Elegant style icon wardrobe essentials: A pair of high-waist shorts

To the generation raised on low-rise jeans, a pair of high-waisted shorts can seem old-fashioned. But that wasn't always the case. 

High-waisted shorts were once part of the irresistible uniform of young pin-up girls, and an indispensable part of the summer wardrobe of elegant style icons, from Audrey Hepburn to Katharine Hepburn, from Rita Hayworth to Romy Schneider, from Marilyn Monroe to Brigitte Bardot.

They wear them walking around, boating, playing tennis, or even baseball, paired with classic ballet flats, sporty sandals, or Spanish espadrilles, but more often with dainty high heels, to make a pair of shorts look glorious.