I was really thrilled to finally meet and shoot with Freya last week. I’ve been following her on Instagram for awhile and chatting to both her and her lovely mum, Becky. Freya is with top agency Kids London and was scouted for IMG Models Development. This is blatantly a girl with a bright future ahead of her. She has a wonderful bubbly and ethereal presence yet seems very grounded and you can tell that she and Becky have a wonderful bond and it was a pleasure to work with them. I wa also thrilled to have my frequent collaborator Emily Joanna on hair and makeup. I’ve decided to start doing a little Q&A with my model tests because I find that getting to know everyone is as much a pleasure as taking the photos themselves.
Freya wears gingham dress by Santa Cruz, earrings and bracelets by Sif Jakobs Jewellery.
Q: What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?
Freya: David Gandy said to me once that a great tip for modelling is to always keep my feet on the ground.
Becky: Any adversity and my Mother would say “ You’ve just got to get on with it”. It’s become my life’s motto but I’ve tweaked it to make it even more positive now I live by the line “adversity into advantage” so when anything doesn’t go my way I see it as an opportunity.
Freya wears Silk Saree Dress by Carol Mckeown, bracelet and earrings by Sif Jakobs Jewellery
Q: Do you remember what as a child you wanted to be when you grew up?
Freya: Always a vet and still now I would love to work with animals. I’ve always felt a deep draw to the innocence and honesty of their nature. At home we have a cat, a dog, two rabbits and are looking to keep chickens.
Becky: I wanted to be an architect but when it came to it I couldn’t sit behind a desk any longer. I became a stock broker instead and after 15 years I realised that was just another desk. I’m happier now being creative and changing projects often.
Freya wears vest by H&M, jeans by Santa Cruz and earrings by Sofia Waldorf.
Q: What surprised you most about modelling?
Freya: How much fun it is on set and cool the creative teams are to work with. I started at 10 years old and every shoot has felt like an adventure as I never know what I’ll be doing, maybe trampolining, sliding down bannisters or lying on a railway line in a forest! I love hearing how the teams “create” together. Everyone works so hard but has so much fun too and it’s great to see it all published.
Becky: How Freya took direction! She can be pretty wilful at home but on set she seems to know exactly what to do and how to understand what the team are trying to achieve. It’s always been one of the biggest surprises to see her working so diligently!!
Freya wears vest by Santa Cruz and pendant by House of Ava.
Q: Who’s your hero?
Freya: My Dad, He’s the kindest, greatest man that everyone loves. He always puts his family first, works really hard with integrity and makes us all laugh all the time.
Becky: My Husband! No I can’t say that. My Mother in Law for so many reasons I can’t count. She’s an amazing person and a best friend.
Freya wears vest by H&M and fascinator by Francisco Rico.
Q: What movie have you watched more than any other?
Freya: Charlie & The Choc factory, I just love it so much. Gene Wilder is the greatest star but I love every single one of the characters. It’s the best cast film ever. I also love Hotel Budapest and Florence Foster Jenkins.
Becky: There’s so many films that I’ve loved and watched over and over but If I had to choose I’d say Charlie and the Chocolate Factory because it is so complete. The story is magical and funny and moral and the ending is so fitting. I love the scene where we first meet Gene Wilder coming out of the factory, he’s hobbling with a cane then trips falls and the crowd are gasping he turns it in to a forward roll to standing! The man and script are genius.
Q: Do you have any questions for me?
Freya: Can you describe what we’ll be wearing 50 years from now?
Amanda: I’m hoping that it’s lots of recycled fibres. I think those sneakers made from ocean plastic are so clever, that feels like the future to me. Also, I hope Glam/Grunge comes back. That’s my signature vibe.
Becky: I know you were born in Canada, what do you miss most about your old home and love most about your home now?
Amanda: I’ve lived so many places that I kind of felt really displaced everywhere. However we went really far north in Ontario last summer to where I grew up, a small city surrounded by the Boreal Forest and I forgot how magnificent nature is when you’re just engulfed by it. I also love wild swimming and didn’t realise it was such a luxury to just be able to go jump in the lake whenever you felt like it. We didn’t have much when I was growing up but we had nature and that made us rich. As for my home now, we are renting this cute little Edwardian townhouse and it’s not been painted in 20 years and our kids stuff is everywhere and I don’t know how to garden… It’s not how I pictured my grown up life, this colourful chaos, but everyone who comes to stay always says how happy and comfortable our home is and that really gets me in the feels.
A xx
