Sabrina Carpenter Mixes Her Pin-Up Style With the Denim Dress Trend

The singer is getting a head start on fall 2024 fashion.

Sabrina Carpenter
Sabrina Carpenter puts her heart-shaped spin on the denim dress trend.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The stars are already dusting off their denim and getting a head start on fall fashion. This week, Zendaya flaunted a pair of light-wash, wide-leg jeans—similar to a pair Reese Witherspoon tried on the set of The Morning Show just days in advance. The week before that, Katie Holmes sported a pair of ultra-wides. And now, Sabrina Carpenter is test-driving another fall denim trend—the denim dress.

The singer spoke over the weekend alongside Jack Antonoff at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, wearing a form-fitting, midi length light wash denim dress. Sabrina's signature heart cut-outs that appear on many of her on-stage outfits embellished the piece, one on her chest and another at her hip.

sabrina carpenter onstage at the grammy museum in a heart cutout mini dress

Sabrina Carpenter puts her heart-shaped spin on the denim dress trend.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Denim dresses and skirt suits took over the fall 2024 runways, spanning Schiaparelli, Carolina Herrera, Ulla Johnson, Christian Dior, and more. It's a refreshing, feminine departure from the Canadian tuxedo trend that ruled celebrities' closets over the spring (see: Bella Hadid in Y2k-inspired jean-on-jean, Beyoncé rotating through seven different Canadian tuxedo looks during her Cowboy Carter album cycle, and Sydney Sweeney putting a preppy, ladylike twist on matching denim.)

Carpenter's denim dress has roots in another fall trend, as well—the fashion world's renewed interest in cut-out details. Jil Sander's spring/summer 2024 collection included a black tunic with two gold-trimmed, disc-shaped cut-outs just above the breasts. Alexander McQueen promoted the return of keyhole necklines and an updated version of the cold shoulder sleeves. Blake Lively recently wore a pair of $19,000 Valentino jeans with floral cut-outs running down each leg.

sabrina carpenter on the Grammy Museum red carpet

Sabrina Carpenter wears her heart on her chest (and hip).

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The cut-outs are nothing new for Carpenter, however. With the help of stylist Jared Ellner, she wears her heart on her sleeve (or, rather, chest) constantly for concert looks, wearing a variety of multi-colored mini dresses with heart-shaped holes by the Ukrainian brand Frolov. Carpenter's style can be described as cutesy, modern pin-up model. The artist made headlines over the summer when she strutted down the Vogue World catwalk in a red-and-white, candy-striped set and matching vintage hair scarf, a get-up that screamed retro-nautical siren.

More playful mini dresses are on the horizon now that Carpenter is preparing for her next album, Short N'Sweet. Shop pieces inspired by her latest look below.

Julia Gray
Contributor

Julia Gray is a contributing fashion writer at Marie Claire, where she covers runway trends, celebrity style, and shopping. In her six years as a journalist, Julia’s reporting has ranged across style, music, Internet culture, art, retail, tech, and more. In addition to Marie Claire, Julia writes for outlets like the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Ringer, New York Magazine, Pitchfork, Nylon, and Vice, among others. Julia's fashion reporting is led by curiosity. Julia is not only interested in critiquing and covering pop culture, but in understanding what our pop culture says about how we live and modern values. When she’s not writing, Julia hosts a podcast called Girls Room, where she and her co-host revisit shows like Girls and Gossip Girl from the beginning with guests like comedian Cat Cohen and writer Hunter Harris. Girls Room was recently cited in the New York Times.