On what would’ve been her 89th birthday, we take a look at\u00a0Marilyn Monroe’s most iconic moments in fashion, and how you can replicate her style.<\/p>\n
Hollywood’s biggest star, the epitome of ‘blonde bombshell’, the most glamorous, beautiful yet terribly troubled icon of the 50’s and 60’s is\u00a0known as much for her feminine curves and undeniable sex appeal as her screen presence. Some of the most talked about moments in history and<\/em> fashion have stemmed from a Monroe moment – on and<\/em> off the silver screen. Remember when she\u00a0stood on top of a subway grate in New York City and made cinematic history? Of course you do! How about when she\u00a0stole the show at Madison Square Gardens with her version of\u00a0Happy Birthday<\/em>, which she performed in front of an audience of thousands at the birthday gala held for President John F Kennedy? Exactly. Our fire needn’t require more fuel.\u00a0When it comes to style in the movies, the story is long with Marilyn Monroe.<\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Costume designer Dorothy Jeakins is responsible for the ground-breaking style featured in 1953’s\u00a0Niagara<\/em>.\u00a0Shot on location in the late spring and summer of 1952, the movie\u00a0was directed by Henry Hathaway and starred Monroe\u00a0as a cunning adulteress named Rose Loomis.\u00a0The peekaboo dress in a fiery hot red, which she\u00a0wore when she crooned the song “Kiss”,\u00a0denotes the\u00a0devilish temptress in this 1950s film noir.<\/p>\n Shop “Niagara”<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4381′]<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n <\/p>\n We all know the LBD is a wardrobe staple, but do we all know how it achieved such status? Monroe wore a plethora of black dresses, each surpassing the last in its icon status. Arguably one of the most notable dresses,\u00a0whose thin spaghetti strap famously broke while being worn by the actress during a 1956 press conference for\u00a0The Prince and the Showgirl,\u00a0<\/em>was put up for auction, fetching upwards of $40,000!<\/p>\n Shop LBDs<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4394′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It has been 53 years since Marilyn had to be sewn into the Jean Louis-designed dress, which she wore to breathily lull “Happy Birthday” to President Kennedy at his 45th celebrations. The performance has since become one of the most famous performances of all time. The dress, which has been inspiring red carpet looks since (think Rihanna circa 2014 at the CFDA Awards),\u00a0was embroidered with 4,000 rhinestones, and was so tight\u00a0she wore nothing under it.<\/p>\n Shop “Happy Birthday Mr. President”<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4410′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n Marilyn wore this William Travilla pink dress to sing\u00a0Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend <\/i>in\u00a0her\u00a0role of the character Lorelei Lee\u00a0in the 1953 hit\u00a0Gentlemen Prefer Blondes<\/i>. Travilla designed the clothes of the Monroe’s character in eight different films, and actually later claimed to have had a brief affair with the actress! The satin dress in “shocking pink” – which Monroe\u00a0later admitted to hating, as it was difficult to wear during the performance –\u00a0was auctioned off, and bought for\u00a0$310,000. Oh,\u00a0and if you’re thinking it looks seriously familiar, it may be because Madonna donned a knock off version for her music video “Material Girls!”<\/p>\n Shop “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4421′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n A laid back approach to dressing in easy monochromatic hues was indeed a favourite of Monroe’s. These famous pictures show a more candid side to the A-list actress, and were shot by\u00a0Alfred Eisenstaedt, who\u00a0was dubbed “the father of photojournalism”.\u00a0Eisenstaedt pioneered candid portraits photography, usually done in natural light.<\/p>\n Shop Marylin’s Monochrome Looks<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4441′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This golden pleated gown with a plunging halter-style neckline was also designed by William Travilla. This was another of Marilyn’s costumes in\u00a0Gentleman Prefer Blondes, <\/i>which she cited as one of her favourite outfits. You may recognise the photo on the left,\u00a0of her staring into camera with her red lips parted, as it was to become an iconic one.<\/p>\n Shop “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4453′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A dress which needs no introduction. The 1955 film The Seven Year Itch<\/em>, directed by Billy Wilder, saw Monroe step out onto a subway grate and\u00a0mesmerised a crowd of onlookers, while her white dress blew suggestively above her knees\u2014and sometimes over her head!\u00a0The dress was created by designer fave William Travilla and has been continuously replicated and parodied since. Even if you have not seen the film, you have seen this photograph. End of.<\/p>\n Shop “The Seven Year Itch”<\/strong><\/p>\n [slideshow_deploy id=’4469′]<\/i><\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On what would’ve been her 89th birthday, we take a look at\u00a0Marilyn Monroe’s most iconic moments in fashion, and how you can replicate her style. Hollywood’s biggest star, the epitome of ‘blonde bombshell’, the most glamorous, beautiful yet terribly troubled icon of the 50’s and 60’s is\u00a0known as much for her feminine curves and undeniable […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,1],"tags":[201,235,236,237,238,239],"class_list":["post-87794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-timeless-brands","category-uncategorized","tag-designer-focus","tag-diamonds-are-a-girls-best-friend","tag-fashion-icons","tag-marylin-monroe","tag-some-like-it-hot","tag-the-seven-year-itch"],"yoast_head":"\n