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(#1) Carrie Bradshaw
- Sex and the City, The Carrie Diaries
The Wardrobe: Carrie Bradshaw’s insanely fabulous wardrobe in Sex and the City is part of what makes her a pop culture icon. Nearly everything Carrie owns is designer, especially her shoes. She isn't shy about that fact, either - Carrie may talk about Manolo Blahnik more than she talks about Mr. Big.
The Income: With apologies for bursting the bubble, Carrie flat-out can't afford her lifestyle, even considering inflation and the economy. Carrie writes just one popular column per week. Sure, she starts looking for other avenues of income, but that isn't until late in Season 4. With a rent of $750 and her one-article-per-week job, it's unclear how much that leaves Carrie for shopping money. But however much she makes, she certainly can't afford to drop $40,000 on shoes.
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(#2) Emily Fields
- Pretty Little Liars
The Wardrobe: Every single character on Pretty Little Liars has a pretty enviable wardrobe. Spencer’s high school clothes look more like something an attorney would wear for a court appearance. Aria loves her bohemian, edgy looks. Hanna’s clothes are always the most on trend. Of the original liars, Emily’s wardrobe is the most low-key. But Emily develops a hip style that's all her own, rocking tailored jeans, designer bags, and heels.
The Income: The other PLLs have jobs that would support their wardrobes. Spencer works in politics. Hanna works in fashion. Aria works in publishing. However, Emily works as a bartender, then a swim coach - a job that offers a $25,000 salary. How she can afford to raise a baby while looking effortlessly fabulous defies belief. But hey, so does the rest of this show.
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(#3) Marnie Michaels
- Girls
The Wardrobe: The characters on Girls are all very different, right down to their wardrobes. Hannah’s clothing looks mostly like ill-fitting Forever 21 finds - so, affordable. Jessa’s bohemian look and Louis Vuitton luggage is less believable, though she seems like the type of girl who goes through life just being given things by people. Shoshana’s parents likely pay for her outfits. The one person who stands out is Marnie, who always looks put together. Even her sweatpants are Michael Kors.
The Income: When Marnie is introduced, she works as an art gallery assistant. Then she works as a restaurant hostess, which definitely would not pay enough for rent in Brooklyn, let alone new clothes. Then she's a barista, then a musician - though how much money she makes off that record deal is unclear. In the end, Marnie is jobless and viewers are left wondering how Marnie was ever able to afford that see-through dress she wore to Booth Jonathan’s party.
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(#4) Rachel Green
- Friends
The Wardrobe: Rachel Green’s wardrobe is arguably the best on Friends. Rachel is chic, fashion-forward, and always put together. Since most of the show takes place in her apartment, fans see Rachel both dressed up and in her comfortable clothing, but either way she's always on point.
The Income: During the first few seasons, Rachel works as a waitress at Central Perk. It's insane to imagine that job pays enough for Rachel to cover even half the rent, let alone her clothes. Rachel eventually finds success in the fashion industry, but that's not until after she spends time working as a personal shopper and assistant. A more realistic show would have her wardrobe improve with her income, but then again, when is Friends ever incredibly realistic?
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(#5) Nikki Swango From 'Fargo'
The Wardrobe: Season 3 of Fargo introduces Nikki Swango, queen of playing bridge and wearing epic coats. She wears an amazing striped fur number, a green fur coat, a studded black jacket, and a purple leather jacket. Nikki also has no shortage of revealing tops, though her outerwear is the true winner.
The Income: As a parolee, Nikki never really has a job. Maybe she earns money from her competitive bridge playing, but that’s not clear. How does she afford all those major winter looks?
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(#6) Ashley Davenport
- Revenge
The Wardrobe: Every single character looks good in Revenge, and that includes Ashley Davenport. Cunning Ashley works as an assistant to Victoria Grayson, the society queen of the Hamptons. As part of her job, Ashley turns up to high society events wearing designer gowns - with absolutely no mention as to how she affords them on her assistant salary. Ashley’s everyday clothing is just as chic.
The Income: The average salary of a personal assistant in New York is around $58,000. That's not bad, but it's certainly not enough to cover Ashley's Hamptons lifestyle or her Hamptons wardrobe. But apparently Ashley is willing to go into massive debt to keep up with the Joneses (or Graysons). Fake it till you make it, right?
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(#7) Rachel Zane
- Suits
The Wardrobe: On Suits, Rachel Zane takes her office wardrobe seriously. Between the pencil skirts, the crisp button-downs, and the heels, Rachel dresses like Mad Men meets The Good Wife. But even though Rachel dresses like a high-powered New York attorney, she isn't - she's a paralegal due to her inability to score high enough on the LSAT.
The Income: The average salary of a paralegal working in New York City is $54,990. That lets you live in New York, but without much wiggle room. There's no way Rachel can afford all those cute Nina Ricci tops she wears. And even though Rachel's father, Robert Zane, is a wealthy high-powered attorney, Rachel chooses to live independently, keeping her familial relations a secret and refusing any help or handouts.
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(#8) Dan Humphrey
- Gossip Girl
The Wardrobe: On Gossip Girl, Blair Waldorf, Serena van der Woodsen, Chuck Bass, and Nate Archibald are all children of the elite, elite 1%. This makes their designer wardrobes plausible. However, the Humphreys, the artistic but much less wealthy family from Brooklyn, would never be able to afford their fashionable clothes. Jenny gets a free pass, as one can assume she makes many of her pieces or thrifts them. Dan, on the other hand, makes no absolutely sense. Sure, his everyday look is unassuming, as it’s pretty much jeans and a T-shirt. But Dan also shows up to a decent amount of events wearing a suave suit or tuxedo. How can he afford those outfits on his catering-for-two-episodes salary?
The Income: In the earlier seasons, Dan is a non-working high school student who lives off his father. Throughout the series, Dan works a few jobs, including a catering gig and an internship at W Magazine, when it fits the narrative. Later he sells his book, but that's still not enough money for that type of clothing.
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(#9) Penny
- The Big Bang Theory
The Wardrobe: The Big Bang Theory’s Penny should be praised for her practicality. Her wardrobe is something that normal people might actually wear. However, normal people don’t have a new shirt every single day. Sure, Penny's clothes are simple, but running through that many pieces gets expensive. She does repeat one item, though: her purse from Lucky Brand, which retails at $149.
The Income: For a lot of the series, Penny works at The Cheesecake Factory while she pursues her dreams of being an actress. With her Pasadena rent, working at a chain restaurant wouldn’t leave her enough money for all those tops. If Penny had been working at a higher-end restaurant, her wardrobe would be more believable.
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(#10) Jessica "Jess" Day
- New Girl
The Wardrobe: New Girl’s Jess doesn’t necessarily wear anything too outlandishly expensive. She's not known to rock Manolo Blahniks or Gucci gowns. However, Jess's funky, girly wardrobe still manages to stand out. Apparently, Jess owns a closet with so many bright dresses that she’s basically a living Disney princess. Those enviable frocks come from well-known brands like J. Crew, and when you consider the fact that she never repeats an outfit, you're looking at one pricey lifestyle.
The Income: If Jess were a lawyer or executive of some kind, her ability to buy a zillion beautiful dresses would be totally believable. However, Jess works in education. Considering the fact that a teacher in Los Angeles makes an average of $53,613, Jess's ability to wear a new dress every day is far-fetched.
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(#11) Lorelai Gilmore
- Gilmore Girls
The Wardrobe: Lorelai Gilmore’s wardrobe is massive. There are her notorious cowgirl shorts, her punchy T-shirts, and all the winter clothing. And then there are the party clothes. Whenever there's a themed event - like the dance marathon or the Asian party - Lorelai wears a theme-perfect outfit. Shelling out money for an outfit you can only wear once can get pretty expensive. Also, Lorelai loves to rock a good Marc Jacobs bag, which can go for $1,000-plus. To their credit though, the Gilmore girls sometimes repeat pieces.
The Income: As an inn manager, Lorelai likely makes decent money. But Lorelai doesn't necessarily take advantage of Stars Hollow's low cost of living. She pretty much follows her impulses when it comes to spending. Having grown up in the decadent Gilmore household, maybe Lorelai simply doesn't understand what budgeting is.
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(#12) Jughead Jones
- Archie's Weird Mysteries
The Wardrobe: Of all the characters on Riverdale, Jughead is supposed to be the least wealthy. Of course, they dress the “bad boy” from the wrong side of the tracks in a leather jacket. And it's just one of Jughead's seemingly never-ending supply of outer layers, which also includes jean jackets, flannels, and hoodies. He even manages to find himself a suit.
The Income: Jughead doesn't have a job, which isn't super surprising for a high school kid. But the Jones family seems to be so impoverished it’s unclear how Jughead even has any custom beanies to wear.
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(#13) Daenerys Targaryen
- Game of Thrones
The Wardrobe: Daenerys Targaryen’s wardrobe changes with each new location she’s in. While she's with the Dothraki, she wears head-to-toe leather. While she's in Westeros, she dresses in warm, military-inspired garb. And when she flies beyond the Wall, she wears the most fabulous fur coat in the history of fur coats.
The Income: Money isn’t really a thing in Westeros; it exists, but it doesn't typically dominate the conversation. Established highborn women like Cersei and Sansa probably have their dresses made by local experts. But who is making clothes for Daenerys? Did Grey Worm kill whatever creatures went into making that coat? Something doesn’t add up with Dany’s wardrobe, even if income doesn't factor in.
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About This Tool
Have you noticed the wardrobes of some best-dressed TV characters? Are they a bit unrealistic? Have you ever wondered how they can afford these beautiful clothes and designer bags as waiters or homeless high school students? Let us see that even non-rich characters have wardrobes that only high-income people can afford. Logically speaking, they must not be able to afford such luxurious wardrobes in real life.
TV shows continue to present some unrealistic and unrealistic storylines to the audience, most of which are due to sponsors. The random tool lists 13 stylish TV characters who can't afford their wardrobes in real life.
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