Laura Harrier hasn't starred in a romantic comedy yet, but she's already dressing the part.
The actress greets me in a secluded corner of the New York Public Library's marbled hallways on a Thursday night, glowing in a J.Crew tank top and slouchy gray trousers cinched with a black leather belt. The landmark setting has always possessed a bit of movie magic by virtue of its history, but there's an extra charge to the air that feels like something downright script-worthy could happen.
We're meeting because J.Crew is hosting a dinner to kick off New York Fashion Week and celebrate the return of its sepia-toned, barn jacket-filled print catalog. The room around the corner from where we're standing is filled with New York icons and Hollywood stars in their avant-prep best—the kind of room where accidental encounters could spawn entire memoir chapters. And Harrier, in her '80s workwear trousers and unassuming-but-chic tank top, looks like she walked right out of a Nora Ephron production.
Getting dressed for the night with stylist Danielle Goldberg, Harrier tells me she had New York City on her mind. "I just wanted to feel comfortable and feel like myself, feel New York, which to me is sort of wearing darker colors, [while] keeping it to cool and casual," she says.
It's not an accident that Harrier equates dressing for herself with dressing for New York. The actress and one-time Reformation designer spent her entire twenties living in the city before relocating to Los Angeles. (A tale as old as time.) Her years running between appointments and hailing cabs made an impact. "I feel like it just really dictated not just me as a person but like my style and everything," she says. "So I definitely feel much more like New York leaning in terms of style."
For a finishing touch, Harrier accessorized with '80s gold earrings and a pair of low leather mules. The whole outfit wouldn't look out of place just outside the library's walls, where today's city girls sprinted from fashion week even to event. That was intentional, Harrier says. "I think the environment dictates what I wear more than trends. I definitely dress differently here than I do in LA or I do in Paris."
In the city, Harrier embraces her casual side for running from place to place; New York heroines are busy and need clothes that won't get in their way. Out in Los Angeles, she can either be in a glam heel and dress for the car-to-dinner walk or workout gear for a Pilates session. "I think people kind of always associate LA with being so casual and all that. In a way it is, because you can walk around in workout clothes during the day, which I wouldn't do here."
What you can do is treat yourself like the main character. Every editor I know in New York City treats fall like their pinnacle style season, whether they're attending the official fashion week calendar or not; those same people are looking to onscreen New York stars for inspiration. Those moodboard-worthy characters take all-time fall staples and imbue them with a little magic, whether they're wearing a perfectly slouchy pant or a statement coat. Harrier finds them just as inspirational as everyday viewers.
She references Meg Ryan's trousers and chunky sweaters in When Harry Met Sally, or Parker Posey's leopard print coat in Party Girl, as a few of her favorite influences. "I just feel like every good nineties rom-com is in New York. So there's just that energy of good sweaters and browns and burnt oranges and all of those colors."
Harrier's evening at the New York Public Library would later include catching up with fellow actress Riley Keough and taking in an exquisite dinner modeled off of La Côte Basque, a former NYC restaurant with its own cinematic history. The next day, she'd jet back to Los Angeles where she'd lean a little further into her fall wardrobe.
"I love looks whenever like the temperature starts to dip," she says. "I just get excited to dip into my big coat collection."
I stop her for a moment. Isn't it a little warm in LA for a suede overcoat? "I mean, you got to do it for the look," she laughs. "Even if I'm sweating in a fur, but it's fine. You got to do it for fashion." Spoken like a style heroine.
