Vintage Icon: Edie Sedgwick

As fashion goes mad for mod, and with breton stripes as popular as ever, I can't quite get Edie Sedgwick off my mind. Edie lived a whirlwind of a life, and died tragically in 1971. However, she made a lot of noise on the music, art and fashion scene especially when she was hailed as Andy Warhol's muse. Edie was the IT girl of the moment, a classic socialite whose inheritance money was splashed on on booze and drugs creating the addiction that eventually took her life.  But I'm more interested in the "factory girl" and the ballsy and beautiful girl from Warhol's photography and films.

Sienna Miller played Edie in the film Factory Girl which gives a sort of insight into her lifestyle, though some would say it's rather inaccurate it's a beautiful film despite it's inevitable tragic end. I particularly love Miller's performance, she captures Edie's presence incredibly well, plus there is a striking resemblance, see below.

Sedgwick inspired a generation of girls to cut off their hair, experiment with heavy make up and free their legs! This pixie crop, doe eyes made up in true mod style, the huge dangling earrings and the ever present cigarette were Edie's trademarks as well as her endearing, kooky personality. Here are some of my favourite images of Sedgwick, Warhol's "superstar".

The girl's petite frame was made for the Quant style mini dresses of the era, which she wore in abundance, never afraid of showing too much leg, clad in opaque tights or not. Glamorous accessories were also key to her look including chandelier earrings and luxurious leopard print coats. The video below shows how confident, honest and charismatic Edie was, but perhaps also how innocent and vulnerable she was too. 

Taking inspiration from this style icon of the 60s, we look to capture some of that "superstar" in our own wardrobes, minus the pop art idol at our side. 

Breton jumper Mango

Opaque tights Tights Please

Factory girl replica earrings Steve Sasco

Eyelashes by Katy Perry in Oh My!

Magic Ink Eyeliner by Benefit at John Lewis

Leopard Print Coat Vera Moda

Wireless lace triangle bra Topshop

I shall leave you with an interview from the Merv Griffin show in 1965 with Warhol and Sedgwick. She's wearing the cutest little lace collared jacket and talks the entire time! "What is art anyway?" 

Gina 

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The Pixie Crop

With the Les Mis premiere last night, I couldn't help but think about Anne Hathaway and having her hair well and truly chopped off for the role of Fantaine, a factory worker who gives birth to an illegitimate child. The movie version of the musical is raw, with live vocals throughout the film and Hathaway's performance of I Dreamed A Dream should rain all over Susan Boyle's parade.

Looking back over the past century a famous female face cutting all of her hair off is nothing new to us. Women with strong, striking features benefited from the chop as it highlighted the face so beautifully. Whether actresses cut their hair off for acting roles, models to stand out from the crowd or celebrities just wanting a change, I feel the crop is always worn by confident, brave women who make statements.

Screen icon Audrey Hepburn is a fantastic early example as she sported the pixie in the early 50s and has been much copied ever since. Similarly to Anne Hathaway, the crop haircut shows off her stunning features and enviable cheekbones.

In 1966 Twiggy had her hair cut short by celebrity hair stylist Leonard as a hair model to test out the "new" crop hairstyle. After a few head shots were taken, the images circulated until she was named The Face of 66 in the Daily Express. The swept crop framed her trade mark eye make up with all of the painted under eye lashes.  It is still said that this haircut landed her the lifelong career she continues to enjoy.

As Anne Hathaway lost her locks for the role of Fantaine, Mia Farrow lost her long blonde locks for her role in Polanski's Rosemary's Baby. Cut in 1967 as a publicity stunt in a boxing ring, Vidal Sassoon worked his magic on Farrow making the transformation even more famous. It is said that her then husband, Frank Sinatra, was drastically opposed to the hair cut and issued divorce papers soon after her new hairdo was revealed!

One of my favourite vintage icons has to be Edie Sedgwick. Her tragic tale is glamorised by her fast paced, whimsical life with Andy Warhol as she frittered away her inheritance on clothes, booze and drugs. Though she wasn't here as long as we would have loved her to be, she left a big dent in the art and fashion world. Her pixie crop allowed her to amp up her 60s makeup as well as her elaborate dangly earrings.

Bringing things back to the modern day, the latest "shock crop" had to be from Harry Potter star Emma Watson. As the epic film series came to an end so did her long hair and apparently it was one of the best things she'd ever done, in an interview for US Glamour she claimed she'd never felt as confident as when she did with that sleek Farrow-esque crop.

So would you take the plunge and get rid of your long hair to make a statement? Maybe one for the New Year? One thing I know is that this style isn't for the wallflower or the particularly round faced...! If you've got killer cheekbones then go get the scissors pronto.

Gina x