Day 3: Funny Face

Today was Monday. Now traditionally, Mondays aren't fun for anyone. What with the end of the weekend and the beginning of another work week, we're all liable to want to crawl back into bed and just sleep till Friday.

But that's before you had an amazing outfit to start the day off right.

Today, I went back to my roots and wore something classic Audrey. I mentioned before how much of an inspiration Audrey Hepburn has been to me in fashion, and she has a timeless look that most people recognize in the form of a little black dress or cat-eye makeup.

The inspiration for this outfit came from one of my favorite Audrey movies: Funny Face. The film follows a young librarian who dreams of going to Paris to speak with philosophers about existentialism. She gets noticed by a fashion photographer (played by the glorious Fred Astaire), and he offers to take her to Paris in return for using her as a model. Naturally, the two end up falling in love, and Audrey wears all these beautiful outfits, and Fred dances, and it's just an all around wonderful film. If you have yet to see it, do so now! It's essential for any person even slightly interested in fashion. Or existentialism. You know, whichever.

Anyway, the outfit I decided to copy is one the Audrey wears in the film, but it also happens to be an outfit she liked to wear in her day-to-day life because of how simple and comfortable it is. In addition to my photos, I've added one of Audrey so you can see how she wore it:

This is one of my favorite outfits of all time. I feel so classy in all black with a colorful ascot. Some people would label it as out of date, but I would call it timeless.

Most of the outfit is from Talbots, which is a boutique that tends to cater to older women, but I find that if you enjoy the Grace Kelly/Audrey Hepburn/Elizabeth Taylor look, you'll find plenty of clothes worth purchasing. It tends to be a bit pricy, so here's the secret: Instead of shopping at Talbots, just go to the Talbots outlet. They have all of the same clothes for much cheaper. The pants in this outfit (which I also own in green) were only about $20, and I believe they were priced for around $60 regularly. As for the scarf, it was $15, which I know seems a bit steep for just a scarf, but it is really nice quality and it goes with a lot. The only thing that was full price was the turtle neck, but I actually received it as a Christmas present, so I lucked out.

The thing about clothes from Talbots is that they are pricy, but they are high quality. I hear people say all the time they never pay more than $20 for any of their clothing. This seems like a smart technique, but most of the clothes they get end up worn out after only a few uses, so the money isn't really well spent. Sometimes it is worth it to invest a little more, because if it is a piece you can wear in a lot of different ways, it will be far more friendly to your wallet in the long run.

Audrey obviously didn't have to worry about how much she spent on clothes, but that is not the case with the rest of us.
Audrey once said that

"Women can look like Audrey Hepburn by flipping out their hair,
buying the large sunglasses, and the little sleeveless dresses."

I love Audrey's intent here, but let's face it: We can't all look like Audrey. Believe me, I've tried. However, I have found that I'm far happier when I find a look that is right for me. I love wearing the Funny Face outfit, but when I put it on, I'm not magically transformed into Audrey Hepburn. I wear that outfit my own way and with my own flare. 

Audrey was also known to have said:

"I never think of myself as an icon.

What is in other people's minds is not in my mind.
I just do my thing."

Here is the secret to Audrey's success and it can also be the key to yours. Audrey created "a look" by being herself and not following trends. When I wore this outfit today, I got a few strange stares, I'll admit. On the other hand, I was in the cafeteria when I passed by a girl who told me how much she loved my outfit, so there you go. Some people will hate it, some people will love it. But what ultimately matters is how it makes you feel. When I put on that outfit today, I was doing my own thing. I was wearing an outfit that made me feel cute, comfortable, and classy. I couldn't help but smile and walk around humming Frank Sinatra. 

It was a good day.

Thanks Audrey.