Ana Tess: Do you think it made you happy to work with fashion legends in the industry?

Irina Lazareanu: It was an excellent professional learning experience, as I learned much from Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquière. In addition, people like Steven Meisel and Inez & Vinoodh formed my sense of style and helped me understand what it takes to create a timeless image through our collective work on set.

I'm a lot happier now when I step foot on set. Since I came back, I have enjoyed my job differently, spending the day with the team and finding the correct elements so we can make the best image possible. When I was younger, I would just come on set, get my hair and makeup done like a blank canvas, and do what I was told. I was like a sponge; I would observe and see what everyone was doing and how everything was coming together. I see things differently now than I did when I started. I was one of the lucky ones because I got to work with not one but so many of our industry's top creative minds. 

Ana: Would you think about the new-gen that is working in the industry?

Irina: Working with up-and-coming people in the industry is fantastic; a new generation always comes and brings something new and fresh. Fashion has changed since I retired, but for me, it has changed for the best; now, it's a more diverse and inclusive industry.

There's more room for creative people; before, it was very small. 

I work in a different capacity now. People book me for who I am. I get to bring certain parts of myself and my experience to the table and be more considered as creative, an equal rather than just a model.

Ana: If not modeling or music, would you take a different career path?

Irina: I love to write. It's been my passion since I was a kid. I've tried all kinds of writing formulas - poetry, song lyrics, short stories, and now with a fantastic experience with the book. I would love to do more writing. Also, I've gotten a lot into art direction over the last couple of years. I enjoy bringing different elements together, creating an aesthetic of an image, and then bringing it all to storytelling. For me, if it's a book, a song, or an editorial, it's always about the story, and how can we tell it in the best possible way?

Ana: What was your approach when you worked on a book?

Irina: I'm like a dinosaur. I started handwriting the book in a journal, sending bits and pieces on WhatsApp messages or email screenshots. After a couple of days, my writing partner, Pascal Loperena, told me it would not work. So I've had to use a computer like everyone else today.

But I always use pen and paper when I put down ideas. So it is in this organic way that Pascal Loperena (our curator) and I used the collages from the diary and started to think about how we will illustrate the book. We worked in tandem for over a year to get the perfect fit for the layout. 

Most of the stories were from the early two thousand; we didn't have smartphones. It was an era of Blackberries or flip phones. There are not a lot of pictures of that time. So we had to go back and contact friends that would have photographs of these events so we could illustrate and create an environment that could be described on the page.

I felt like a detective, finding someone with backstage pictures at a Babyshambles gig in Glasgow in 2005. 

Some of my friends found shoe boxes filled with old disposable cameras and sent them to my publisher Flammarion in Paris. As a result, we had over 2000 images to consider for the layout at one point. 

We used my journals as background in the layout. We wanted the book to be a collection of stories, ideas, and style tips. So when people open the book, they would feel like they're reading my diaries. 

People are chasing perfection sometimes, but we wanted the book to feel authentic. 

Ana: Do you have a favorite chapter?

Irina: That's so hard; I love them all. But that would be the first chapter about the life backstage and the relationship between the girls, our sisterhood. I wanted to explain to people what it was like back then to do the shows and what our lives were like.

Everybody thinks the models are catty, but that's not true.

Most of the time, it's this beautiful community of girls. We supported and helped each other out, a sentiment that remains today. So they'll come for my book or whenever I do an event somewhere in town. If I send them the book, they'll post about it.

Ana: Who helped you with a book?

Irina: We signed the book in January 2020. Pascal Loperena, my partner/curator for the book, took me to Flammarion, and together with their team, we found the proper structure for this story.

Then I met my editor, Kate Mascaro, with whom I've worked for hand in hand. This book was our baby, and we're co-parenting. So we would exchange zoom calls for hours and go through ideas and hundreds of emails. It was a two-year journey! And I feel fortunate to have worked with such a fantastic team.

Ana Tess: Do you think it made you happy to work with fashion legends in the industry?

Irina Lazareanu: It was an excellent professional learning experience, as I learned much from Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquière. In addition, people like Steven Meisel and Inez & Vinoodh formed my sense of style and helped me understand what it takes to create a timeless image through our collective work on set.

I'm a lot happier now when I step foot on set. Since I came back, I have enjoyed my job differently, spending the day with the team and finding the correct elements so we can make the best image possible. When I was younger, I would just come on set, get my hair and makeup done like a blank canvas, and do what I was told. I was like a sponge; I would observe and see what everyone was doing and how everything was coming together. I see things differently now than I did when I started. I was one of the lucky ones because I got to work with not one but so many of our industry's top creative minds. 

Ana: Would you think about the new-gen that is working in the industry?

Irina: Working with up-and-coming people in the industry is fantastic; a new generation always comes and brings something new and fresh. Fashion has changed since I retired, but for me, it has changed for the best; now, it's a more diverse and inclusive industry.

There's more room for creative people; before, it was very small. 

I work in a different capacity now. People book me for who I am. I get to bring certain parts of myself and my experience to the table and be more considered as creative, an equal rather than just a model.

Ana: If not modeling or music, would you take a different career path?

Irina: I love to write. It's been my passion since I was a kid. I've tried all kinds of writing formulas - poetry, song lyrics, short stories, and now with a fantastic experience with the book. I would love to do more writing. Also, I've gotten a lot into art direction over the last couple of years. I enjoy bringing different elements together, creating an aesthetic of an image, and then bringing it all to storytelling. For me, if it's a book, a song, or an editorial, it's always about the story, and how can we tell it in the best possible way?

Ana: What was your approach when you worked on a book?

Irina: I'm like a dinosaur. I started handwriting the book in a journal, sending bits and pieces on WhatsApp messages or email screenshots. After a couple of days, my writing partner, Pascal Loperena, told me it would not work. So I've had to use a computer like everyone else today.

But I always use pen and paper when I put down ideas. So it is in this organic way that Pascal Loperena (our curator) and I used the collages from the diary and started to think about how we will illustrate the book. We worked in tandem for over a year to get the perfect fit for the layout. 

Most of the stories were from the early two thousand; we didn't have smartphones. It was an era of Blackberries or flip phones. There are not a lot of pictures of that time. So we had to go back and contact friends that would have photographs of these events so we could illustrate and create an environment that could be described on the page.

I felt like a detective, finding someone with backstage pictures at a Babyshambles gig in Glasgow in 2005. 

Some of my friends found shoe boxes filled with old disposable cameras and sent them to my publisher Flammarion in Paris. As a result, we had over 2000 images to consider for the layout at one point. 

We used my journals as background in the layout. We wanted the book to be a collection of stories, ideas, and style tips. So when people open the book, they would feel like they're reading my diaries. 

People are chasing perfection sometimes, but we wanted the book to feel authentic. 

Ana: Do you have a favorite chapter?

Irina: That's so hard; I love them all. But that would be the first chapter about the life backstage and the relationship between the girls, our sisterhood. I wanted to explain to people what it was like back then to do the shows and what our lives were like.

Everybody thinks the models are catty, but that's not true.

Most of the time, it's this beautiful community of girls. We supported and helped each other out, a sentiment that remains today. So they'll come for my book or whenever I do an event somewhere in town. If I send them the book, they'll post about it.

Ana: Who helped you with a book?

Irina: We signed the book in January 2020. Pascal Loperena, my partner/curator for the book, took me to Flammarion, and together with their team, we found the proper structure for this story.

Then I met my editor, Kate Mascaro, with whom I've worked for hand in hand. This book was our baby, and we're co-parenting. So we would exchange zoom calls for hours and go through ideas and hundreds of emails. It was a two-year journey! And I feel fortunate to have worked with such a fantastic team.

Ana Tess: Do you think it made you happy to work with fashion legends in the industry?

Irina Lazareanu: It was an excellent professional learning experience, as I learned much from Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquière. In addition, people like Steven Meisel and Inez & Vinoodh formed my sense of style and helped me understand what it takes to create a timeless image through our collective work on set.

I'm a lot happier now when I step foot on set. Since I came back, I have enjoyed my job differently, spending the day with the team and finding the correct elements so we can make the best image possible. When I was younger, I would just come on set, get my hair and makeup done like a blank canvas, and do what I was told. I was like a sponge; I would observe and see what everyone was doing and how everything was coming together. I see things differently now than I did when I started. I was one of the lucky ones because I got to work with not one but so many of our industry's top creative minds. 

Ana: Would you think about the new-gen that is working in the industry?

Irina: Working with up-and-coming people in the industry is fantastic; a new generation always comes and brings something new and fresh. Fashion has changed since I retired, but for me, it has changed for the best; now, it's a more diverse and inclusive industry.

There's more room for creative people; before, it was very small. 

I work in a different capacity now. People book me for who I am. I get to bring certain parts of myself and my experience to the table and be more considered as creative, an equal rather than just a model.

Ana: If not modeling or music, would you take a different career path?

Irina: I love to write. It's been my passion since I was a kid. I've tried all kinds of writing formulas - poetry, song lyrics, short stories, and now with a fantastic experience with the book. I would love to do more writing. Also, I've gotten a lot into art direction over the last couple of years. I enjoy bringing different elements together, creating an aesthetic of an image, and then bringing it all to storytelling. For me, if it's a book, a song, or an editorial, it's always about the story, and how can we tell it in the best possible way?

Ana: What was your approach when you worked on a book?

Irina: I'm like a dinosaur. I started handwriting the book in a journal, sending bits and pieces on WhatsApp messages or email screenshots. After a couple of days, my writing partner, Pascal Loperena, told me it would not work. So I've had to use a computer like everyone else today.

But I always use pen and paper when I put down ideas. So it is in this organic way that Pascal Loperena (our curator) and I used the collages from the diary and started to think about how we will illustrate the book. We worked in tandem for over a year to get the perfect fit for the layout. 

Most of the stories were from the early two thousand; we didn't have smartphones. It was an era of Blackberries or flip phones. There are not a lot of pictures of that time. So we had to go back and contact friends that would have photographs of these events so we could illustrate and create an environment that could be described on the page.

I felt like a detective, finding someone with backstage pictures at a Babyshambles gig in Glasgow in 2005. 

Some of my friends found shoe boxes filled with old disposable cameras and sent them to my publisher Flammarion in Paris. As a result, we had over 2000 images to consider for the layout at one point. 

We used my journals as background in the layout. We wanted the book to be a collection of stories, ideas, and style tips. So when people open the book, they would feel like they're reading my diaries. 

People are chasing perfection sometimes, but we wanted the book to feel authentic. 

Ana: Do you have a favorite chapter?

Irina: That's so hard; I love them all. But that would be the first chapter about the life backstage and the relationship between the girls, our sisterhood. I wanted to explain to people what it was like back then to do the shows and what our lives were like.

Everybody thinks the models are catty, but that's not true.

Most of the time, it's this beautiful community of girls. We supported and helped each other out, a sentiment that remains today. So they'll come for my book or whenever I do an event somewhere in town. If I send them the book, they'll post about it.

Ana: Who helped you with a book?

Irina: We signed the book in January 2020. Pascal Loperena, my partner/curator for the book, took me to Flammarion, and together with their team, we found the proper structure for this story.

Then I met my editor, Kate Mascaro, with whom I've worked for hand in hand. This book was our baby, and we're co-parenting. So we would exchange zoom calls for hours and go through ideas and hundreds of emails. It was a two-year journey! And I feel fortunate to have worked with such a fantastic team.

Ana Tess: Do you think it made you happy to work with fashion legends in the industry?

Irina Lazareanu: It was an excellent professional learning experience, as I learned much from Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquière. In addition, people like Steven Meisel and Inez & Vinoodh formed my sense of style and helped me understand what it takes to create a timeless image through our collective work on set.

I'm a lot happier now when I step foot on set. Since I came back, I have enjoyed my job differently, spending the day with the team and finding the correct elements so we can make the best image possible. When I was younger, I would just come on set, get my hair and makeup done like a blank canvas, and do what I was told. I was like a sponge; I would observe and see what everyone was doing and how everything was coming together. I see things differently now than I did when I started. I was one of the lucky ones because I got to work with not one but so many of our industry's top creative minds. 

Ana: Would you think about the new-gen that is working in the industry?

Irina: Working with up-and-coming people in the industry is fantastic; a new generation always comes and brings something new and fresh. Fashion has changed since I retired, but for me, it has changed for the best; now, it's a more diverse and inclusive industry.

There's more room for creative people; before, it was very small. 

I work in a different capacity now. People book me for who I am. I get to bring certain parts of myself and my experience to the table and be more considered as creative, an equal rather than just a model.

Ana: If not modeling or music, would you take a different career path?

Irina: I love to write. It's been my passion since I was a kid. I've tried all kinds of writing formulas - poetry, song lyrics, short stories, and now with a fantastic experience with the book. I would love to do more writing. Also, I've gotten a lot into art direction over the last couple of years. I enjoy bringing different elements together, creating an aesthetic of an image, and then bringing it all to storytelling. For me, if it's a book, a song, or an editorial, it's always about the story, and how can we tell it in the best possible way?

Ana: What was your approach when you worked on a book?

Irina: I'm like a dinosaur. I started handwriting the book in a journal, sending bits and pieces on WhatsApp messages or email screenshots. After a couple of days, my writing partner, Pascal Loperena, told me it would not work. So I've had to use a computer like everyone else today.

But I always use pen and paper when I put down ideas. So it is in this organic way that Pascal Loperena (our curator) and I used the collages from the diary and started to think about how we will illustrate the book. We worked in tandem for over a year to get the perfect fit for the layout. 

Most of the stories were from the early two thousand; we didn't have smartphones. It was an era of Blackberries or flip phones. There are not a lot of pictures of that time. So we had to go back and contact friends that would have photographs of these events so we could illustrate and create an environment that could be described on the page.

I felt like a detective, finding someone with backstage pictures at a Babyshambles gig in Glasgow in 2005. 

Some of my friends found shoe boxes filled with old disposable cameras and sent them to my publisher Flammarion in Paris. As a result, we had over 2000 images to consider for the layout at one point. 

We used my journals as background in the layout. We wanted the book to be a collection of stories, ideas, and style tips. So when people open the book, they would feel like they're reading my diaries. 

People are chasing perfection sometimes, but we wanted the book to feel authentic. 

Ana: Do you have a favorite chapter?

Irina: That's so hard; I love them all. But that would be the first chapter about the life backstage and the relationship between the girls, our sisterhood. I wanted to explain to people what it was like back then to do the shows and what our lives were like.

Everybody thinks the models are catty, but that's not true.

Most of the time, it's this beautiful community of girls. We supported and helped each other out, a sentiment that remains today. So they'll come for my book or whenever I do an event somewhere in town. If I send them the book, they'll post about it.

Ana: Who helped you with a book?

Irina: We signed the book in January 2020. Pascal Loperena, my partner/curator for the book, took me to Flammarion, and together with their team, we found the proper structure for this story.

Then I met my editor, Kate Mascaro, with whom I've worked for hand in hand. This book was our baby, and we're co-parenting. So we would exchange zoom calls for hours and go through ideas and hundreds of emails. It was a two-year journey! And I feel fortunate to have worked with such a fantastic team.