Top 3 Great Fashion Moments in Cinema

Lately to inject some inspiration into my life and into this blog, I’ve been watching some good old fashioned vintage cinema (a secret guilty past time of mine that I indulge in from time to time) and found it to be a goldmine of amazing coveted styles that the modern girl can adopt.

Here are my Top 3 Stylish Ladies of the Screen:

1.      Faye Dunaway in ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’ (1968)

Faye Dunaway plays the beautiful, witty and shrewd insurance investigator Vicky Anderson employed by the Boston authorities to ensnare suave business tycoon and secret crook Thomas Crown, played by the hyper-masculine Steve McQueen, after he stages a notorious bank heist.

Going Dotty: Yayoi Kusama's Revival with Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs

Kusama in Self-Obliteration, Horse Play, 1967

Speaking honestly, dots are not the most flattering pattern to wear for most people. It's the equivalent experience of wearing wide stripes or yellow or lilac--most people can't get away with it without looking like they ran away from a sanitorium or finished work at a hideous fast food chain, circa 1978. 

Enter one of the most interesting and surprising influences in a current hot fashion trend: dots courtesy of renowned Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. 

Bonnie Cashin: From Hollywood to Seventh Avenue

Coach Inspiration...Bonnie Cashin: 1915-2000

Coach has been a highly sought after accessories brand for 71 years, appealing to a wide international audience despite its specific and patriotic American branding. Its simple classic and functional aesthetic coupled with its uncompromising material quality has stood the test of time.  In return, the Coach brand has been rewarded with loyalty from its customers and a growing demand for its exclusive and luxury quality accessories.

A significant contributor to the Coach branding and design during its early inception was American fashion designer Bonnie Cashin, who designed for Coach during the 1960s and early 70s. 

Trend Rewind: 1950s Style Feline Glasses the Gas

I don't know about you, but I'm thrilled that Cats Eye shaped glasses are making a trendy comeback. Check  out the some of the latest frames from Vogue's trend update:

Ellery Et Graz sunglasses

The Chanel 2.55 Bag: The Envy of Every Woman

Marie Helene Arnaud with the infamous Chanel 2.55 bag 

Every week at Miss Polly's Vintage Style Blog, I aim to revisit an iconic fashion item or style and outline its history and personal meaning to me. This week, I am going to trace back the famous Chanel 2.55 bag, one of fashion's most iconic and recognisable items next to the Chanel Suit and the Little Black Dress. 

The Hermes Kelly Bag: Grace by Name, Grace by Bag

Grace Kelly with Prince Rainier of Monaco with 'that' famous Hermes bag, 1956

Never has anyone been more enchanted by the timeless style and elegance of Grace Kelly than I. Surprisingly from a fairly modest but athletic upper middle class family from Philadelphia, Grace embodied her name through her impressive, if not short lived, Hollywood career before abruptly being swept away to live the life of a Monaco princess until her untimely death in a car accident. However she left behind a legacy of an impressively elegant wardrobe spanning three decades, and unintentionally became an influential fashion icon. Her changing style over the decades I believed always reflected the woman she was: subtly sophisticated, graceful, silently powerful, and always leaving a lasting impression.