"You know, my daughter, tall, pretty, wears Chanel?"

Before there was <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/best-gossip-girl-fashion-moments-blair-waldorf-serena-van-der-woodsen">Serena van der Woodsen</a> on <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/film-tv/gossip-girl-reboot-hbo-max">Gossip Girl</a>, there was Marissa Cooper on The O.C. If you haven&rsquo;t already seen The O.C. (you should), Marissa&rsquo;s character&mdash;played by Mischa Barton&mdash;was essentially Serena&rsquo;s California counterpart: an It girl through and through. Witty, empathetic, occasionally reckless, and often navigating personal chaos, from a tumultuous home life to struggles with alcohol and substances. (And let&rsquo;s not forget her on-again-off-again relationship with Ryan Atwood, which mirrors Serena and Dan Humphrey&rsquo;s dynamic almost too well).
Like Serena, Marissa had style&mdash;though her aesthetic, as you may have guessed from the Orange County setting, was entirely different. Where Serena was glam and Upper East Side polished, Marissa was peak <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/destinys-child-floral-bustier-bra-low-rise-jeans-outfit-mtv-icon-tribute-2001">Y2K</a> meets <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/croisettecore-summer-aesthetic-french-riviera-girl-style">coastal wealth</a>: slouchy, sun-kissed, and effortlessly luxe.&nbsp;
But it wasn&rsquo;t just the ultra-low-rise jeans, baby tees, and flowy blouses that defined her look. It was the designer-packed wardrobe&mdash;filled with now-vintage pieces from <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/men/dior-jonathan-anderson-mens-spring-summer-2026-fashion-show-photos">Dior</a>, Chanel, and more&mdash;that truly made her stand out. Most notably, she wore <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/karl-lagerfeld-a-fashion-history-book-biography">Karl Lagerfeld-era Chanel</a> constantly, a detail that eagle-eyed fashion obsessives still geek out over today. As her mom Julie Cooper (played by Melinda Clarke) once put it: &ldquo;You know, my daughter, tall, pretty, wears Chanel? Not exactly gangster.&rdquo; It was her signature style summed up in a single line.

Mischa Barton hosting a Chanel Fall/Winter Party in 2005. Getty Images.

Mischa Barton, Karl Lagerfeld, and Claudia Schiffer at Marie Claire Prix de la Mode 2006. Getty Images.

Karl Lagerfeld and Mischa Barton in 2006. Getty Images.

Mischa Barton in 2008. Getty Images.

Before we dive deeper into Marissa&rsquo;s style, L&rsquo;OFFICIEL has to address the Chanel-clad elephant in the room. Back in Season 1 of The O.C., when the show didn&rsquo;t yet have the cult following&mdash;or the budget&mdash;it would eventually earn, many of Marissa Cooper&rsquo;s so-called Chanel pieces weren&rsquo;t authentic.&nbsp;
Costume designer Alexandra Welker <a href="https://pagesix.com/2018/08/08/mischa-barton-once-wore-knockoff-chanel-on-the-o-c/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Page Six in 2018</a>, &ldquo;There was absolutely no borrowing [from brands] involved either, because nobody had ever heard of us, so they were very leery of loaning anything.&rdquo; According to Welker, many of the bags carried in that first season were high-quality knockoffs sourced from a store in Downtown Los Angeles.&nbsp;
It wasn&rsquo;t until Season 2 that the budget&mdash;and the buzz&mdash;caught up. By then, the costume team could finally pull real pieces straight from designer showrooms and archives for Barton&rsquo;s character. &ldquo;By the Season One finale, brands were falling all over themselves to lend to us,&rdquo; Welker said.&nbsp;
Truthfully, it didn&rsquo;t take long for Mischa Barton to become a Chanel favorite. By 2005, she had developed a long-standing relationship with the Maison&mdash;hosting and attending its parties, sitting front row at runway shows, and even being photographed alongside Karl Lagerfeld himself. After the first season of The O.C., Barton was named a Chanel fine jewelry ambassador, and pieces from the brand remained part of her personal wardrobe for years to come.&nbsp;
In honor of the 22nd anniversary of The O.C.&rsquo;s premiere, L&rsquo;OFFICIEL looks back at Marissa Cooper&rsquo;s most iconic Chanel style moments.

<h2 style="text-align: center;">Marissa Cooper's Chanel Bags on The O.C.</h2>

Marissa&rsquo;s go-to Chanel bag in the first season was a black quilted tote made of caviar leather, which she typically sported to school and other after-school activities (namely, hanging out with her brooding boyfriend, Ryan, and her best friend, Summer). Whatever happened to backpacks and canvas totes&mdash;practical, casual, and affordable? Somehow, the sleek luxury bag became a regular essential. Again, since it was the first season, it was likely one of the knock-offs Welker mentioned. Still, today, a similar authentic Chanel tote would fetch at least <a href="https://www.fashionphile.com/p/chanel-caviar-quilted-large-shopping-tote-black-1665657?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=cpc&amp;utm_campaign=pmax-smart-shopping-20&amp;utm_content=buy-20-bo-troas&amp;utm_term=&amp;utm_product=1665657&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=17335778856&amp;gbraid=0AAAAAD9NjUaQFIkm3XbxnUSzJrSraRcbo&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjw18bEBhCBARIsAKuAFEZjHkd0JxXihTdhckTPcFjkOFiSdH0dO7id3nIPMKKWyT-6VNm99pIaAp-xEALw_wcB" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$4,000 pre-owned</a>, depending on the condition. Newer iterations would be doubled that.&nbsp;

Outside of school, she showed off the rest of her Chanel collection: the patent leather Classic Flap in deep red, and the small Wild Stitch calfskin tote bag in sky blue (slide 2). The Classic Flap is still commonly seen today, though retail prices now start around $10,000, depending on where you get it. The Wild Stitch tote, however, is rarer. While you can often find the black version on <a href="https://us.vestiairecollective.com/women-bags/handbags/chanel/wild-stitch/?product_id=52796719&amp;setLocale=6.en.USD&amp;srsltid=AfmBOoq3naDDR0PEEA2yhYoSUAE5NU4aaulA2yrTiIn2MedNVYbD_-McKaY&amp;gQT=2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">resale platforms for about $2,000</a>, the sky blue color Marissa had is much harder to come by.

Oh, and she also had a Classic Flap in a warm orangey-brown shade. It seemed like she had one to match every outfit.

Marissa had a Chanel bag in practically every color one could possibly need, though, of course, there&rsquo;s no such thing as too many. But what stung about this one in particular was that it was the limited-edition Lucky shoulder bag from 2004, in baby pink canvas. These days, you might spot it on resale sites like <a href="https://www.1stdibs.com/fashion/handbags-purses-bags/shoulder-bags/chanel-2004-pink-limited-edition-lucky-clover-shoulder-bag/id-v_15414652/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1stDibs</a>, if it ever becomes available again, that is.&nbsp;

Think you&rsquo;ve seen enough? Marissa also carried a now-rare Chanel accordion flap shoulder bag in lambskin leather&mdash;casually, to school. Which begs the question: how exactly were books and notebooks supposed to fit in there? The answer, naturally, is carrying them by hand. Because no one ever said style was practical.&nbsp;

<h2 style="text-align: center;">Marissa Cooper's Chanel Necklaces on&nbsp;The O.C.</h2>

In season 2, Marissa wore a simple, waist-hugging dress to her junior prom. Naturally, our eyes went straight to the pearl Chanel necklace. Just a little something light for a 16-year-old, of course.&nbsp;

And if wearing a pearl necklace from Chanel wasn&rsquo;t already enough of a statement, Marissa casually threw it on for school, too&mdash;pairing it with a striped tank, cargo pants, and a cropped vest. No wonder everyone was jealous. As if being the epitome of a glossy, early-2000s teen drama heroine wasn&rsquo;t envy-inducing enough.

<h2 style="text-align: center;">Marissa Cooper's Chanel Dresses on The O.C.</h2>

Marissa&rsquo;s Chanel-filled closet wasn&rsquo;t limited to handbags and jewelry: she also wore some pieces straight from the runway. At a Christmas party in Season 1 Episode 13, she appeared in a lavender dress from Chanel&rsquo;s Fall/Winter 2003 collection. The dress featured a fitted corset bodice and a sequin-embellished neckline that caught the light with every movement. She styled it with a sleek half-up ponytail, keeping the look polished and understated&mdash;very early-2000s Chanel girl.&nbsp;

Perhaps least talked-about was a peach mid-length silk sundress from Chanel&rsquo;s Cruise 2004 collection, which Marissa wore toward the end of the first season. It featured a high-neck halter silhouette and was printed with whimsical, beachy ice cream motifs. It was one of her most understated looks, but Chanel on a day as chaotic as this (learning about her mother&rsquo;s affair with her ex-boyfriend, said ex getting into a serious accident) was anything but casual. The piece itself is quite rare today, occasionally surfacing on resale platforms (a recent listing on <a href="https://poshmark.com/listing/Chanel-ice-cream-dress-Made-in-France-100-silk-Size-36-662bde66b4ee5b8de302a67b?srsltid=AfmBOoo0_wHMdTOPOG_Yw7vaTfDoT9Ec09AzH8Lj6DnO2vTxk7I5gdGR" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Poshmark</a>, unsurprisingly, didn&rsquo;t stay up for long).&nbsp;

We&rsquo;re saving the best for last: the iconic senior prom dress on the 23rd episode of season 3. From which collection, you ask? Chanel&rsquo;s Spring/Summer 2006 collection, designed by none other than Karl Lagerfeld. Most teens would get their prom dresses from department stores or local boutiques, but clearly, Marissa Cooper wasn&rsquo;t like most teens. Her budget, despite her parents&rsquo; ever-fluctuating financial drama, was something else entirely. (Remember when she and her mom lived in a trailer park?)&nbsp;
Now, about the dress itself: a strapless ivory number with oversized camellia appliqu&eacute;s&mdash;Chanel&rsquo;s signature flower&mdash;blooming across the bodice and hem. With its voluminous, textured silk and couture-level craftsmanship, the piece felt both romantic and avant-garde (at least for Chanel&rsquo;s standards), dramatic yet still youthful. It was a showstopper then, and two decades later, it remains one of the most memorable Chanel moments in teen TV history.

All the Chanel Bags in Marissa Cooper's Closet on 'The O.C.'

Tags

Related Articles

Film & TV

Meet Madison Bailey, the Breakout Star of Netflix's Gen Z Answer to 'The O.C.'

Pop culture

Young Photos of Adam Brody

Fashion

L’HISTOIRE: Irina Shayk's Extremely 2010 Outfit With a Chanel Bag, Louboutin Boots

Recommended posts for you

Beauty

The November 2025 Beauty Edit: New Launches to Carry You Through Sale Season

Beauty

Dua Lipa’s New Skincare Line with Augustinus Bader: The Full Review

Film & TV

Everything We Know About 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' Movie

Shopping

12 Gifts That Will Show Your Host How Much You Really Care

Music

The Best Covers To Add To Your 2025 Christmas Playlist

Shopping

The Ultimate 2025 Luxury Coffee Table Book Gift Guide

Fashion

The Pantone Color Of The Year 2026 Is Finally Here

Fashion

Generation Gucci: See All Of The Looks From Gucci's Pre-Fall 2026 Collection