This Week’s Model: Karmen Pedaru

Have you always had a dental phobia? Yeah, I think it started when I was a child. With the needles and drilling, the experience was never pleasant.

And how was your appointment? It was actually surprisingly painless. I needed two root canals and new crowns, but my dentist, Pia Lieb, explained everything to me to make sure I understood what she was doing. She made me really feel at ease.

We’ve heard you have quite the sweet tooth. Yes I do. I love all chocolate candies and cookies, but I hate sweets with nuts inside. My favorite cookies are Karlie Kloss’s — she makes the best chocolate cookies in the world.

Have you always been very athletic? My grandfather was a professional basketball player, and my father used to do a lot of sports, so I started with basketball when I was six years old, then I did soccer and handball. I used to have, like, three trainings a day. I also danced for four years, but I wouldn’t go to most of the trainings because it was too boring for me.

What do you miss most about Estonia? My grandmother’s food! Everything she makes is just so good!

Does anything in New York come close? My favorite restaurant is Lure — they have the best oysters there — but Patisserie des Ambassade is also really good.

Do you have any other hobbies? I love to paint, but I suck, so I never show my paintings to anyone.

Aside from cookie-baking Karlie, who are your other model friends? I love Abbey Lee [Kershaw] and Freja [Beha Ericksen]. They are just the coolest girls to hang out with.

How do you balance modeling with your personal life? I never mix my work with my personal life. When I’m with my boyfriend or [non-model] friends, we never talk about fashion. For them, I’m just a normal 19-year-old girl.

Check back next Tuesday for the next installment of “The Skinny.” Read all our previous model Q&As here.

Photos: WWD Staff