Models from elsewhere: Jennifer

Models from Elsewhere is a portrait series about models. New to London or just passing through, these young, independent spirits travel light…

“I was living in a flat sharing with two boys and I was always the messy one – ‘creative messy’! And they were really neat and clean. When they went into my room there was always fabric lying around and papers and sketches on the walls. My friends were like, “we thought girls were meant to be neat and tidy. What happened? It’s like a bomb exploded!” This is Jennifer, 23, a Frankfurt native fashion-graduate-now-model. Fresh off the plane, she arrived at our casting with wheelie case in tow. A few days later in her Brixton flat-share room, her worldly possessions are indeed scattered bomb explosion-style around her room, a tangle of black jersey, a jumble of costume jewellery in clear plastic bags and a cluster of shoes including her favourite black patent DMs.

“I was a goth when I was younger so I didn’t wear colour at all and even now when I go shopping, I don’t look at the colourful clothes, I always go to black,” which I guess is a sensible approach too, when your always-travelling lifestyle means limited packing choices. The obvious styling option for Jennifer then, is Topshop Unique’s black velvet dungarees, the star of the AW12 show, accessorised with nothing but bare skin and her own ear cuffs. Plus another key Topshop Unique piece, its supersized sweater, and some more colourful pieces from Martine Rose, Adam Andrascik and E. Tautz.

Jennifer came to modeling via her love of fashion design. Her interest in making clothes started at 14, “because I didn’t get much pocket money and I was always wearing the same clothes. It got boring so I started to change the shape of my T-shirts – cut things off, put two shirts together, it was fun. I always wanted to do something creative so that’s why I studied fashion design. It was my hobby, I just loved to do it.”

While interning for a designer, she was called on to model in their look book, which led to walking in the designer’s show. No matter that heels were an alien concept to this DM-wearing grunger, in typical get-on-with-it style, she practiced in heels at the design studio, tottering around the cutting table to improve her confidence. “After that experience I realised modelling was a good way to earn a little money so I asked some agencies and finally one took me.”

Having long mastered heels, Jennifer has since walked for Kenzo, Louise Gray, Mark Fast, Corrie Nielsen, Sister by Sibling and Jean-Pierre Braganza. Her passions are still creative ones. “I like to shop – H&M, Zara, COS, Topshop and vintage shops. And I like to go to museums. I’m interested in history and art and fashion. I’m not a party animal; I’d rather go for a drink with friends to a pub where we can chat. But if I’m just staying home, I’m knitting all the time.”


Above: Jumper, Topshop Unique; Rings, Asos


Above: Dungarees, Topshop Unique; Cuff, Sophia Kokosalaki


Above: Top, Adam Andrascik; Mens trousers, E. Tautz; Gold-plated thorn cuff, Rreah at Kabiri


Above: Jacket, Lulu & Co


Above: Jacket, Martine Rose; Shirt, Studio Nicholson; Shorts, Urban Outfitters

Photography: Flora Deborah
Make-up: Caroline Sims
Model: Jennifer at M&P Models
Thanks to Esther at M&P Models