Stylish Cinema Preview: "Audrey"

Twenty seven years after her death, Audrey Hepburn is still magic. You have only to say "Audrey", and even my husband's ears perk up. Her voice, her smile, her style...why not a full-length theatrical-release documentary? In recent years two by Lisa Immordino Vreeland, "Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel" and "Love, Cecil: A Journey with Cecil Beaton" were lovely and creative. There have been other worthwhile films on designers, fashion events, magazines and photographers. Why not one about Audrey Hepburn who, besides her ethereal charms, was a beloved UNICEF ambassador for children?

Too tall to be a ballerina

Audrey's earliest passion was dance, and "Audrey" will be a biography seen through the eyes of dance. Director Helena Coan worked with England's Royal Ballet to choreograph portraits in dance mixed with archive and never-before-seen footage to tell Audrey's story.

Hubert and Audrey

Audrey's son Sean Hepburn Ferrer will be addressing her childhood in wartime Holland. Claire Weight Keller, formerly artistic director of Givenchy, will discuss her collaborations with Givenchy and John Loring will talk about Tiffany's long enduring relationship with the Audrey magic of Holly Golightly.

You can watch the trailer here (copy and paste):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOY77nyd6fY&feature=emb_logo

My info comes from British Vogue and Harper's Bazaar UK, where "Audrey" will be released in theaters and streaming on November 30. Let's hope that will be simultaneously here. I can't think of a better wrap up to Thanksgiving weekend.

 

 

Love Me, Love My Sweater

I never saw the message Diana was sending us, enthralled as we were with her every fashion move. Diana wore this "black sheep sweater" in 1981, shortly after the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles. Did she really know how fraught that marriage would be and how she would feel so at odds with most of the royal family? One thinks not, especially as she replied "Of course" to an interviewer's "And in love?", to which Charles famously mumbled, "Whatever in love means." We should have known.

Her sweater (a jumper in Brit-speak) was designed in 1979 by a firm called Warm & Wonderful, favorites of Diana's Sloane Ranger set. It now holds a place in the Victoria and Albert's permanent collection. The sweater's popularity allowed the firm to expand its knitwear line, and it's still in business as Muir & Osbourne.

Leave it to us Americans to bring back the black sheep. The firm Rowing Blazers has reissued Diana's black sheep (with approval). It's available for both men and women and sells for $295, which would have been $82 in 1979.

We forgave Diana many fashion faux pas. This wasn't one of them, but her wedding dress was fairly awful, and her going away outfit even worse. She redeemed herself as she became more her own woman, and she did send messages loud and clear. My favorite is the slinky black dress she wore in 1994 on the night Charles publicly declared he had been unfaithful to her. It's been dubbed "the revenge dress", and you can see why.

But that was many moons to come. The black sheep sweater is still sweet, but oh, does it remind us of what we have lost. 

 

 

Stylish Series: "Emily in Paris"

By now you've probably heard of "Emily in Paris", Netflix's new 10-part rom-com set in a decidely pre-pandemic City of Lights. There are three reasons to watch: Escapism, Paris and Fashion.  

Emily will not teach you how to dress. You will not learn how to be Parisian, but you may learn what makes the Parisians tick. You will be taken with the sheer outlandish fun of it all. "Emily" is the perfect tonic for these times. I almost forgot the past 212 days.

Emily was created by Darren Star. He had a little hit a few years ago called "Sex in the City". Perhaps you watched an episode or two? Perhaps you drummed your nails on the coffee table every Sunday night awaiting the magic hour? Perhaps you bought a white tulle skirt and pink tank top (which you never had the nerve to wear)? Yes, that Darren Star. 

"Emily in Paris" is more city than sex, but the sex is there too. Like Emily herself, it's cute. Paris is the star. I'm not sure if it's CGI or what, but the city is so clean it fairly sparkles. Lily Collins plays Emily as not exactly an ingenue. She's smart, but she comes across as a wide-eyed-girl-in-Paris. You're not sure you are going to like her, but she, like Lily Collins herself, surprises you. 

Even the Spritzes look chic...

Lily, 31, the daughter of Phil Collins and his first wife, has been acting since she was a child. Perhaps best known as a model, she played a well-received Fantine in the film of "Les Miserables". She also writes and is producer of the Netflix series. Lily has made Emily lovable enough for us to forgive her character's most egregious pronouncements. 

Patricia Field is the costume designer, as she was on "Sex in the City". I was never sure, on SITC, how serious we were to take Carrie's fashion sense. Carrie loved clothes, but they weren't really the main event. Emily's wardrobe is sometimes a plot point, ie the handbag charm that gets her thrown out of a couturier's atelier, her Audrey Hepburn moment at the Paris Opera, her over-packing for a country weekend. This time I know that Patricia Field is in it for the chuckles, and so am I.

A triple whammy of Emily-style

Each episode has its arc with a running subplot that asks "Will Emily get her Prince Charming?" No spoiler alert on my part. No passport needed either.

I'll wear what she's wearing...

 

Wish Me Luck

 

See that woman pictured above? That's me, or rather the ideal of me, that I will hang onto for dear life for the next six months. You see, I have decided to stop coloring my hair. 

 

I've always said my red is really an accessory. I'm not trying to look younger—that ship has passed. I just thought red hair was fun, like Lucy. After a while my red with blonde streaks became part of my identity. It may come as a surprise to some, but I am doing it as much for a style refresh as any other reason. I'm tired of my clothes (although I've barely worn them). Let's see what they look like with a chic gray pixie.

I did try to go gray at the beginning of the pandemic. That was a bad move. Great chunks of our lives were falling apart—so many unknowns from "Will I ever go to work again?" to "Will there be enough toilet paper?" I have plenty of the latter, still not sure about the former.

 

Katy

Since I can't go to a colorist to have low lights or even peroxide my whole head like Katy Perry, I think I will keep adding blonde streaks, which I've been doing myself anyways. The red will also fade some on its own accord. It may be quite a sight, something beyond even tri-tone. I will need a great deal of will power not to succumb the the box of L'oreal. Shall I bury it in the backyard?

As the pandemic is not anywhere near over, I'll be home the next six months anyways. I could even crepe the mirrors.

One person NOT in favor is my husband, who likes the red hair. He said, "How will I be able to call you my trophy wife if you're a Q-tip like me?" Despite his going gray at 26, I think seeing my gray might make him feel older.

Many women have transitioned to gray or skipped coloring their hair altogether. Ali McGraw's gray is gorgeous. Rita Moreno is stunning in gray. Jane Fonda, Maye Musk, Judi Dench and a whole host of my friends look fabulous in gray or white hair. 

 

Ali

Rita

Jane

 

Maye

Judi

 

I feel I've accomplished so little these past six months. If I follow through, can this be considered an accomplishment? 

 

Like I said, wish me luck.