Who’s That Girl: Calandra Stavroudis

 

For Mikael Jansson’s “Salvatore Ferragamo, remixed” story in our November issue, Interview creative director Karl Templer needed tough, pretty girls with personality. Rising star Calandra Stavroudis (Click) fit the bill. Here the young model talks about being discovered at Trader Joe’s  and vacuuming in heels.

Age? 13

Where did you grow up? West Hollywood.

Was it very fashionable? If you consider stretch jeans fashionable. That’s not really fair, there is quite a bit of fashion in my neighborhood—Marc Jacobs and Alexander McQueen are a few blocks away, but people tend to be very casual.

Do you read magazines? I’ve been reading fashion magazines for the past few years. Vogue and Teen Vogue are my favorites. I love the editorials in Vogue—my current favorite is the Emma Watson editorial photographed by Mario Testino.

Were you tall as a little kid? I have always been tall for my age. I was never the tallest but always one of the tallest. Because I was born in December, I was also one of the youngest in my class. If I had been born a few days later, I would have been a year back and would have always been the tallest. But I have never felt out of place because of my height.

How were you discovered? I met my L.A. agent, Jami—the best—when my dad and I were walking to check out a new Trader Joe’s in our neighborhood. We were walking along Fountain Avenue and passed someone unloading her groceries, also from Trader Joe’s. She asked if I was a model. I didn’t know what to say at first; it’s kind of weird being asked. But we started talking and she gave me her card. I signed with her a few days later.

Had you been interested in modeling before? I’ve been interested in modeling since second grade.

What has been your dream campaign? On the way home from school everyday I see a Marc Jacobs billboard over their store on Melrose. I would love to someday be up there myself.

Whose runway have you always wanted to walk?  Alexander McQueen. I’ve watched the videos and have the catalog of the exhibition at the Met.

Whose look are you obsessed with right now? Daria Werbowy

What is your favorite city for vacation? For work? Amsterdam is my favorite place to go for vacation. I love walking around the city. When I am there I enjoy looking at the cool buildings, seeing the canals, and watching all the bikes go by. The people are very nice and, conveniently, everyone speaks English.  Other then Los Angeles, the only city I have worked in so far is New York. It is a completely different experience and I really like being there.

What is your favorite food? I am a really picky eater, but I do like mangos and Hawaiian Poke (raw Ahi tuna in a sesame oil sauce).

Tell us about your first shoot. It was cold and the clothes were for spring and, well, casual. The shoot was at Lake Castaic, north of Los Angeles. I learned how important it is to have warm clothes that are not pullovers. Once your hair and makeup is done, you can’t pull a warm fuzzy jacket over your head. Fortunately the crew was really nice and someone loaned me her down vest. It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot besides what not to wear to a shoot.

How do you prepare to walk? I haven’t done a show yet, but I would go over my walk with my agent and get pointers. I practice walking by doing odd things in heels around home, vacuuming, unloading the dishwasher—stuff that keeps you off balance and not thinking about walking.