Eva Peron - the style

Eva Peron, the one-time First Lady of Argentina, in addition to being a power in her own right, was a fashion icon.

Her stylish flair shows a style and a fashion look that works well today even though it's over sixty years since her death.

The sophisticated and elegant look she portrayed has elements that are often seen on the catwalk today.Known as Evita, she was often seen in the most glamorous dresses with fabulous jewelry and yet she had her own simple style when dressed casually.

Her look is easy to achieve today. She had film star looks, indeed she had been an actress before her marriage to Juan Peron.

She acted under her maiden name - Eva Duarte. She had the classical beauty which is reminiscent of Hollywood movie stars of the day such as Grace Kelly and the 'Hitchcock Blondes'.

I missed the film and the musical about her life and it's only recently I realized about her tempestuous and fascinating history. Like many people, I wasn't aware of her at all until the musical and the movie were released. There was the clue - if this was a woman with a story worth filming, then surely her life must have been truly fascinating. I decided to explore and find out more about here and her story - and her fabulous style - have fascinated me ever since.

There are some fabulous opportunities to re-create the Evita look, especially if you're shopping online. Below I've chosen some of my favourites.

Evita wore some incredibly glamorous gown on formal occasions. But she managed to add glamour to her day wear too. She favored day dresses that had beautiful necklines and longer, flowing skirts.

• Her father was a married man. Originally he provided for her, her mother and her siblings but this financial aid soon dried up and Eva's mother had to support the family herself.
• Although her father accepted that she and her siblings were his, he left no money for them when he died. They were also not permitted to attend his funeral.
• Eva was the youngest of five children.
• All her siblings are now dead. The last, her sister Erminda, died in 2012.
• When she was fifteen, she moved to Buenos Aires where she started her stage and acting career.
• It's said that she was the first woman in Argentina to have chemotherapy.
• She was thirty three years old when she died of cervical cancer in 1952. This was also the cause of her mother's death.
• She was Juan's second wife. His first had died - also of uterine cancer - at the age of twenty nine.
• Her body was embalmed and plans were made for a memorial monument which would house the body. Before this could be done, Juan lost his political power due to a military coup and he fled from Argentina. Eva's body disappeared and its whereabouts were unknown for sixteen years. It was later revealed by the military that it had been buried in Italy.

Dresses with flared or A line skirts were popular in Eva Peron's time. Here are a couple of lovely examples that are available online.

When working she went for the tailored look. She was often photographed wearing stylish suits that we so fashionable and so typical of the era.

Pearls, large brooches are earrings were all part of Evita's style. In those days, costume jewellery wasn't as available to the average woman. Today, we're luckier.

You'll see many photographs of Eva wearing pearl jewellery. I love these examples.

As you may have read, I was at college many years ago with a girl who is now a top fashion editor for THE fashion and style magazine. Caroline uses mood-boards and composite images when she and her staff are preparing layouts.

It's an excellent way to refine a look. By seeing them together you can discover the basics of the style and refine it further.

That's what I have done above to demonstrate and distill the style of Eva Peron.

If you're old enough, you might remember the days when fashion was quite strictly determined. The exact length of your skirt, for example, determined whether you were wearing clothes in the height of fashion or if you were stuck with last season's style.

In recent years, this has - luckily - changed and we all have much more freedom to express our own individual style and flair. For this reason, many of us look at the fashions of the past in order to create our own individual look.

There is plenty of inspiration. See the links below as further examples.