Ivanka Trump steals from Audrey Hepburn to create ‘princess moment’ at dad’s inaugural ball

Even if Ivanka Trump has insisted that she doesn’t plan to move back to Washington, D.C., and take a prominent role in her father’s White House, she seized on her father’s second inauguration to once again cast herself in a quasi-princess role in American society.

Donald Trump’s oldest daughter did so by stealing an iconic look from Hollywood royalty for her appearance at her father’s inaugural Liberty Ball Monday night. She wore a re-creation of the haute couture black-and-white gown that Hubert de Givenchy’ designed for Hepburn to wear in the 1954 film “Sabrina.”

A White House representative told the Daily Mail that Ivanka Trump was “honored” to wear the gown and “incredibly grateful” that the Arnault family, which owns Givenchy atelier as part of the LVMH conglomerate, created “this masterpiece” of a gown for her. Ivanka Trump praised the designers for “capturing the original artistry and elegance with remarkable precision and craftsmanship.”

Sons of US President Donald Trump Eric Trump (2nd R) and son Donald Trump Jr. (L), his daughter Ivanka Trump (R) and granddaughter Kai Madison Trump attend the Liberty inaugural ball in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
Sons of US President Donald Trump Eric Trump (2nd R) and son Donald Trump Jr. (L), his daughter Ivanka Trump (R) and granddaughter Kai Madison Trump attend the Liberty inaugural ball in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images) 

And, it’s probably no surprise to learn that “Audrey Hepburn has long been a personal inspiration to Ivanka,” as the representative said.

In this way, Ivanka Trump isn’t terribly original. Hepburn, revered for her European-bred elegance and slender figure (possibly the result of suffering starvation during World War II), has long been a style icon for women of a certain age.

Perhaps also significant for Ivanka Trump, the actress, who died in 1993, won her Academy Award for playing a princess in “Roman Holiday” and she donned the Givenchy gown to play a Cinderella-type character in the romantic comedy “Sabrina.” (It’s probably not surprising that Ivanka Trump didn’t borrow from an even more iconic Hepburn movie look for her father’s inaugural ball: The black satin sheath evening gown that Givenchy designed for her call girl character Holly Golightly to wear in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”)

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During her father’s first administration, Ivanka Trump became known for trying to play “princess,” as she became a senior White House adviser for her father, according to multiple biographers.

Sabrina Fairchild's (Audrey Hepburn) screened matched embroidered silk-organza gown from "Sabrina" (1954)is displayed during a press preview of movie memorabilia auction at Propstore in Valencia, California on February 7, 2024. The Propstore's live auction of film and TV memorabilia will be held beween March 12th and March 14th. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP) (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images)
Sabrina Fairchild’s (Audrey Hepburn) embroidered silk-organza gown from “Sabrina” (1954) is displayed during a press preview of movie memorabilia auction at Propstore in Valencia, California on February 7, 2024. (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images) 

For Trump’s first inauguration in 2017, Ivanka was aware of the pomp and pageantry of the event and bought into the idea that the Trumps could be the new Kennedys or even an American version a royal family, according to the book, “Born Trump: Inside America’s First Family” by journalist Emily Jane Fox.

Ivanka Trump, keen on stagecraft, also worked with a stylist on devising her inauguration day outfits. She told friends she wanted a “princess moment,” Fox wrote.

“I told her it’s an inauguration, not a coronation,” one friend told Fox. But as Ivanka Trump reportedly insisted, “the sentiment was that Americans wanted a royal family.”

Another author, Mary Jordan, wrote in her 2020 book, “The Art of Her Deal: The Untold Story of Melania Trump,” that Melania Trump had a strained relationship with her husband’s beloved daughter. When she was younger, Melania would call Ivanka “The Princess” behind her back.

Jordan also wrote that Melania Trump was put off by the way Ivanka Trump sought the limelight during the 2017 inauguration and transformed herself into the de facto first lady in the first months of Trump’s administration, when Melania chose to stay in New York with her son, Barron. New York Times reporter Katie Rogers also wrote in her 2024 book, “American Woman: The Transformation of the Modern First Lady, from Hillary Clinton to Jill Biden,” that Melania Trump resented her stepdaughter’s interventions in the first lady’s office and dubbed her “The Princess.” 

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If any tensions remain between Melania Trump her stepdaughter, they haven’t been on display since Trump won the Nov. 5 election and prepared to return to the White House for a second time. Melania Trump has expressed a desire to return to the White House and seize control of her place as first lady.

Ivanka Trump, meanwhile, has said since 2022 that she and her husband, Jared Kushner, don’t “plan to be involved in politics” and would instead prioritize raising their three children in Florida. In a recent appearance on The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast, Ivanka Trump said, “I think I’m most looking forward to just being able to show up for him as a daughter and be there for him, to take his mind off things, to watch a movie with him, or watch a sports game, to know that he can be with me and be himself and just relax and for me to be able to provide that for him and in a very loving way as his daughter.”

 

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