These next iconic fashionable women, both real and fictional, will always have a special place in our hearts, but these days, folks might be channeling them a little too often.
Most overused styl icon references
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Marilyn Monroe
America's sex symbol of yore is still tantalizing us today. Nearly 52 years after her death, Marilyn has remained in the forefront of the country's cultural consciousness and has inspired more creative work than one can name. There's no denying that she is legendary, but there were other sexy women alive in the 50s. Surely, every female celebrity doesn't have to do one Marilyn Monroe-themed shoot in their career. Beyoncé, Lindsay Lohan, Scarlett Johansson, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Kate Upton and a bajillion others have already done that for us.
Image: Getty Images/ Michael Ochs Arhives
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Annie Hall
No one will argue that Diane Keaton's wardrobe in Annie Hall wasn't perfection. Menswear will always have a certain sexiness on a woman, especially one who wears a tie, vest and high-waisted khakis as well as Ms. Hall. But not every menswear reference needs to be a nod to the film. Katharine Hepburn is a tried and true menswear muse, but Lauren Hutton also borrowed from the boys like a pro on the regular.
Image: Getty Images
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Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's
It's pretty impossible not to admire Audrey's timeless style, particularity in the iconic film Breakfast at Tiffany's. The best part about everything the actress wore was that we can dress like her today and still look fashionable. People have referenced her style over and over again in endless iterations — and countless Halloween costumes. There's a little Holly Golightly in each of us, but she doesn't need to be brought out every time you wear a little black dress.
Image: WENN.com
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Clueless
Millennials have still not gotten over Clueless, and probably never will. It seems as if every other day, someone is making a reference to the movie, or a doing an homage to the film in some way. These efforts can turn out great (Iggy Azalea's "Fancy" music video is so spot-on and we love it), but since Clueless is the default fashion film of the 90s, can we agree to cut down on the telltale yellow plaid skirt, jacket, white knee socks and beret ensembles? We get it — Cher Horowitz could dress and we're still envious of her wardrobe more than 20 years later. But Clueless isn't the only 90s film with great style. Jawbreaker, Romy and Michele's High School Reunion and Cruel Intentions are other, less-used references that are pretty great, too.
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Josephine Baker
Josephine is one of the most important entertainers in black history, and her image would be nothing without her saucy sense of style and the glamour with which she wore almost nothing at all. Everyone from Rihanna to Miuccia Prada has been inspired by her, but when it seems as if there's an unspoken rule that every black actress must have used her as a point of reference if they threw on a flapper dress, perhaps we should be sniffing for another muse.
Image: Gamma-Keystone/Getty Images
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Elizabeth Taylor
Liz Taylor is the definition of glamour and opulence. Say what you will about her wardrobe, but you can't deny she was the owner of some legendary jewels. She likely had one of the most coveted jewelry collections of any actress. In fact, her personal stash of bling was snapped up by some very lucky people at auction, which took in close to $116 million. But it can't be too difficult to find a way to portray Cleopatra without giving a nod to Elizabeth's role in the 1963 flick, can it?
Image: WENN.com
