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Joan Collins has the best holiday style you’ll see this summer

The glamorous Hollywood icon has been at the forefront of French Riveria style for decades – and she shows no signs of slowing down...

Tamara Abraham, Fashion Editor14 August 2024 

If you’re lucky enough to have received an invitation to Joan Collins’ home in the south of France, where she spends her summers, prepare to raise your style game.

The actress sets a high bar for her guests, among them Elizabeth and Damian Hurley. Even during her downtime, Dame Joan’s unrivalled commitment to glamour recalls the elegance and charm that first lured celebrities to the French Riviera in the 1960s.

This is well documented on her Instagram feed (along with husband Percy Gibson’s attempts to hang fairy lights from the olive trees) with posts that are far more inspiring and joy-inducing than any Gen-Z-er’s bikini selfie..

Of course, Dame Joan has been visiting the Riviera for decades, so she knows the style formula well. It begins with a wide-brimmed hat because you don’t get a complexion this youthful at 90-plus by risking sun damage.

Damian Hurley, Elizabeth Hurley, Joan Collins and Percy Gibson

Then there’s the makeup – always a defined, bright, glossy lip – and a gravity-defying blow-dry of which Dynasty’s Alexis Carrington (Collins’ most famous role) would be proud. No hairstylist around? No problem, sweep it under the hat. She has an alternative solution in the form of a silk headscarf and visor – far more practical when spending the day on a yacht, darling.

The other accessories are important too: Chanel or Gucci sunglasses, obviously, the bigger and bolder the better. In one recent post, she is seen in a rhinestone-studded pair, because there’s no such thing as too much bling in Dame Joan’s world. Sometimes she’ll add Chanel earrings too, or a smattering of Van Cleef & Arpels’ Alhambra jewellery. A chilled glass of rosé goes without saying – this is the woman who declared “rose season officially open” in an ad for M&S in May. She is, as Gen-Z would say, “so extra”.

Nobody could accuse her of being stuck in the past, either. A pair of of-the-moment sports sunglasses tend to look try-hard on most people, but Collins somehow carries them off with ease.

It’s the resort wear that really brings the look together though: kaftans by Missoni and Roberto Cavalli, dresses with frilled Bardot necklines (a great way to show a little skin without looking overexposed), a tan-enhancing palette of blue, white and violet, and some leopard print for good measure. Every outfit is thoughtfully coordinated.

“The look is dramatic in every way, there’s nothing understated,” says personal stylist Annabel Hodin. “Big hats, large sunglasses, smokey eyes and bright lipstick.”

And this is no bad thing: “She is wearing the clothes, not the other way around,” Hodin adds. “She’s not afraid of looking desirable. Feminine, off-the-shoulder dresses move nicely and flatter her figure, so she looks comfortable and confident.” 

Big hats, large sunglasses and bright lipstick are key to Dame Joan's look

Then again, you’d expect nothing less from a woman who’s been known to travel with 12 Louis Vuitton trunks, all sent ahead to ensure a smooth journey. She’s not suffering from a lack of options.

There’s an art to assembling the kind of wardrobe that can take you from Club 55 Saint-Tropez to the local flea market. Given that we’re still waiting for an invite to chez Collins-Gibson, there’s plenty of time to work it out.

San Tropez, 2013 Credit: Getty