Your Roman Holiday - Service Journalism Piece

A quick, simple, and inexpensive way to get the Audrey Hepburn look just in time for the holidays!

The holidays are here and everyone knows that means finding the perfect look for all of those formal evenings, and who better to model your look off of than the glamorous Audrey Hepburn. Remember, it’s not all about the dress; it’s about the entire look. Hair, make-up, dress, accessories, EVERYTHING! Don’t be afraid though, this look can work on several body types. Just follow these tips and you will be the most elegant chick at the event.


The Dress
Everyone knows you can’t match something to nothing, which is why you need a dress. Hepburn’s look is incredibly chic but her dresses are really rather simple. Take her most famous look from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. All it was was a thin-strapped, floor-length black dress with a sexy slit up the leg. Sure she was thin, but black dresses come in all shapes and sizes, the only challenge is finding one that is flattering to your body type. I realize that black is a very simple colour, but this outfit can be achieved with several different festive colours such as red, blue, grey or whatever you can think of. As long as it’s all one colour (to attain the simplicity and chic look) you are well on your way.

The Accessories
After the dress, you need to shop for accessories. Since Audrey Hepburn’s look is so simple, she jazzed it up with some chic accessories. A few strands of pearls (or imitation) around your neck that just graze the neckline of your dress really creates a focal point for your outfit. Matching earrings is just a given. Whether or not you want ones that dangle or simple studs, as long as they match, you’re good to go. Lastly are the gloves. Hepburn was famous for her elbow-length gloves and they really add that touch of class. A simple pearl bracelet over top of one of the gloves really sets them off.



The Face
Now to set your eyes ablaze! This outfit really craves the sexy smoky eye look. So first you need to line and soften both your lids with black eyeliner. Next add some black eye shadow to the edge of the top lid before applying a soft neutral colour all over the lid – even a touch underneath the eye – but don’t forget to blend! After, you’re going to add mascara to curled lashes (or put on some fake eyelashes if you’re really daring).
For the lips, all you need is a neutral lined lip and some lipstick that’s just a tad darker than your natural lip colour. You don’t want to go too dark, because the emphasis is on the eye. Also, stick to colours that compliment your skin tone.
Lastly, you’re going to want to add a touch of blush to your high cheekbone area and set your face with some loose powder.

The Hair
This look, though it looks rather finicky, really isn’t. Now not everyone likes the incredibly short bangs, though your hairdresser can create these by texturizing them when they cut them. Instead you can vary on the look with longer bangs – or no bangs if that’s what you prefer. Basically, to get the Breakfast at Tiffany’s hair all you have to do is:
- Pull your hair back in a high ponytail and give it some added fullness by teasing it.
- Pin the ends of your ponytail under and spray with some extra-hold hairspray.
- Last you’re going to want to hide that unsightly hair band by wrapping a piece of hair around and pinning it (somewhere inconspicuous) or by using an ornamented barrette. One with pearls would be exquisite.

If you have shorter hair:
- You will have to make a second ponytail and hiding it under the first.
- On even shorter hair you can buy a hairpiece (in the shape of an elastic band) that will fill out the crown of your head rather nicely, but be sure to match to your hair colour!