This blouse was almost certainly designed by Cecil Beaton as a prototype or early model of the blouse worn by Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle during the Rain in Spain and I Could Have Danced All Night numbers in the 1964 Warner Bros. production My Fair Lady.

The sewing is of couture standard, with the chiffon having a rolled hem and the seams being hand finished. The cotton facing to the inside of the high neck and cuffs would not be found on couture clothes, where silk would be more appropriate. The cotton is a technical solution to support a high neck without the need for wiring, which you would find in historical Edwardian garments.

Almost identical to the final film-worn design, which remains in the Warner Bros. archive, the cuffs on the blouse in this lot are trimmed with a ruffle, whereas the cuffs on the film-worn blouse are untrimmed. It was not unusual for various versions of a costume to be sketched or trialled before refining the final design. When this design was rejected in favour of an unfussier cut, Audrey likely requested to keep the blouse as a souvenir of her time as Eliza.
Post Lot Text
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