Ivanka Trump Can Recreate Audrey Hepburn’s Gown, but She’s Not Fooling Anyone

Ivanka, who attended the inaugural ceremonies earlier in the day in a forest green Dior skirt suit and matching beret, seemed to appeal to a more traditional conservative aesthetic with her choice, drawing on 1950s and ’60s femininity. She stood in contrast to the more overtly sexual ensembles worn by her fellow attendees like Jeff Bezos’s fiancée Lauren Sanchez, who attended the inauguration in a bra top under a blazer and the inaugural ball in a dramatic corseted gown.

The conservative obsession with the past versus the progressives’ desire to look to the future has also never been so literally represented (a contrasting example: Ella Emhoff’s dress for the Democratic National Convention, which was designed by an up-and-coming American designer who used social media to build his career.)

Ivanka Trump didn’t comment on the decision to reference Sabrina, instead captioning photos of herself in the gown with black and white heart emoji. However, it’s fair to assume that such a famous reference was pointed.

In Sabrina, the strapless organza gown is a symbol of the title character’s transformation from working class daughter to high society darling. It’s a sort of coming-out look, her chance to show the world what had been hiding in plain sight. It’s Sabrina’s very own Cinderella gown, except that it was designed by Hubert de Givenchy, not a bippity-boppity fairy godmother.

Ivanka’s decision to invoke the rags-to-riches symbolism is a bit on the nose, in my opinion. I get it, the MAGA messaging is built on the myth of the American Dream, of changing your own circumstances with a bit of elbow grease and ambition. But Ivanka, who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, playing hapless heroine who finally gets her due? It’s just too much.