Unwillingly elevating her appearance, Twiggy accessorized her elfin-like face and large blue eyes with a pixie cut, creating a distinctive style that has been imitated for decades.
The iconic cover girl recently disclosed that she didn’t want the androgynous buzz that characterized the Swinging Sixties look, despite the fact that her young style revolutionized the fashion industry. She also said that she was simply too shy to refuse the services of a well-known hairstylist in a “posh salon.”
On September 19, in honor of her 74th birthday, we’re transporting you back to the 1960s, when Twiggy initially influenced the well-known baby doll designs that are still in use today!
Twiggy, whose real name is Lesley Hornby and she was born in Britain, was searching for a new and fashionable appearance to help launch her career in 1966. The young girl, who was just 5′ 6″, was told she was too short to make it in the cutthroat fashion industry.
The former supermodel, who turned 74 on September 19, remembered visiting renowned British stylist Leonard Lewis (also known as Leonard of Mayfair) and getting her shoulder-length hair fashioned for some test “head shots” at London’s House of Leonard.
In order to test off his new crop haircut, Lewis sought models.
The former style star recently stated that she had never wanted her hair cut short in a guest appearance on Jessie Ware’s podcast, “Table Manners.”
“When Leonard saw me coming in to get my hair shampooed and set, he said, ‘Let me do my new haircut on you,'” Twiggy revealed to Ware in the podcast. After growing my hair for a while, I kind of thought, ‘I’m not sure if I want my hair trimmed.’ However, I was a little too nervous to say, “I don’t want it done,” because I was at this upscale salon in Mayfair, so I just nodded.
Twiggy went back to the salon the following day and sat in Lewis’ chair, preparing herself for what was about to happen.
He chopped it for seven hours when I returned the next day, after which I walked outside to have it colored and then cut again. “Oh, it was crazy,” she said.
Twiggy soon realized why Lewis was a well-known stylist, even if she wasn’t aiming for the androgynous style.
Twiggy’s photos were taken by British photographer Barry Lategan after Lewis had perfected her golden blonde hairstyle.
Twiggy remarked, “Leonard put it up in the salon and a journalist saw it,” alluding to Deirdre McSharry, the fashion editor for the Daily Express, who was having Lewis style her hair when she noticed Twiggy’s bold hairstyle in the pictures. That’s how everything happened.The turning point came when the haircut began and that picture was taken.
She applied mascara on her lower eyelashes to draw attention to her big blue eyes, which were accentuated by the pixie cut.
Twiggy revealed the source of her doe eyes in an interview with Vogue, saying, “I was also constantly playing around with make-up at home.” I purchased fake eyelashes for myself and created what became known as my “look” after seeing a rag doll with spikey eyelashes.
The former supermodel added that she rebelled as a child by dressing in makeup and miniskirts and going to Saturday night mod clubs with her friends when she wasn’t in the rigid constraints of her school.
Since I attended a grammar school, the curriculum was rather rigorous. We were required to wear uniforms, and cosmetics was prohibited. Thus, like most teenage females, my friends and I would spend our weekends playing with makeup. “And that’s how that makeup evolved,” she added.
And the eyes were incorporated into her unique style.
A few weeks following the Daily Express photo shoot, the title “Twiggy–The Face Of ’66” and a number of photographs—now classic black and white photos that started her modeling career—appeared on the paper’s pages.
When she did her first photo session for Vogue the following month, her “life became a whirlwind.”
Twiggy, who was still in her teens, became the first celebrity to be used as a model for a Twiggy Barbie. She was the archetypal example of mod dress and served as a role model for many women.
Over the ensuing years, Twiggy’s moniker came to represent the British fashion designer Mary Quant, who liberated the feminine leg by introducing low hemlines.
Twiggy only modeled for a few years before retiring in 1970 to pursue acting on theater and television in addition to singing.
She starred in the films The Boy Friend (1971), for which she received two Golden Globes, and Club Paradise (1986), in which she costarred with the late Robin Williams.
Along with working on a fashion line exclusively for Marks & Spencer, the America’s Next Top Model judge also made appearances on a number of the company’s billboard advertisements.
The CD “Romantically Yours,” which she published in 2011, includes cover songs such as “Blue Moon,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” and “Right Here Waiting.” Some of the songs feature guest vocals by Carly Lawson, her only daughter, who was born in 1978.
The gorgeous woman, who is still at the forefront of fashion, served as an ambassador for L’Oreal and collaborates with other companies as a designer.
The legend is currently occupied with her own podcast, Tea with Twiggy, in which she has private conversations with her well-known pals once a week.
Despite all of her accomplishments, Twiggy, one of the most well-known figures of her generation, stated that the only way to gauge her success is to look at the relationship she has with her amazing daughter.
Carly was raised by her mother and second husband, Leigh Lawson, whom Twiggy married in 1988, after her father, actor Michael Witney, passed away at the age of 52 during her fifth birthday celebration.
“My family is my top priority. Even when Carly was young, it was always that way. Twiggy, who is also a grandma, stated, “I didn’t do it if it didn’t work for Carly.” “We’re so close now since we went everywhere together. She said the other day, “I can’t remember a time when you weren’t there, Mum,” and she attributed that to the fact that I was always there. She even accompanied me on my travels.
Many women are envious of Twiggy’s ability to sport the 1960s pixie hairstyle! She was, and still is, stunning!
Which aspects of the Swinging Sixties do you remember? Which of your hairstyles is the most daring?
Let’s celebrate Twiggy’s birthday by sharing this story and giving her some love!
If you liked reading about Twiggy’s style development, check out Catherine Deneuve’s current appearance. She too had her big break in the 1960s.
