The pageantry of it felt like such a celebration of style and womanhood.
MY FIRST MAJOR FASHION PURCHASE HAD TO BE A COAT.
I was strapped for cash but my mother sent me $100. I went straight to the Bergdorf Goodman sale and got a classic camel tie-front one. I loved it for years before giving it to my mother.
THE LONG PINK GOWN I WORE TO THE GOLDEN GLOBES IN 2OO4 WAS THE MOST SPECTACULAR THING. It was vintage, very light pink and Grecian. The make-up, jewellery and everything else was minimal. I felt like the golden girl: where my career was going, the choices I was making, the appetite I had. Everything felt right.
PATRICIA FIELD [SEX AND THE CITY’S COSTUME DESIGNER]
TAUGHT ME TO BE HONEST. Meaning that some clothes just don’t suit me. Your body has to be as much in tune with your clothes as your mind is with your character.
I INVEST IN JEWELLERY AND HANDBAGS. Chanel bags, in particular. Ones you can hold, not worn over the shoulder. The most expensive thing I’ve bought was an amulet from an antique store on Madison Avenue. It’s Corinthian with a beautiful warm stone and little figures carved into it. I’ve had it for 25 years; it’s so precious to me.
I KEEP MEMENTOS FROM ALL MY JOBS. A cool pair of boots from Sex And The City. The ears from Star Trek. The actual mannequin from Mannequin. It’s fascinating the memories that these objects can bring up.
REGRETS? I HAVE THEM DAILY. I look at myself in a pair of hot pants and think, OK… Well, I pulled them off at the time. But I hope I never stop making mistakes. I’ve learnt from them. I’ve stopped trying to be a petite, Disney version of feminine. I have broad shoulders, I can’t wear frills. I want to bring strength and individuality. I want to look like Bianca Jagger in 1977 – unapologetic sexuality and still feminine.