New 'Britain's Next Top Model' judge Grace Woodward is a top stylist and creative consultant with a unique approach to style. Sarah McIntyre talked to her about getting involved with the show, her career highlights and favourite fashion possessions.
Sarah Mc Intyre: The judging panel has been completely overhauled for the new series of Britain’s Next Top Mode. Were you excited to get involved with the show?
Grace Woodward: Oh yeah, it’s really exciting. The phonecall came from Elle (Macpherson) when I was standing in a kitchen in LA. It was morning time, I was drinking a coffee and just waking up, and it was a bit of a crackly line, and I was like “Sorry, who is this?” And she says “It’s Elle. Macpherson. Do you remember me?” and I said “Oh, hi Elle!” thinking “Oh my god”. We’ve worked together before quite a lot, but you don’t expect to get a phonecall on your mobile from Elle! When I got the phonecall I was doing some work in LA so I was like “Oh god well, I’m in LA!” and she was like “No, you’ve got to come back, I want you to do this show.” So I thought, you know what, it’s a no-brainer, to work with Elle on something like that is just so exciting. It’s so uber, it really is. The show is going to be so uber! It’s going across the world now, so Britain’s going to be stamping its mark on the modelling industry hopefully completely internationally.
SMI: Obviously you already had a relationship with Elle, but did you know any of the other judges going into the show?
GW: Well by reputation. I remember when I was much younger and Charley was still a catwalk model I went to Men’s Fashion Week in Paris. I remember it was such a surprise seeing him, and Charley was such a big model at the time that I went “Oh Charley Speed!” and my boyfriend glared at me. So obviously I knew him by reputation and he’s incredibly well respected. And Julien I obviously know by reputation. Julien’s work and mine are quite different so our paths never really crossed in a major way. It’s been really, really interesting getting to know him. In fact it’s been really interesting getting to know everyone.
SMI: So what can viewers expect from the new series of Britain’s Next Top Model?
GW: When you’re doing it you’re in the thick of the girls, and you’re quite serious about it, then you have to wait to the edit. I’m really excited because having seen the first one, it’s really funny, it’s really punchy, it’s really slick and I think that we’ve got a really nice crossover now between being a great entertainment show and something that’s going to be respected by the fashion industry. Julien and I obviously we still work in the fashion industry so we bring that knowledge to the table to produce a girl that realistically has a massive chance of being an amazing model.
SMI: Since you’ve worked in so many different areas of the fashion industry, you have a very different perspective on it to most people. So what exactly are you looking for in a top model?
GW: There are a lot of pretty girls out there. And I think that to become what would be deemed as a ‘top model’, we have a responsibility to produce a top model, not a new face, or a girl that’s inexperienced. I think that what became clear, for all of us, is that the girl has to be special; integrally she has to be special. She has to have the right amount of personality that doesn’t turn into attitude, the right amount of sexiness but also the right amount of girliness. They have to have the ability to storytell, or they have to have a certain amount of imagination because the different things that we throw at them. They have to be able to imagine who this woman is, how to bring it across, to storytell because ultimately fashion editorial is about storytelling, it’s about inspiring people. When you see shoots in Vogue, and they’re off in Africa because it’s the tribal trend. Our models need to be able to put themselves firmly in the jungle, dressed in these bonkers clothes, and they have to carry it off. So they need an incredible imagination and brain. And they need to have confidence that’s not attitude, because attitude usually gets in the way of a girl doing a good job.
SMI: You often see that on shows like America’s Next Top Model where they think that by being the most confident, they will be the most successful, but it just comes across as brashness.
GW: Yeah, I mean that’s not a girl who’s ever going to do well in the industry because they just annoy people. Ultimately, at the end of the day, when you’re working in the fashion industry, yes the model is important, but so is the photographer, the stylist, the hair and makeup, it’s about team effort. And if you’ve got a girl who is an ego-monster, then it’s not going to work.
SMI: What would be your top advice be for girls trying to break into the industry?
GW: I think that it’s really important that girls know their body. And knowing what your special quality is. Not every model is perfect, and Elle talks a lot on the show about how not-perfect she is, although when you stand next to her you’re like “Yeah right”, but we all have certain parts of your bodies that you should hide or not. So it’s knowing your best assets, and that’s where the confidence comes from. If that takes getting in front of the camera, at home, with their friends, modelling in the mirror, prancing up and down like a funny giraffe in high heels the whole time, then it’s essentially like any career – you have to work at it. It’s not just, turning up, having a pretty face and the money’s going to start rolling in – I think that any girl that wants to get into the industry would be wise to do their homework.
SMI: You have a very varied background in the fashion industry. What has been your career highlight to date?
GW: I think that in a way one of the strengths has been the fact that it’s been incredibly varied and the fact is I’ve managed to work in a very short space of time with some of the greatest people in the industry. Working with models like Karen Elson, who literally walks in front of the camera and does not turn one bad shot, it’s jawdroppingly incredible. With photographers like David Bailey. And then the industry is an incredibly special and funny place. It’s like a strange family, everyone looks after their own. And I’m really lucky that, when I go to work it doesn’t actually feel like work. Some people say that you should never try to make a job out the things that you love, the things that you’re passionate about. In a way I’m incredibly lucky to have done that. I never would have been very good at working in a bank. I’m lucky enough that I’ve managed to make a career out of what my skills are rather than having to be in a 9 to 5 job. Working with Florence and the Machine has definitely been a highlight.
It’s hard to explain, the highlights for me are when I imagine an image, and we go through the creative process, and for the image to come out on the other side and it’s the exactly the same as what I came up with in my head. That’s a very rare opportunity for people.
SMI: And as someone who works in the fashion industry, do you feel any pressure to look a certain way, or dress a certain way, or do you just throw the rules out?
GW: I was born this way! I think that most people in the fashion industry get into it because there is nowhere else for people like us! I don’t feel a pressure to dress a certain way. The way I see it, is that fashion is about expressing yourself. It’s not about slavishly following trends. It’s about going “Today I feel like this so I want to wear this” because we all have that potential in us, we all have our inner stories. So, when I wake up in the morning I say “I feel like this so I want to wear that”. And I’d like to promote that way of people thinking as well. You know it’s great to be fashionable and on-trend, but not to do it at the expense of our personalities.
SMI: So what would you think are your favourite fashion possessions?
GW: Ooh, good question! I have an amazing pair of Jeremy Scott sunglasses that are cast in gold, and they’re like Caesar’s wreath, so when you put them on your head it’s like you have Caesar’s wreath on your head but they have sunglasses in them! There were only a few pairs made in the world, and I was really lucky to get them. When I saw them I was like “I have to have them” because they’re just so bonkers. I think a lot of people would be like, “Oh my god are you kidding?”
What else, I have some really special vintage pieces. You know to me pieces of clothing tell a tale. I love the high street, but I think the whole idea of throwaway fashion is a bit sad in a way. We all have a favourite t-shirt, and I have one that I stole from a boyfriend about 15 years ago, and its now absolutely hanging in rags. It’s got holes under the armpits; I had to sew up the front, that to me tells a tale. So you know, box-fresh clothing doesn’t really say anything about people’s personalities. So it’s pieces like that that I treasure. My aunt gave me a 1960s silk Pucci dress, and that to me has that specialness of things being passed on. I think for women, traditionally in history, we have a tradition of passing things on. When it comes to fashion there’s also that element that you should occasionally buy stuff that you think is a really important piece, and I’m going to pass this on to my daughter or granddaughter and it’s going to be a part of the weave of our family history in a way.
SMI: Finally Grace, what’s in store for you in the future?
GW: Well you know what, at the moment I’m really excited by the show. I’d like to see what the response is. It’s Fashion Week coming up and I work with a designer called Richard Sorger so we’re going to go headlong into doing his show for London Fashion Week. And as I said, and as you well know, the fashion industry turns around so quickly so from one week to the next I don’t really know what I’ll be doing. I’ve loved doing TV, I love working with Elle. Who knows, you know I’d love my own show on TV, I think that I’ve got quite an interesting point of view on fashion that’s not just “You should wear this” and so hopefully I could go onto inspire people.
The new series of Britain's Next Top Model launches on Monday July 5th at 9pm on Living.
