Eight Things You Didn't Know About Audrey Hepburn
Just about everyone in the world has heard of Audrey Hepburn. She is one of Little Wings Factory’s favourite style icons, as you can probably tell from the wide range of Audrey Hepburn style dresses that we stock; and she has also captured the heart of many fashion and film lovers all the world over for many years. But, do you know Hepburn as well as we do? Let’s find out – here are ten things we think you don’t know about Audrey Hepburn:
She Popularised the Audrey Black Dress
In 2010, LOVEFILM did a customer survey which revealed that people thought that the LBD that Audrey wore in ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ was the best dress ever worn by a woman in a film. To this day, this little black dress continues to be timelessly chic, especially when accessorised with a string of pearls and a classic up-do hair style. You can update the look with a modern twist with our Lindy Bop ‘Audrey’ Black Tartan Dress:
Black Tartan Audrey Hepburn Style Dress – £30
She Was a Trend Setter Not a Trend Follower
Today, lots of female celebrities rely on huge amounts of bling jewellery and flashing lots of flesh in skimpy outfits to get the attention of the press, but not our Audrey! She never went for the bombshell tactics that some of her other Hollywood contemporaries did, but instead stayed true to her simple signature style of bold block colour, strong clean lines and unusual statement pieces.
She Was Insecure Like the Rest of Us
Audrey never thought she was beautiful, bemoaning the size of her nose and her feet throughout her life. She looked different to the other Hollywood stars at the time who were more curvaceous, and she received some negative press because of this at the time. Although, despite these insecurities, she still managed to capture our hearts and become the treasured style icon she is today.
She Was Very Self-Disciplined
She started off life as a dancer, and continued this discipline throughout her career – keeping her not only slim, but supple as well. All the better to show off her Audrey Dress styles!
Pink Daisy Audrey Dress - £38
She Really Wanted to be a Ballet Dancer
Audrey moved back to England in 1948 to study as a Ballet Dancer at the prestigious Ballet Rambert, and paid her own way there by working as a model in her spare time. She had great talent, but her dreams of becoming a prima ballerina were crushed when she was told that her height and her weakened constitution (the result of childhood malnutrition) prevented her from doing so. Despite this upset, Audrey carried on and turned to acting for a career rather than dancing.
She Started Out as a Chorus Girl
As we said before, to support herself through ballet school, Audrey took on a variety of jobs including working as a chorus girl in the West End, where she was spotted by a casting director. She then signed up to become a freelance actress and can be seen in various minor roles in the following films in 1951 – ‘One Wild Oat’, ‘Laughter in Paradise’, ‘Young Wives Tale, and ‘The Lavender Hill Mob.’ She then got her first starring role, as a ballerina, in ‘Secret People’ in 1952.
Her Accent Was a Little Eclectic
Born in Holland, but raised in London, Audrey’s accent was an eclectic mix of Dutch and British with drawn out vowels and unusual emphasis – which made it very hard to imitate!
She is a Timeless Style Icon
Nearly 27 years after her last film, and 23 years after her death, Audrey Hepburn style dresses are as popular today as they were in her heyday. Her style still influences fashion today, and we think it will for many years to come.
For more information on our Audrey Hepburn Style Dresses, or any of our other vintage style dresses and homeware items, please email us at care@littlewingsfactory.com or fill in the contact form on our website.