Key takeaways
- Sarah Jessica Parker wore a blush-pink Simone Rocha dress with a dramatic fishtail braid woven with matching ribbon at the NYC Ballet Fall Fashion Gala on October 1.
- The braid showcased a variegated mix of golden, beige, brown, and silver tones, with strategic placement of gray around the crown and front hairline to frame the face.
- Achieving this look requires substantial hair length, multi-tonal color work from a skilled colorist, and ribbons woven through the braid during construction rather than added after.
- The styling merges quiet-luxury gray-hair philosophy with contemporary coquette and fairycore aesthetics for a modern, storybook-inspired appearance.
Sarah Jessica Parker has spent years visibly championing the idea that gray and darker hair can coexist, and she’s been making a strong aesthetic case for embracing natural graying rather than covering it up. At the New York City Ballet Fall Fashion Gala on October 1, according to Allure, she took that philosophy to an ambitious new level, arriving at Lincoln Center with a hairstyle that felt borrowed from a storybook. She managed to merge the “quiet silver,” “coquette,” and “fairycore” aesthetics into a single, intricately designed look. Her husband Matthew Broderick accompanied her in a conventional black-tie tuxedo, which made her theatrical appearance even more striking by contrast.
The Dress Foundation
Parker wore a blush-pink sheer gown from Simone Rocha’s Fall/Winter 2026 collection. The design featured long sleeves and embroidered flowers across the fabric. Wide satin ribbons in pale pink were loosely threaded throughout, creating a textile-rich surface that culminated in bows positioned at both shoulders. These ribbon details served as a visual bridge to her hair.
The Hair Construction
The Fishtail Braid
Parker’s hair was gathered into what Allure described as an enormous, layered fishtail braid. This technique involves dividing the hair into two sections and pulling thin outer strands from each side, crossing them alternately into the opposite section. This creates an intricately woven appearance with less labor than a traditional three-strand braid.
The braid began high on the back of her head, anchored with a matching bow, and traveled down toward her waist. According to Allure, the remaining hair flowed down in waves for at least another foot beyond where the braid ended.
Ribbons Woven Through
The pale pink satin ribbon from her dress was woven intermittently throughout the braid itself, threaded through the outer folds of the plaits. This detail transformed the braid from a single hairstyle into something closer to a wearable textile sculpture.
The Multi-Tonal Color Palette
What made the braid visually distinctive was its approach to color. According to Allure’s observation, Parker’s hair contained a carefully mixed collection of golden pieces, cooler beige tones, and deeper brown strands. These colors sat adjacent to each other rather than in distinct blocks, creating what’s called a variegated effect, where the eye perceives greater three-dimensionality and movement.
The silver wasn’t distributed evenly throughout the braid. Instead, it concentrated around her front hairline and crown, where her hair was swept smoothly backward from her face. This strategic placement meant the gray strands caught and reflected light, framing her features rather than appearing as something secondary or needing concealment.
The Fairytale Connection
The Rapunzel comparison was inevitable, Allure noted. The length, the braid, the ribbons, and the overall storybook proportions all pointed in that direction. What made Parker’s version distinctly modern was her approach to color. Rather than choosing between fully gray or fully brown hair, she let both tonalities coexist, with golden highlights bridging them. This created an effect that honored classic fairytale imagery while staying rooted in three contemporary beauty trends gaining traction: the quiet-luxury philosophy around gray hair, the romantic “coquette” aesthetic, and the whimsical “fairycore” sensibility that draws from cottagecore inspirations.
How to Recreate the Look
Start with the Base
A fishtail braid of this scale requires substantial length. Working with a colorist experienced in multi-tonal highlighting and lowlighting is essential to build the variegated effect Parker displayed. The mixed golden, beige, and brown tones don’t occur by chance.
Position the Silver Strategically
Rather than letting gray grow in uniformly, work with your colorist to place silver concentrations around your face and crown. This frames your features and ensures the gray reads as intentional rather than appearing as regrowth.
Thread Ribbons with Care
The ribbon should be woven through the braid as it’s being constructed, tucked through the outer folds of the fishtail, rather than added afterward. This ensures it sits naturally without slipping.
Keep Tension Loose
The “enormous” description from Allure suggests the braid sections were voluminous rather than tight. Either backcombing at the crown for texture or working with naturally thick hair and maintaining loose tension throughout will create this fullness.
Source: Allure
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the dress Sarah Jessica Parker wore?
A blush-pink sheer gown from Simone Rocha's Fall/Winter 2026 collection with long sleeves, embroidered flowers, and wide pale pink satin ribbons threaded throughout with bows at the shoulders.
How do you weave ribbons through a fishtail braid?
The ribbon should be threaded through the outer folds of the fishtail as the braid is being constructed, rather than added to a finished braid, to ensure it sits naturally without slipping.
What makes the multi-tonal color effect in the braid?
The hair contains a variegated mix of golden pieces, cooler beige tones, and deeper brown strands throughout the braid, with silver concentrated around the crown and front hairline for dimension and light reflection.
