It was nearly 10 years ago that I went to a nondescript building in Beverly Hills and got to see Audrey Hepburn’s iconic black and white Ascot races dress from My Fair Lady before it was sold at auction for $100,000. (The hat was included as well.) I even got to take a picture with it! Back then, it was sold to a man who had grand ideas to open up his own memorabilia museum.

Fast forward to this weekend, where the dress was once again up for auction in Beverly Hills. But this time the person selling it was none other than legendary actress Debbie Reynolds! At some point she had bought the dress and had a costume museum of her own, but things changed and she had to sell a good amount of her amazing collection to pay off the debts. Marilyn Monroe’s white dress from The Seven Year Itch – you know, that dress – sold for a whopping $4.6 million. The Ascot dress? It did alright, selling for $3.7 million. That’s quite a raise in value in just ten years!

No word yet on who the new owner is, or if the costume will be put on display anywhere.

The recent exhibit on Italian designer Fernanda Gattinoni had its last day in Paris yesterday, but if you couldn’t make the exhibit, no worries. Lovely reader Castor was kind enough to visit and take loads of pictures, which she said I could share with all of you. She was also kind enough to translate the text pertaining to Audrey, which I will copy and paste for you. So, without further ado, Castor’s pictures for everyone to enjoy:

silk gauze dress trimmed with embroidery and small pink and blue appliqué horses

silk gauze dress in ivory trimmed with silver embroidery and small blue velvet appliqué horses

an autographed publicity still for Fernanda, signed Audrey Ferrer

ivory satin organza dress dotted with tiny rhinestones

In 1955, Maria De Matteis, the costume maker from King Vidor’s War & Peace (1956) asked Fernanda Gattinoni to make Audrey Hepburn’s costumes.
Fernanda Gattinoni liked so much the costumes with a fluid and vertical form she made for the movie that at practically the same time, she was inspired by the protagonist of War & Peace to dedicate the collection Natascia to the empire style.
Audrey Hepburn was the first customer of the collection and ordered no less than five dresses and one coat. From that time, she became one of the most assiduous customers of the house. Nevertheless, even if a trusting relationship existed between the two women, they never really became friends.
“She was too perfect and I don’t like perfect people” claimed Fernanda Gattinoni later. Despite this, the great designer always recognized the incomparable elegancy of the actress: “She had an exceptional physique. Tall and thin, all the dresses she wore became essentials and luminous like a jewel.”

Again, a huge thank you to Castor for sharing all these wonderful pictures with us. If you like what you’ve seen, please leave a comment with your thanks!

I’ve just stumbled across an interview with Sam Wasson on Huffington Post, author of the new book Fifth Avenue, 5 AM. I know I’ve featured this book quite a few times already, and even an interview or two with the author, but I think this one in particular deserves some attention because it gives far more light into the book and why it was written than any other article I’ve read so far. It’s a good read, fairly short but entertaining and packed with information, and it also features the Breakfast at Tiffany’s trailer that yours truly posted on YouTube a few years ago.

I shall be getting a copy soon to review for you, but in the meantime, has anyone read it or at least flipped through it in the bookstore? What are your thoughts?

If you’re interested and are in or around Paris, better move fast, because the exhibit only lasts until July 30th. Admission is free, nicely enough, and is open Monday through Friday from 10-1, then reopens for the hours of 3-6. For more information and photos of the exhibit (including the picture I’ve used), go to Focus On Style’s blog here.

Thanks to Kendal for the link.

Speaking of things I’ve missed, when the most famous dress in the world, the long black Breakfast at Tiffany’s dress, was auctioned in 2006 it was widely publicised when someone wore it. The model for Christie’s, seen out and about modeling on the streets, was published everywhere. When Natalie Portman posed in it for Harper’s Bazaar, I bought a copy to carefully cut apart, scan and share with you. But for some reason I heard nothing about model Georgia Frost modeling the gown for ES Magazine! Thankfully, I happened to stumble across Style Bubble, who has pictures and a brief write-up for your viewing pleasure.

- Our Dutch friend Joop says that dear Audrey was recently voted the most beautiful woman ever, which is quite an achievement! Lovely picture and short story (in Dutch) here.

- A dress from Funny Face recently went up for auction and was sold for the impressive price of $56,250.00, though I can’t seem to find which dress it is. Anyone? You can read more here. (From Kendal)

- And finally, an article on how Audrey Hepburn shaped sex. It’s an interview with Sam Wasson, author of the new Fifth Avenue, 5 AM book, and the interview was done at Café Audrey in Hollywood, a place where I’ve spent quite a bit of time! You can read the interview here, but be warned that Sam drops the F-bomb towards the end.

(at Café Audrey in 2008)

The entire article and video can be found here.