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Bonjour Tristesse, David Niven, Deborah Kerr, essie blue, Françoise Sagan, J.Crew, Oscar Wilde, soap and glory, spring style, stripes for spring, vintage high waisted shorts, vintage spring style
Anni Striped Buttondown | Sit Tight Body Firming Serum | Essie “In the Cabana” | Boucle high-waisted Shorts | Loafers in Coral |
Bonjour Tristesse (“Hello Sadness”) is a fairly obscure novel written by Françoise Sagan in 1954 and adapted into a 1958 film version starring Deborah Kerr and David Niven. The rather depressing story follows a young girl abroad with her playboy father who bases his life on Oscar Wilde’s famous line: “Sin is the only note of vivid colour that persists in the modern world.” Of course, the consequences of his life-motto are vivid indeed…and, not in a good way. As foreshadowed by the title, the novel and the film end in tragedy and David Niven, the playboy father, learns that his view of life may bring instant gratification, but it also forces him into saying over and over, “bonjour tristesse.”
Despite all the sadness, a silver lining in the film version of the novel is Deborah Kerr’s adorable spring/summer style. She dresses comfortably without ever looking sloppy, and casual without ever looking lazy. I think her secret is pairing casual items with a tailored piece: putting shorts with a button-down, an easy, tailored shift-dress with a scarf instead of t-shirts and cut-offs. Even spending days at the beach, her hair is always pinned into submission and she never looks like she had an “I give up day.” Instead, though the film is rather dark, to Deborah Kerr you could definitely always say, “bonjour beauté!”
Bonjour tristesse images via lemonwade.com | filmposterarchive
– ❤ A.
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