Tarantino’s latest muse Rose McGowan oozes old-Hollywood glamour in vintage-inspired holiday-wear.

“I have a pretty strong sense of what looks good on me and what doesn’t, in terms of body shape, from trial and error.”

Rose McGowan, by her own admission, has lots of unusual foibles. One of which is that she’s double-jointed. She often chases her friends, flailing her arms around in the air like a zombie – a skill she demonstrates at the InStyle shoot. It’s no coincidence that one of her roles in the Grindhouse films, the much-hyped collaboration between Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, is similarly quirky. In Rodriguez’s film, Planet Terror, she plays Cherry Darling, the machine-gun-legged go-go dancer, and although she had no audition for the part, much of the character is inspired by her. “I really relate to Cherry because she becomes strong, but starts as a bit of a loser,” says the 33-year-old actress, best-known for her engagement to Marilyn Manson and parts in the horror flick Scream and the TV series Charmed. And if (as rumored) anything did happen between Rose and married director Rodriguez, she’s keeping it to herself. “I’m very happy, doping my little thing right now,” she says. “Now I’ve had time to come up for air, maybe I’ll find somebody who’ll want to date me!”

Her own “little things” include devouring out-of-print books on the history of costuming, and designing a line of purse caddies – little Art Deco hooks for hanging handbags on restaurant tables – called Pinken Mint.

“My taste is classic with a twist of humor,” she explains and she certainly has a kooky streak. She’s hugely enthusiastic about beluga whales and her pet Boston terriers, and is even considering naming a future child after one of them. “Bug, not Fester. Fester is too rude a name for a kid!”

“I’ve been compared to Ava Gardner – and that’s certainly flattering. What I loved about her is her really fiery sexuality.”