Well-schooled model
Holly Lloyd-McDonald, fashion reporter
26apr06
A FLAME-haired girl has turned the model airhead stereotype on its head with classic literature and taxing texts sitting pretty next to the lipgloss in her handbag.
British supermodel Lily Cole burst on to the scene two years ago after being noticed by a modelling agent in a London street eating a hamburger.
With her red hair and porcelain skin befitting a Botticelli painting, the now 17-year-old Cole has become a favourite for haute-couture designers including Christian LaCroix and Jean Paul Gaultier.
The model student has just received straight-As for the first part of her final school exams, with English, politics and philosophy to be conquered in the next three months.
Earning the big bucks, Cole could have easily tossed in her education and lived a five-star, hedonistic life.
But Cole, who is in Sydney for Mercedes Australian Fashion Week and will headline Charlie Brown's show today, told the Herald Sun yesterday she realised the fashion world was a fantasy.
She said her school had been very understanding and allowed her to take time to fly to Milan, Paris, New York and this week, Sydney.
With offers from leading universities, the articulate Cole said she had a year to decide where she wanted to continue her interests in politics.
The hallowed walls of Oxford have been rumoured to be a starting point.
"I do have moments where there's a lot of demands made on me to be an adult," Cole said. "When, really, I'm still very much a child at heart."
She said the warm sun and exploring Australian fashion were her priorities for the busy five days ahead.
"I hadn't been that well versed on Australian fashion, but they have certainly made their presence felt on an international scale with Sass & Bide and Tsubi jeans," Cole said. "I hear there are about 200 Australian designers showing this week . . . so it will be great to be part of it."