They were all individuals, but their wardrobe foundations were the same: short, short skirts, slim, ribbed knits, flared trousers or jeans and cropped close-fitting jackets. They were all fond of a baker boy cap for rain or shine. Low-heeled boots were de rigueur in Paris, but in Saint Tropez, it was more chic to go barefoot – espadrilles and ballerinas to be worn only when necessary.
“The 60s was all about a new sense of freedom and having fun, with the birth of so many silhouettes and trends – from mod to boho to hippie – and of course the debut of the mini skirt. It resonates to this day,” says Ketzia Chetrite, co-founder of French label Tressé, which has just started shipping to the UK. “[Hardy’s] silhouettes tended to be streamlined but with a distinct sense of her personality in her classic knits, shrunken biker leathers and Paco Rabanne chainmail.”
She’s not the only modern-day designer who looks to the past for inspiration. Chrysoline de Gastines, founder of French fashion brand Balzac Paris cites Hardy as a muse too: “With her androgynous style and avant-garde clothing, Hardy combined classic elegance with modernity,” she says. “It’s an influence we love to explore in our collections.”
De Gastines is on the money. Today, the words “French Girl style” remain catnip to British women. We still look to photographs of Hardy and Birkin in the 1960s for inspiration; their outfits haven’t dated. They are why we aspire to wear our clothes “just so”, debate with our hairdressers whether to get a fringe and buy ballerina flats in the hope that they’ll inject a little Gallic flair into our everyday looks.