Sabrina Carpenter's Stunning Style Transformation

Sabrina Carpenter leaves quite an impression — not just with her music, but also with her unparalleled style. There's a reason fans are flooding social media with outfit recreations, hair tutorials, and makeup trends inspired by her signature looks. Of course, her Carpenter's naturally perfect features and undeniable charisma can't hurt. Still, over the years, the chart-topping singer has truly come into her own style, choosing pieces that not only accentuate her body type, but also harmonize with her evolving sound.

The "Espresso" hitmaker first entered the spotlight as a young teen on Disney Channel, playing Maya Hart on "Girl Meets World," a role that followed her third-place finish in a contest judged by Miley Cyrus. Her tv years prepared her well for a life in the spotlight, but Sabrina eventually transitioned away from acting to pursue her one true passion: music. Since then, she's taken the industry by storm, earning Variety's Hitmaker's Rising Star Award, racking up countless Grammy, MTV, and Billboard nominations, and breaking records — including the most weeks at No. 1 in the U.K. in a single year. Her style has evolved in rhythm with her career, moving beyond teen angst to wardrobe choices that reflect her evolving artistry. Carpenter has become a bona fide It Girl, and an undoubtable fashion force to be reckoned with.

In the early days of Sabrina's style, every outfit felt like an example of a young star still finding her fashion footing. She was still figuring out who she wanted to be, and this is hardly surprising. After all, she was born in 1999, and was walking red carpets by the early 2010s. At this point, she was still caught between peppy Disney Channel innocence and the first flickers of a more grown-up look.

Many of her ensembles at this time were marked by dark colors and edgy textures. Leather jackets, black lace, and heavy heels were staples. At some points, she verged on twee; at others, on gothic — and it was all calculatedly quirky. A youthful, punk-inspired aesthetic rebellion had become a rite of passage for many transitioning Disney stars before her. Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato both leaned into this to signal a metamorphosis beyond their squeaky-clean beginnings. Sabrina's style showed a cautious daring, a juvenile exploration. It was raw, a little chaotic, and fun for us onlookers to look back on.

Sabrina Carpenter's outfits immediately post-Disney began to shift towards the more sultry panache we know her for today, though she hadn't quite reached the polished cohesion of her later fashion identity. As she headed into adulthood, her five-album deal with Disney's label, Hollywood Records, was coming to an end. This granted her more freedom to test designs with a heightened sex appeal. Nowhere was this more obvious than at the 2020 MTV Movie and TV Awards, when Sabrina donned the "naked" dress — a sparkling, see-through Ralph and Russo gown, paired with black lingerie and towering platform heels. She bared it all. This girl was ready to meet a different kind of world.

The aftermath of her Disney days also marked a watershed moment in Sabrina's beauty trajectory: the debut of her bangs in 2021. The way they framed her rounded, heart-shaped face would help to elevate her from the girl-next-door to a fully-fledged bombshell. Today, her signature fringe feels inseparable from her seminal style.

"Emails I Can't Send" was Sabrina Carpenter's first album with Island Records, and she told Variety: "It's the perfect place for me to start the next chapter of my music career and evolution as an artist." This new chapter, of course, had to usher in a new style along with it. She started taking inspiration from vintage glam, retro casual, and Y2K nostalgia, and her outfits were as feminine as they were edgy. In the "Because I Liked a Boy" music video, a red corset dress with matching opera gloves gave us classic Hollywood, but she modernized it with a daring cutout.

Elsewhere, in the "Skinny Dipping" video, she styled a bucket hat with a striped, vintage crop top for an effortless, sunkissed Americana vibe. The pink motocross-inspired look of "Fast Times" stands out as a retainer of her experimental edge, pairing rugged utility with playful femininity. By now, Sabrina had successfully begun to construct a visual branding that mirrored her new, finessed sound.

For those who weren't already familiar with her, Sabrina Carpenter's spot as Taylor Swfit's Eras Tour opening act put her on the map. With the tour shattering attendance records, she was introduced to a vast new audience, all over the world. Sabrina, unsurprisingly, seized the moment, and used her confident stage presence to signify a newfound sartorial identity. Her outfits were flirty and feminine, featuring corseted mini dresses adorned with glittering heart-shaped cutouts that earned her comparisons to Polly Pocket and Bratz dolls.

Leaning into her love of miniskirts, she wowed crowds with a mix of short, slinky dresses and shimmering two-pieces, all paired with her now-iconic platform boots. The dresses were mainly from Frolov, while the shoes were cited as Naked Wolfe. Sabrina's looks for this tour are already going down in history, with many having taken to social media to emulate her fabulous ensembles.

If her Eras Tour identity was Polly Pocket, Sabrina Carpenter's Short n' Sweet era was pure Betty Boop: a wink, a pout, and an audacious love affair with vintage glamour. By then, Carpenter had fully given way to her vision of a hyper-feminine, mid-century fantasia. The caffeinated world of the album was a colourful dreamscape of coquette aesthetics and Old Hollywood allure.

The "Short n' Sweet" wardrobe was a collaboration with fashion's rising provocateur Jared Ellner, and in a behind-the scenes Vogue feature, the pair dissected the looks for the show. The tour unfolded like a triptych. Act 1 glittered with sequined corsets from Victoria's Secret. Act 2 borrowed from Audrey Hepburn's Funny Face with chic Parisian brand Patou. In the final act, she stunned in sensual designer Ludovic de Saint Sernin's crystal-studded creations. Carpenter cited Brigitte Bardot, Marilyn Monroe, and even the ABBA Voyage show in London as the inspirations for her retro-romantic silhouettes. Her looks packed just as much punch as a double espresso shot, and left fans crying out please, please, please for more.