Financial expert breaks down the spending habits of TV’s most stylish stars – as she reveals the true cost of Carrie Bradshaw, Emily in Paris and The Nanny’s closets
Have you ever wondered how your favorite TV character was able to afford their extremely expensive designer clothes, bags, and shoes on their salaries?
To find out if it’s actually possible, FEMAIL consulted financial technology company Chime partner Dasha Kennedy, who gives culturally relevant monetary advice to her 324,000 Instagram followers.
The financial activist analyzed famous TV character’s spending habits and explained the income they would need to make to keep up with their luxurious lifestyles.
From Emily Cooper on Emily in Paris, who spends an estimated $76,795 on clothes and accessories a year (which far surpasses her estimated $50k salary) to Fran Fine on The Nanny, who only makes $6 an hour but is always seen in Moschino, this is how possible it is for these characters to afford their envy-inducing wardrobes.
Plus, Dasha calculated exactly what people like Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw and New Girl’s Jessica Day would have to make to truly be able to afford their campy closets.
Emily Cooper on Emily in Paris: Marketing executive in Paris with an estimated salary of $50,00
Emily Cooper, played by Lily Collins, 35, is famous for her extremely over the top outfits, which usually involve mixing and matching bold, colorful prints, as seen above
Emily’s green gingham bathing suit cost almost $300, paired with $450 sunglasses, and $825 Tod’s raffia buckle sandals
Emily’s most expensive habit is no doubt her wardrobe – which sees her dropping $76,795 a year, including on this custom pink feather ostrich coat
The marketing exec spends $120,006 a year to maintain her lavish lifestyle, which is a whopping $73,025 over her annual income
Emily Cooper, played by Lily Collins, is famous for her extremely over the top outfits, which usually involve mixing and matching prints and topping it all off with a beret.
The famously chic American ex-pat with a love of bucket hats and love triangles works as a marketing executive for a luxury firm.
Financial technology company Chime partner Dasha Kennedy analyzed their spending habits
Emily, who started her work in Paris in 2020, has an estimated salary of about $46,980, which would make it difficult to procure her closet full of designer items.
Emily’s wardrobe, however, costs more than her salary. The Parisian professional was estimated to have spent a whopping $76,795 on clothes and accessories annually, showing off designers including Prada, Valentino, Christian Louboutin, and Balmain.
Emily’s most expensive piece was a yellow Vassilis Zoulias jacket spotted in the fourth episode of season two, which cost a mindboggling $53,987. However, it’s possible she could be borrowing designer pieces to show them off on her ever-growing Instagram page.
‘Emily, fashion in Paris is serious, but so is budgeting!’ Dasha joked.
Dasha explained that with a $50,000 salary ‘there’s no way she could realistically afford her wardrobe’ without going deep into credit card debt.
In fact, to live comfortably and maintain her wardrobe, Emily would have to earn at least $150,000 a year, according to Dasha, and ‘even then, she would need to get very creative with consignment shops, renting luxury pieces for big events from local boutiques, and leveraging her influencer perks for gifted items in exchange for a tag on Instagram.’
Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City: Freelance writer in Manhattan with an estimated salary of $90,000
Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, famously spent far too much money on her shoes and clothes, leaving her with nothing in savings to buy an apartment
This floral ruffled dress was designed by Richard Tyler and was sold at Neiman Marcus for $3,200
There has been much discussion about whether Carrie would have been able to live comfortably on her salary as a freelance writer in the late ’90s and early 2000s
The Vogue writer spent $40,000 on fabulous footwear, which her friend Miranda Hobbes (played by Cynthia Nixon) calculated
Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, famously spent far too much money on her shoes – and there has been much discussion about whether she would have been able to live comfortably on her salary as a freelance writer in the late ’90s and early 2000s.
DailyMail.com previously broke down the data, and according to Glassdoor, freelance writers in New York City earn, on average, between $39,000 and $88,000.
Carrie would have earned closer to the higher-end of the range based on her years of experience, as she was 32 when the series started.
The real Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City author Candace Bushnell, previously revealed she made $5,000 a month penning a Vogue column.
Carrie’s closet was full of expensive shoes, including red bottom Louboutins, her favorite Manolo Blahniks, and Jimmy Choo heels. In fact, the Vogue writer infamously spent $40,000 on fabulous footwear, which her friend Miranda Hobbes (played by Cynthia Nixon) calculated.
The chic New Yorker also wore enviable designers Christian Dior, Vivienne Westwood and Dolce & Gabbana. At least her clothing withstood the test of time and proves equally popular with Gen Z today, which would make it easy to re-sell now. Her bag brands were just as illustrious, including Fendi, Dior and Louis Vuitton.
Of course, her maxed out credit card money wasn’t just spent on designer duds – she had a stunning apartment, although it was rent stabilized and $750 a month.
Other expenses included exclusively taking cabs, lavish dinners out, regular catch-up brunch on the weekend, and cocktails with her friends, as well as her seemingly endless supply of cigarettes.
‘It’s no secret that Carrie had a love/hate relationship with her finances,’ Dasha said.
‘In the late ’90s and early 2000s, her salary was good, but those designer pieces would still eat up a lot of her income,’ Dasha continued.
‘Without savings (which we know Carrie really did not do) she might manage, but I would say she would need at least $200,000 a year to comfortably afford her lifestyle without sacrificing her financial stability.’
Dasha suggested Chime’s automatic savings feature, which would have helped Carrie save by rounding up on her purchases.
Fran Fine on The Nanny: Nanny in New York City making $6 an hour or roughly $12,480 a year
Fran Fine, played by Fran Drescher, often wore the eclectic brand Moschino, like this vintage skirt suit that recently sold for $500 on luxury re-sale site 1st Dibs
Fran Fine was famous for her over-the-top designer ensembles which are painstakingly documented on the popular Instagram account What Fran Wore
The babysitter wore flashy outfits from Moschino, Todd Oldham, Herve Leger, Anna Sui, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, and Marc Jacobs
The Queens native frequently said she made $6 an hour, which would equate to about $12,000 a year, although she regularly asked for a raise
Fran Fine on The Nanny, played by Fran Drescher, was famous for her over-the-top ensembles, which are painstakingly documented on the popular Instagram account What Fran Wore.
The bridal shop boutique worker turned babysitter didn’t have to pay for room and board, as she lived in Maxwell Sheffield’s Upper East Side mansion.
Fran memorably wore flashy outfits from Moschino, Todd Oldham, Herve Leger, Anna Sui, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, and Marc Jacobs.
The Queens native frequently said she made $6 an hour, which would equate to about $12,000 a year – and she would regularly ask her Broadway producer boss, and later husband, for a raise.
However, even commenters on Instagram were confused by the straight off the runway wardrobe, with one asking, ‘Was it ever explained how she could afford this wardrobe, or was it more that in the show it was never addressed that these were designer brands she wore?’
Fans voiced their theories, including Fran talking about loving a sale, wearing her fashion designer cousin Todd’s creations, and buying her clothes half price at designer discount store Loehmann’s, which is mentioned constantly.
While Dasha admits she’s a huge fan of the ’90s fashion icon, she calls her taste in designer duds extremely unlikely, despite her love for discount designer stores.
‘Even with discounted designer shopping, she needed to earn at least $50,000 in order to afford her wardrobe,’ Dasha said. ‘Luckily, she wasn’t paying for rent or food which helped her stretch her dollars to go towards her shopping habits.’
Jessica Day on The New Girl: Public school sixth grade teacher in Los Angeles making an estimated $67,000
Jess Day, Zooey Deschanel’s character on Fox’s New Girl, wore a $780 plunging red lace gown from Los Angeles-based designer Christy Dawn as a bridesmaid
Jess often wore outfits from preppy mall brand J. Crew, which would have made sense for a public school teacher making her salary
Jess wore this vintage-inspired $176 dress from New Orleans brand Trashy Diva, a designer that was worn multiple times on the show
According to ScreenRant, Jess would have made around $67,000 a year as a public school teacher in Los Angeles. When she later became a principal, her salary would have doubled, with her making about $122,000 in 2018.
Some of her dresses were vintage, while others were from brands like Betsey Johnson, Tommy Hilfiger, Anthropologie, and Kate Spade, with the average cost of one of her fanciful frocks around $150 to $250 at the time.
On Reddit, viewers questioned how Jess, played by Zooey Deschanel, would be able to sustain her kitschy, ModCloth wardrobe, with one person writing, ‘All I can say is, as a public school teacher for years, there is no way could she afford any of them on a teacher’s salary.’
Dasha said that while Jess enjoyed outfits that were a bit on the pricey side, her closet was a splurge not unattainable – and once she reached her $120,000 salary, she could ‘easily afford her favorite brands without breaking the bank.’
‘Jessica could also be taking advantage of seasonal sales and discounts to keep her wardrobe up-to-date without overspending,’ Dasha advised.
‘Her salary doubling definitely gave her more room to spend more money on her wardrobe while also being able to take care of her day-to-day living expenses.’
