That’s so Bardot! LAURA CRAIK reveals the nine ways Brigitte defined style
Charles de Gaulle described it as ‘as important a French export as Renault cars’.
When Brigitte Bardot, who has died aged 91, emerged in 1950s France, she challenged the rigid formalities of post-war fashion and pioneered a uniquely raw sexual appeal.
Her wardrobe was stunning, an intriguing mix of gingham dresses, ballet flats, Breton stripes and collars.
Suddenly, style was all about loose button-downs, bare shoulders, and artfully tousled hair that women were eager to emulate.
Each revival of the ‘effortless French vibe’ takes us back to Brigitte. Here are some of her most enduring looks…
We turn the trench coat into a classic
French actress Brigitte Bardot went shopping during her visit to London, 26 October 1963
Before Kate Moss and Alexa Chung embraced the trench coat as a modern wardrobe staple, Bardot was making it her own.
Photographed in London in 1963, she styled it with black knee socks and added a bow to her hair.
For the epitome of French girl chic, she’d wear it with puffy black over-the-knee boots, belted at the waist, and a quilted Chanel purse.
blonde updo
Studio portrait of actor and model Brigitte Bardot wearing a light blue off-the-shoulder dress in 1960
Born a brunette in 1934, she dyed her hair blonde in 1956 for the Italian film Mio Figlio Nerone.
And so she remained a warm, golden, ‘dirty’ blonde that evoked carefree summers spent on the French Riviera.
Hairdressers are still trying to recreate her natural, radiant colour, and many consider her the ‘best blonde’.
Of all the hairstyles, none is more famous than her updo.
The artfully tousled, half-up, half-down style was her signature look; It has been constantly imitated, but rarely equaled.
Beatnik look
Brigitte Bardot on the set of ‘Le Mepris’
With typical panache, he transformed the rebellious spirit of the movement into something distinctive.
Drawing on the Left Bank aesthetic of late 1950s Paris, she rejected ostentatiousness in favor of simplicity, with black turtleneck sweaters, cropped cigarette pants, striped tops, black headbands, and ballet flats, aligning Bardot with a youth culture that valued freedom, creativity, and nonconformity.
smokey eye
Brigitte Bardot in a photograph taken in 1959
Long before Victoria Beckham was teaching tutorials on TikTok, Bardot was providing the world with her own masterclass.
Her signature look – the smokey eye – was an eye-catching blend of three key ingredients: black ‘cat eye’ liquid eyeliner; eyes with thick black kohl rims and thick black mascara lashes. This is still the beauty regimen that many women turn to for sultry evening glam.
wasp waist
Portrait of French actress Brigitte Bardot in Spanish dress and holding a jug, circa 1960s
At 22, her breakthrough role in 1956’s And God Created Woman saw her play the ultimate femme fatale, stealing every scene in a series of slim-waisted looks that defined 1950s sexuality.
His own wardrobe reflected this; She emphasized her waist with her body-hugging shift dresses and sensuous tailoring.
sex kitten in leopard
French film actress Brigitte Bardot arrives at London Heathrow Airport with her husband Gunther Sachs on November 28, 1967.
Before giving up fur, she was often seen wearing animal-print coats; leopard, tiger, zebra and ocelot were competing among the favourites.
In the 1960s, this was her go-to look when traveling. He arrived in London in 1967 wearing an animal-print belted fur coat, black knee-high boots and his signature beret.
boho charm
The loose, flowing style of the caftan was in perfect harmony with the decade
By the 1970s, Bardot had fully embraced the caftan, wearing jeweled canary yellow chiffon in 1972.
The caftan’s loose, flowing style was perfect for the decade – but Bardot being Bardot, the actress often opted for sheer or semi-sheer fabric, which added a hint of sexiness to her outfit.
bikini
In 1953, 18-year-old Bardot posed for a photo on the beach in Cannes.
In 1953, 18-year-old Bardot posed for photographs on the beach in Cannes; In a cunning move, she stopped traffic, ratcheted up tensions and shamelessly promoted her 1952 film Manina, The Girl In The Bikini.
She had her photograph taken on every beach in the South of France, and the bikini changed the face of modern fashion.
Incredibly off duty
During the 1970s and early 1980s, Bardot embraced a more casual aesthetic in which denim was a key component.
During the 1970s and early 1980s, Bardot adopted a more casual aesthetic in which denim was a key component.
The bell-bottom jeans were very strict and she didn’t shy away from ‘double denim’ either.
Jeans were also the basis of his daily uniform, worn with a denim chambray shirt thrown over a simple T-shirt or vest.
