Is the "Freja" the new "Rachel"?

Apparently Freja's current hairstyle is all the rage. Dubbed "The Freja" by The Irish Times, it's gaining notoriety in the UK as well:

"The haircut of the season is undoubtedly the Freja, after model du jour Freja Beha Erichsen. The fresh-faced Dane sums up the mood of the season with her choppy, laissez-faire, shoulder-length style, which is given definition and volume with layers and texture, and cut using a sharp-edged razor. It suits pretty much any face shape and doesn't take much upkeep."

I also got a tip recently from one of you lovely readers informing me about a piece in Grazia (not online unfortunately) also touting the "Freja" as the next big thing in hair care. (Thanks Natalie!)

Since when did her hair become a thing? I always just thought it was messy and disheveled because she was growing it out and couldn't be bothered to deal with it. It fits her casual, effortless, just throw on some jeans and a t-shirt look very well. So it's really hilarious to me that it's now apparently become a style that other people strive for. I mean, just go to sleep, wake up and voila! Oh the irony. Maybe "The Freja" is the next "The Rachel." Yes? Yes? Regardless of my condescension, this is just another example of how notable and recognizable Freja is becoming, perhaps even outside fashion circles. Cult personality model indeed.

On a somewhat related note in speaking of things I find hilarious, I'm sure you've all seen the recent pictures of Baptiste in short booty shorts out and about with Karl in St. Tropez. Well, Freja was with them too, but she opted for Balmain jeans. I guess there's only room for one pair of booty shorts in St. Tropez...

Even though there's really nothing notable about these pics, I'm just happy that Freja's still in Karl's good graces. We haven't seen any work from the two of them in a while. Instead Karl's been working a lot with Natasha, and it had me slightly worried. I know not everyone likes Karl, his photography, and the work he does with Chanel, but he's been a constant supporter of Freja and her career, even during 2008 when things weren't going quite as well. It's just nice to be able to rely on certain things and relationships when everything else in the world seems so tenuous and uncertain. (Hello upcoming mid-term elections, high unemployment rates, and the possibility of another recession.) So I hope this means we'll be seeing a new editorial or collaboration soon!

Image Credits: afashiontale.dk, hola.com, zimbio.com

Tribulations of the Job

Think modeling is all fun, games and free clothes? Take a look at these backstage makeup and hair pictures from this past season and you might change your mind. They are simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. Hilarious in the way they can capture certain comical moments, expressions and situations.

Horrifying in the violation of personal space and feeling of irritation they can evoke.

Ok, maybe it's just horrifying to me (I'm sure many people would revel in this kind of "pampering" and attention) since I value my personal space a lot, so seeing some of these pictures makes me cringe. I doubt those hair stylist are super gentle when they've only got 15 minutes to get the job done. Not to mention that people coming at my face with pointed objects would most definitely freak me out.

But it's all just part of the job, right? As a model you learn to deal with it in different ways. Maybe you listen to music.

Or you talk to the person next to you.

Or maybe you just try to relax and zone out.

Sometimes you begrudgingly concede and accept the situation at hand.

And then again, sometimes it's all just too much and you simply want to curl up and protect yourself from the onslaught.

Even though they really do make me cringe sometimes, I love seeing these types of pics precisely because they're illustrative and evoke so much feeling.

You can really imagine the frenzy surrounding a girl the second she arrives to a show, especially if she's coming from another one. You can visualize the small army of people waiting to tackle her and wipe her completely clean of her previous look, only to do her back up again. It's a panoply of hands pulling on that, tugging on this, taking that off, putting that on. And many girls go through the process multiple times a day. That's layers of makeup being put on and rubbed off. Pounds of hair product being applied and washed away.

This is probably one of the few times when I'll say that models aren't like the rest of us. Yes, they're human, but the majority of them also have wonderful genes giving them abnormally great skin and hair. And that explains why they look so radiant off-duty despite the constant wear and tear their faces and hair go through during show season. That explains why they can still have flawless, zit-free skin and light, flowy hair at the end of the day. Well, that and moisturizer...lots and lots of moisturizer.

Image Credits: chloe, corbis, dazeddigital, eastnews, elle, elle,fr, elle.it, elle.ru, style.it. zimbio

On the Webpages Of

Freja may never appear in the pages of Vogue (other than in ads) but at least she makes the occasional appearance online. Funny that they would chose that picture to illustrate that news clip. Especially since, if I'm remembering correctly, Freja had a friend cut her hair for her back in July of 2007. God, was it really that long ago? Time flies.