Hairstyle Inspiration

Lately I've been growing my hair a bit longer and letting the bangs grow out into a long layer. Today I tracked down a few photos of the styles I'm inspired by lately.

This is Anouk Aim�e with Marcello Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita (1960). I never understood why his character became so obsessed with Anita Ekberg when he could have Anouk; I thought she was by far the more beautiful and the more interesting of the two characters.

 Here's another one of Anouk. The European actresses in the 60's had the best hairstyles. 

Need more proof? Check out Gina Lollobrigida, looking sultry with her loose curls and dramatic eyebrows:

The bangs are shorter than I want, but the style is still gorgeous.

Here's Sophia Loren with a relaxed, messy hairstyle. 

This is a look that says, "I was perfectly coiffed this morning, 

but then I had an afternoon romp with my lover and got a bit mussed. 

Now be a darling and fetch me a drink."

And who wouldn't want a hairstyle that says that?

As a bonus, here's what Anouk looks like today:

 Still a knockout, no?
 And she still has great hair.

Style Icon: Charlotte Rampling

Charlotte Rampling isn't even so much a style icon as she is a body image icon for me. I've always loved the dark and mysterious roles she plays, and I've always thought she was a fabulous actress, but it wasn't until I saw her in The Night Porter that I realized she's also built a lot like me, right down to her small bust.  Here's the thing though: Charlotte is unabashedly sexy, frequently appearing topless or completely nude in movies and photo shoots. And as someone who long felt self-conscious about having such meager boobage, I was completely thrilled when I realized that this sex symbol didn't have the classic Hollywood hourglass figure at all.

 Discovering Charlotte Rampling's bold seductiveness on screen was the final step in learning to view my own body not as sexy in spite of its faults, but sexy for exactly what it is -- and isn't. Va-va-voom hourglass ladies like Brigitte Bardot and Salma Hayek have their own brand of sexiness, but so do the rest of us, and in Charlotte I was able to see the appeal of my own slim, boyish figure: the bust that will never sag, the thighs that don't jiggle. There's a youthfulness in our body type that has its own unique appeal, and especially as I've gotten older, I've grown to really appreciate this fact.

The other thing I admire about Charlotte Rampling is that she has a very natural, soft approach to beauty, never looking overly made-up or coiffed. In her early years of acting she was the antithesis of the carbon-copy starlets that the movie industry pumps out by the dozen. As she's gotten older she has eased into her years with dignity and grace, and to me is the more alluring because she hasn't had 'work' done. At 64 she is still lovely, and is such a wonderful contrast to the overly-stretched, expressionless face that Hollywood age has become.

I'll leave you with a couple more of my favorite photos of the incomparable Ms. Rampling. I'd love to hear if you have a body image icon that's allowed you to appreciate your figure in a new way.

Wishing a happy 4th of July weekend to all my friends here in the States! I'm taking the day off on Monday, but I'll be back with more outfits on Tuesday.