We idolize supermodels like 46-year-old Cindy Crawford and 39-year-old Kate Moss for their longevity and their ability to compete with the younger models.
But there are even older models who are quietly but assuredly making their mark in the industry. At age 66, Sarah Wiley is the star of Stella magazine's latest beauty shoot, providing the perfect template for makeup artist Mary Greenwell to discuss makeup tips for older skin. (FYI, women between 45 and 60 should avoid red lipstick, Greenwell says, and the older you get, the more you should lay off the eyeliner and bronzer.)
With her gray hair and refreshingly natural look, Wiley isn't your typical fashion model. She was scouted at age 57, when a professional photographer saw a photo of her with her grandkids.
But that story isn't as rare as it sounds -- Wiley tells the Telegraph that there are actually more older models out there than we think. There is a "whole gang of us roaming around," she says, models with gray hair and more mature skin and bodies who are working more than ever.
That group includes 85-year-old Daphne Selfe, who starred in a 2013 ad for TK Maxx, and 81-year-old Jenni Rhodes, who scored a lookbook gig this year and modeled youthful Zara clothes in a recent shoot. And of course, there's industry veteran Carmen Dell'Orefice, 82, who landed her first Vogue cover at age 15 and has been booking jobs ever since.
And having their faces in magazines and ad campaigns is a positive boost for all of us. As fellow model Christy Turlington remarked just recently, "It's actually good for people to see images of women, not just young girls –- proper women who have diverse lives and demands." Sometimes it takes a glamorous face like Wiley's to remind us that beauty and youth need not be synonymous.
Check out Sarah's Stella makeup video via The Telegraph and see more great photos at CloseModels.com.
Sarah Wiley:
Jenni Rhodes:
Daphne Selfe:
Carmen Dell'Orefice:
More classic stunners:
