From Denmark to Paris to ?

We all have our traditions. Usually around this time of year most Americans are fresh off a weekend of grilling out and watching fireworks in celebration of the July 4th holiday. Freja, on the other hand, always seems to find herself jetting from Denmark to Paris around this time of year; going from crowded, dirty concert tents to immaculate, luxurious runways.

The Roskilde music festival is arguably one of the biggest draws on the European festival circuit. Freja was there last year decked out in some Alexander Wang, and seemingly not one to break with tradition (or give up on her love of music), she was there again this year also decked out in Alexander Wang.

Coincidentally, I happen to own the same green A Wang vest and let me tell you, it's amazing. (I swear I bought it before I knew Freja had it! Contrary to what you may think, I'm not that type of fan.) As soon as I saw the look on Iselin during the SS10 show, I just knew I had to have it. The best thing about it is the long, draping back made of black nylon. The panel wafts up in the air as you walk, kind of like a cape. So just picture Freja walking around, made even more imposing by a black cape trailing behind her. Pretty cool.

Anyway, judging from the blog post of the person who saw her at Roskilde, she was there on Friday, July 2nd. But yesterday, July 6th, saw her in Paris walking the Chanel Haute Couture F/W 2010 show just like last year.

No surprises here. You can always count on Karl and Freja. They're like Archie and Jughead, Sonny and Cher, Turner and Hooch, Inez and Vinoodh. ;) I may have ragged on some of their past collaborations, but I am truly grateful for their relationship. It's reliable and comfortable; a rarity in the fashion world where seasonal change triumphs.

Freja didn't open or close, but she had one of the last showstopping looks. From an Alexander Wang green military style vest to Chanel sequins and beading, Freja effortlessly moves from one look to the other. I never find myself surprised at the way she looks. No matter the setting, no matter the context, no matter her surroundings, Freja always looks like she inherently belongs. She never looks like she's out of her element; but rather, she always looks to me as if she's completely in it. And that's the mark of a true model.

So where next? From Denmark to Paris to the next job, wherever it may be. Here's hoping it's a good one!

Image Credits: fromthedeskofphyllis.blogspot.com, boohyouwhore.com, style.it

Track Her If You Can

You have to really love traveling if you want to be a top model. Just check out this little time line I've put together of Freja's whereabouts in the past few months. Consider it my own version of "Where In the World is FBE?"

Late May/Early June: Monaco for work and some relaxation time
Early June: London for work and play
Week of June 8th: New York for reasons unknown, but most likely work
Week of June 15th: Paris, ostensibly for work with Heidi Mount and Karl
Thursday, July 2th - Sunday, July 5th: Roskilde Festival in Denmark
Tuesday, July 7th: Chanel Haute Couture show in Paris
Thursday, August 6th: Mads Norgaard show as part of Copenhagen Fashion Week
Tuesday, August 11th: Saint Tropez in France with Karl Lagerfeld

Coming Up...

Sometime in August: Road trip to Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas
Monday, August 31 - Monday, Sept 7: Burning Man in Black Rock City, Nevada
Thursday, September 10th: New York Fashion Week

And then soon afterward, London (perhaps), Milan and Paris. Whew!

Decked out in A. Wang at the Roskilde Festival in early July


Walking around Saint Tropez on Tuesday in head-to-toe black, possibly as a purposeful foil to Karl's mostly white outfit. :)

Whoever says being a model is easy has never had to endure a grueling schedule like this. Sure there's down time and you're in exotic locales, but traveling in general tires your body out and messes up your Circadian rhythms. Continuous travel like the kind Freja undertakes results in a persistent, nagging sense of exhaustion. You jet setters out there should know what I'm talking about. Needless to say, after tracking Freja for just three months and seeing where she's been, I'm exhausted and for once not envious of her. I traveled just two hours from my home into the country this past weekend and the trip has already thrown off my whole week....yes, I'm a wimp.

How many frequent flyer miles do you think Freja's racked up in just these past few months? Even crazier still is that she's about to log tons more miles during the upcoming fashion month. I guess this means you better stay tuned for more installments of "Where In the World is FBE?"

Image Credits: euroman.dk, fromthedeskofphyllis.blogspot.com, zimbio.com

Cathy Horn, Take Me With You

I need to start traveling with NY Times fashion critic Cathy Horn. She has an amazing knack for visiting Karl's studio whenever Freja is there getting fitted for shows.

Exhibit A: Back in January during the SS09 Haute Couture shows....

Tonight I dropped in to see Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel, and just as I entered the studio (through the famous door marked Mademoiselle), the assistants burst into applause. The bride in the show, Freja Beha Erichsen, had just stepped out in her pants ensemble, with a white paper headdress and a train that swept across half the studio floor.

Exhibit B: One day before the FW0910 Haute Couture show....

Yesterday around 5:30 p.m., I popped in to see Karl Lagerfeld. The studio was moderately crowded: one or two editors parked at one end of Mr. Lagerfeld’s big desk and several Chanel executives at the other. Models—Freja, Snejana and a new young woman who announced that she was from Omaha, Nebraska—were in the second room getting organized for their fittings.

Twice in a row Cathy? Lucky you. For the next round of shows I'm volunteering to be your assistant. Call me!

Also, look at this cute candid from back in February 2007 that was just posted over at fotovalise:

Multitasking never looked so good.

Image Credits: fotovalise.blogspot.com

Tweet, Tweet

Freja was spotted in New York last week, but apparently she's already moved onto Paris this week. Check out these three successive tweets from Heidi Mount posted within hours of each other:

1: just arrived in Paris and i feel like my hotel room is backwards or just not right. that makes no sense

2: i just threw two sunflower seeds in frejas mouth

3: now i missed

How cute is that!? They always seem to have a fun, laid back time together. Heidi has been updating up her twitter account for a few months now, and she alternates between tweeting about her personal life and her work. She is definitely a reliable source, so we now know that Freja is in Paris working with Heidi on something. Freja already told us she was off on a round trip to NY and Paris a few weeks ago so she's true to her word if any of you ever doubted it.

We keep on getting news of Freja traveling all over the world for work, but it's been so quiet on the editorial front lately. Hopefully all her work these last few months will translate into a plethora of material in a few months time. I can't wait!

Oh, and once again thanks goes to slow_hands over at tFS for the tip. (I swear, sometimes I think you should be writing this blog.)

In NYC with HGO

Remember Freja's blog post about two weeks ago on her official site? Remember this excerpt?

packed for 4 days in Monaco and now have to do a bigger roundtrip to Paris and then New York

Remember how I told you to keep your eyes open? Well, thanks to the ever vigilant tFS member slow_hands, we have a Freja sighting in NY via the modelinia twitter. So, true to her blog post, Freja is on the move and presumably hard at work.

Even though you can't really tell because of the blurriness of the picture, she's with Hanne-Gaby Odiele outside the Ksubi store. It seems like they're just chilling so I doubt it's work related. Perhaps just two friends hanging out and doing some shopping on a sunny spring afternoon in the city.

I didn't know that Freja and Hanne were friends, but it doesn't surprise me. Hanne is friends with Sheila Marquez and I'm pretty sure Freja and Sheila are friends. I think Sheila is also dating Christian Brylle and we know that Freja and Christian are friends. Maybe I should draw a diagram?

Anyway Hanne seems like an awesome, laid back girl and she's a fabulous model. It took me a while to warm to her, but now I'm a total fan of her unique look and amazing sense of personal style. Check out this video of her navigating her amazing closet and see the effortless way she pairs pieces together. This is part of the reason she won me over. When her modeling career ends she should definitely look into becoming a stylist.

By the way, I didn't mean for this post to come off as a walking advertisement for modelinia. It just happened that way. I swear they're not paying me......much. :)

Image Credits: twitter.com/modelinia