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As designers take their style cue for autumn/winter 2009 from classic elegance (think boxy jackets, classic pencil skirts and flawless accessorising), we can't help but be reminded of fashion icon Ingrid Bergman, the Swedish actress who ruled Hollywood during the '40s and '50s. According to the American Film Institute, she remains the fourth greatest female star of American cinema of all time - and her icon status is showing no signs of waning, either.

While Bergman's name is synonymous with Casablanca, 1942, in which she played the impeccably-styled Ilsa Lund opposite Humphrey Bogart, her off-screen looks are testament to her unerring eye for fashion. A life-long fan of Christian Dior, the style of Ingrid Bergman epitomises the ground-breaking New Look that ushered in a new era of femininity in fashion. Despite various personal scandals, her neat blouses, matchy-matchy two-pieces and a penchant for a well-placed necklace, scarf or hat meant that she never looked anything less than the perfect lady.

Bergman died after a long battle with breast cancer in 1982 but her children continue to uphold her sartorial standards. Her model-turned-actress daughter, Isabella Rosselini, is widely considered one of the world's most elegant dressers and in turn, her daughter Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann is an up-and-coming fashion face who is signed to modelling powerhouse IMG Models in NYC.

Flick through our gallery of her greatest fashion moments to see why she's our fashion icon this month.

Picture: Ingrid Bergman wearing a full-sleeved blouse, wide belt and lavishly draped skirt for a 1946 photo shoot.

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