Being Holly

Being such an introvert, dressing up on Halloween is not a favorite day of mine. Before taking my current job, there were only a handful of costumed years since officially stopping in the sixth grade. (Including the requisite Franklin Street experience in college.)

Flash forward to said job, where the one staff meeting we have a year is a Halloween party where costumes, and highly-creative costumes at that, are strongly encouraged. I've grinned and bared it the previous two years, with my ladybug in a tutu and my devil in a blue dress. But this year I decided to exert a bit more effort and try and do justice, for a second time, to my favorite actress, character, and movie: Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's.

My first Holly G. attempt was sophomore year of college, a fairly last minute and weak effort. I wanted to do it better but still keep it simple and thought I could manage the little black dress/big black hat ensemble she wears to visit Sally Tomato at Sing Sing.

The Inspiration

The Reality

"How do I look?" (Holly)

I'm really happy with the way it turned out and would gladly wear a dress and giant hat everyday if I could. And if door frames were widened. And there was no wind. Unfortunately, only about half of my co-workers recognized me and the other half just thought I was a posh lady in a big hat. But that's alright.

The Details

"As I understand it, we're getting you ready to visit someone at Sing Sing." (Paul/Fred)

To me, being Audrey is all in the details. And since I've seen the film, read the book, read the book about the film, saw the dress from the opening scene, own the Barbie doll, and see the posters in my room every day, I'm pretty familiar with the details.

The LBD: Macy's Junior's department, on sale for $30. I love it and will definitely wear it again.

Shoes: Already had. From Target.

"Be a darling and look under the bed for a pair of alligator shoes." (Holly)

Belt: Already had. From Forever 21 and technically a headband. And though her belt was a bow, I decided to use what I had and give it my own twist.

Earrings: Earring World at Potomac Mills. They were clip-ons which was nice because they are so heavy, but hurt after a few hours.

"You can always tell what kind of a person a man thinks you are by the earrings he gives you. I must say, the mind reels." (Holly)

Sunglasses: Already had. Old Navy. One of the details that is most often done incorrectly (looking at you, Jennifer Love Hewitt) are her sunglasses. Wayfarers, not Jackie O's. (Get a life, I know.)

Hat: I bought the below hat at a costume store to use as a base, and after removing the accents, constructed the brim using felt, poster board, and a healthy amount of hot glue.

Hat scarf: Made from some sheer fabric from Ikea. It was the last thing I made and it shows as the sewing is not at all straight and there are lots of stray bits of the fabric.

"Miss Golightly is on her way to Sing Sing. Just visiting, of course." (Paul/Fred)

I opted out of making the ruffle on the bottom or wearing black gloves, which I actually own. I was going for the essence of Holly, not an exact replica. (At least that's what I was telling myself with every new person that asked who I was. The ruffle and gloves surely wouldn't have made a difference, right?)

Until next year...