Model Grace Hartzel,the Quirkiest Fashion Darling of the Moment, Reveals Her Style Tips
While most models take to the Met Gala red carpet to wear their most skin-baring, barely-there dresses (see: Kendall Jenner’s thong-exposing La Perla gown, Bella Hadid’s skin-tight Alexander Wang catsuit, et al.), Grace Hartzel, however, marches to the beat of her own drum. At this year’s event, the St. Louis, Missouri, native stood out from her peers wearing a covered-up, gothic Dior cape paired with heavy, Tim Burton-esque makeup. It is that kind of individuality that has made Hartzel one of fashion’s most in-demand models, both on and off the runway. Her most recent gig? Starring in the print campaign for the Erdem x H&M collection, which was shot by photographer Michal Pudelka while on set of the collection’s companion short film, directed by Baz Luhrmann. Here, the model talks working with the famed director, the most prized possession in her closet, and what her own H&M collaboration might look like.
How would you define your style?
I like dressing like I could be a character in an anime like “Ghost In the Shell,” or movies like Bladerunner, recently.
What was it like working with Baz Luhrmann and H&M on the campaign?
So incredible it was such a thrill. It feels like I was lost in a dream world.
What pieces from the Erdem X H&M collection are you most excited about?
I loved the matching pajama floral set I was wearing on set. It’s so easy and I’m really into uniformed outfits lately. Also, the shoes are so cute.
Grace Hartzel models with Saskia de Brauw and Imaan Hammam in the Erdem X H&M campaign.
How do you wear florals?
If I go floral it’s on my head or I’m all the way decked out in it.
What is the best styling or fashion trick that you’ve picked up from working with designers?
Don’t be afraid.
If you were to do a capsule collection for H&M, what would it look like?
Probably something that is retro-future-punky-vintage-classic. I don’t know how to describe really what I see in my head.
Where are your favorite places to shop?
I like looking where no one else would look. Sometimes I find an amazing piece hidden in the back of a 99-cent store in Chinatown—I’m not kidding.
Grace Hartzel at the Met Gala.
Describe your go-to daily wardrobe.
It all depends on my mood, sometimes I’ll find a piece and just wear that for like weeks and mix it with different things.
What is your most prized possession in your closet?
Probably my Saint Laurent velvet suit that Hedi Slimane gifted me.
What are you currently coveting, fashion-wise, for fall?
Leather jackets and soft fabrics to go around my neck. I’m obsessed with warmth.
Related: H&M Announces Its Latest Design-Collaborator Potion: Erdem, with Baz Luhrmann
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