Fashioning Film History: The Story Behind Audrey Hepburn’s Iconic Sabrina Gown
Hollywood star, Audrey Hepburn, captivated audiences with her timeless style both on and off the silver screen. One of her most iconic ensembles is the stunning gown she wore in the 1954 film “Sabrina.”
With its simple yet striking silhouette, the Sabrina gown became synonymous with Hepburn’s unparalleled fashion sense.
How the gown came to the movie
One of the most famous stories in fashion and costume design involves Hubert de Givenchy and an unexpected visit in 1953. On a typical day at his Paris atelier, Givenchy awaited the arrival of “Miss Hepburn.”
Givenchy was excited, thinking he was about to meet Katharine Hepburn, a major Hollywood star. At just 26, he had opened his atelier the previous year after working with Cristobal Balenciaga, Jacques Fath, and Elsa Schiaparelli.
Despite being lauded by The New York Times after his 1952 debut collection, having Katharine Hepburn as a client would significantly elevate his profile.
In a 1998 interview with Charlie Rose, Givenchy recalled his first meeting with the young actress who had actually made the appointment: Audrey Hepburn, in the summer of 1953.
“Suddenly a beautiful and very tiny, skinny person came [into the studio],” he said. “And she asked me to do the dress for Sabrina. I said, ‘It’s difficult, because it’s collection time, and I don’t think I have time to help you.’ She asked me, ‘But please, I want to try your clothes.’”
Givenchy greeted the 24-year-old lady, who arrived dressed in slim black capri pants, a T-shirt, ballet flats, and a gondolier’s hat that read Venezia. He directed her to browse through racks of his finished collection, not realizing she was already an admirer.
Hepburn had previously spent some of her earnings from the 1953 film Roman Holiday on a Givenchy coat. That film would soon catapult her to stardom in the United States.
What the gown looked like
Audrey Hepburn, as Sabrina Fairchild, donned an iconic two-piece gown and shone in the movie.
The gown, made of white strapless organza and adorned with black floral embroidery, offers a light and airy appearance. It features a simple, pencil-like sheath dress that hugs her form, complemented by a dramatic, voluminous bustled train that attaches at the back.
The entire ensemble is intricately hand-embroidered with delicate black thread, showcasing a pearl peacock feather motif on the bodice and hem.
Audrey Hepburn chose two additional outfits for her role in “Sabrina.” One was a slim, gray wool two-piece suit for the train station scene after Sabrina’s return from Paris. The other was a black silk cocktail dress with shoulder bows, perfect for a night out in New York.
That evening, Hepburn and Givenchy’s close friendship began to form over dinner. When Hepburn returned to Hollywood, the director of “Sabrina” immediately agreed with her about Givenchy’s designs. “Billy Wilder said, ‘It’s just what we need for Sabrina,'” Givenchy recalled to Charlie Rose.
Controversies sparked around the gown
The unforgettable gown featured in the Cinderella moment of “Sabrina,” where the chauffeur’s daughter upstages the wealthy socialites at a party, was a showstopper both on and off the screen.
Audrey Hepburn wore this iconic dress in numerous public appearances worldwide to promote the film.
This legendary design, like all groundbreaking innovations, has sparked debate.
Some claim Audrey Hepburn brought back three dresses from Givenchy, including the hand-embroidered gown, and wore these creations in the movie.
Others argue that she returned with Givenchy designs, which she then gave to Edith Head, who oversaw the film’s wardrobe. There’s also a suggestion that Head created her own versions based on the Givenchy pieces.
In her 1959 book, The Dress Doctor: Prescriptions for Style, From A to Z, Edith Head recounts her experience working on the film Sabrina. During the first costume meeting with Audrey Hepburn, Head recalls that the actress came prepared with her own ideas.
Hepburn brought sketches of three outfits by Givenchy that she had admired in his atelier. This saddened Head.
“The director broke my heart by suggesting that, while the ‘chauffeur’s daughter’ was in Paris, she actually buy a Paris suit,” she wrote. “I had to console myself with the dress, whose boat neckline was tied on each shoulder — widely known and copied as ‘the Sabrina neckline.’”
Givenchy, in an interview with journalist Dana Thomas, mentioned that the dress seen on screen was different from his original design.
He explained that the change was intentional: “We just changed the top of the evening dress when she dances with William Holden in the tennis court from black jersey to a white organza bustier, since it was for a summer ball,” he said.
The positive impacts brought by the dress
The creation of the gown, no matter how it came about, resulted in a major success for everyone involved.
When “Sabrina” premiered in September 1954, it received glowing reviews.. Film critic Bosley Crowther of The New York Times called it as “the most delightful comedy-romance in years.”
He praised Audrey Hepburn, stating, “indeed, she is wonderful in it — a young lady of extraordinary range of sensitive and moving expressions within such a frail and slender frame. She is even more luminous as the daughter and pet of the servants’ hall than she was as a princess last year, and no more than that can be said.”
For Hepburn and Givenchy, “Sabrina” marked the beginning of one of fashion’s most famous designer-muse partnerships and a lifelong friendship.
In 1991, Hepburn said, “very few words can express 40 years of friendship, and his clothes for me have not only thrilled me, but given me so much confidence.”
Edith Head, on the other hand, won an Academy Award for her work on “Sabrina” and maintained that the designs in the film were her creations.
According to “Edith Head’s Hollywood,” she later bought the black cocktail dress from Paramount to showcase in a touring fashion retrospective. During these events, Head would attribute the dress design to herself.
