Ottawa's Christiana in Istanbul, Turkey!

    Local model on the rise Christiana is currently on contract in Istanbul! As we always do, we asked some questions regarding this growing and very cool fashion market.

Photo provided by Angies Models (Ottawa)

Name: Christiana Ouellette

Mother agency: Angie's Models and Talent International

How long is your contract? My contract is three months.


What can you tell us about the market for new models/models whom have not yet been?
Don't judge a book by its cover. People may tell you that you cannot succeed in a market because of certain aspects you have, but they are only being negative. As long as you can walk into the casting rooms with a smile on your face, confidence and personality, you can become successful as a model in Istanbul, Turkey. The market has everything here from commercials, editorials, web shootings, show rooms, fashion shows, catalogs, etc. Any model who can show her inner beauty and not just her outer beauty can make it in this market.


What is something interesting/different about the city?
Everyone drives so crazy here! There is no rules to the roads or at least the drivers don't listen to or care about them. Istanbul is unlike other cities. There is some beautiful, green land. Other cities, they build everywhere and don't care about keeping the beauty of the land. There is no houses, only apartments. Everything is built so close together so they can keep some of the natural landscape.


What is the shopping like?
Shopping is amazing! You can find such cheap outlets for anything you need! Of course there's expensive stores but if you keep your eyes open or know where to go, you can get really good deals. Some places even bargain with you. Also, The shopping malls have metal detectors just like the airports.


Any current fashion trends that stand out/ different that you have noticed?
I have noticed that the fashion trends here are based on being a sophisticated, yet sexy woman. None of the clothes are too revealing but are still sexy. The trends I think stand out are bright, shiny and animal print clothing and/or accessories. Other very popular trends are fur coats, jackets, head scarves and very fancy dresses. There is no over accessorizing in Istanbul either.


Make-up trends that you have noticed?
Make-up trends I have noticed are red lipstick, black eye liner, a lot of blush and very natural eyeshadow.


Favorite thing about working in this market?
My favourite thing about working in this market is that they treat me like a princess. When I am at jobs, they get excited over everything I do. They clap, cheer and thank you when you do a good job. They make sure to let you know that you are liked. I get complimented over and over, which makes me feel wonderful. Plus, they always make sure to ask if I need anything like food, something to drink, rest, etc. I even had my feet massaged at one of my bookings. Turkish clients are very caring people!


What is the currency used for this market?
The currency used in this market is TL, which is liras. This is Turkish money but it really depends what job you book. Some clients go by Turkish liras and others go by American dollars. In the end though, my agency always converts it to American dollars because that's how they operate things.


Something you'd recommend to eat for somebody who has never been?
I'd recommend that someone should try eating Turkish rice, doner, simit, taco flavored Doritos, baklava, and waffles. I recommend that they would try chai, which is Turkish tea, as well.

Lilly returns from Thailand!

Angies Models Lilly recently returned from her second extended stay/contract in Bangkok, Thailand. Lilly shares with us her experiences working in the market as well as some great tips for models heading there!

Name:
Lilly Nguyen :)

Mother agency: 
Angie's Models and Talents <3

How long was your contract?:
My contract in Thailand started off to be 2 months... then 3 months..then 6 months. I returned February 2011 and then went back to Thailand in June of 2011 for another 6 month contract. I've been back for about a month now.

What can you tell us about the market for new models/models whom have not yet been?:
The market is great! It is more of a commercial market but there are many many high fashion models there as well and they work A LOT! One thing about the Thailand market is that they have a hairstylist and makeup artist at the casting! So models do not need to do their own hair and makeup! What sucks is that you have to wait longer at a casting. It can be minutes... or hours... sometimes you are told to come back the next day. My longest casting was 12 hours. :(
 
What is something interesting/different about the city?:
Something different about Thailand...Food! There is food everywhere! There is also a lot of 7 eleven's, literally. Every corner you will see one and sometimes they are one house apart from eachother. hahaha! The malls are like 7 floors high and its sometimes hard to find an escalator. People are SUPER nice! :) And i feel almost as if no one ever sleeps because it would be 2 or 3 am and the streets are still LOUD! haha :)

What is the shopping like?:
Like I said shopping malls there are like 7 floors high and its hard to find an escalator haha! But it is so cheap! You can get a decent shirt for 3 dollars. Every time I'm in Thailand I would actually shop everyday for the first week or 2. YOU CAN BARGAIN! It's amazing! Most of the time I don't bargain because everything is so cheap already that I feel bad to ask for a discount. You can find everything you need in Thailand. :) It's like shopping paradise! I still have clothes left behind because I couldn't fit them into my luggage. :( They're are so many people in 1 mall that sometimes you have to kind of push your way through. They're are also these markets where you can go shopping and its outdoors! Usually its cheaper than the malls :) Shopping in Thailand...sigh...I MISS YOU! :'( <3

Any current fashion trends that stand out/ different that you have noticed?:
Hmm. I find that Thai people love to look cute so their styles usually are really cute and bubbly. I often see girls wearing high-waist shorts along with a cute ruffle shirt tucked inside their shorts with flats, or a pair of heels. I see a lot of Thai men wearing shorts.. a bit shorter than what men would wear in Canada.. so, short shorts? but for some reason I think its kind of cute on them or maybe I'm just really use to it :) I don't blame them for wearing it. The weather is too hot there. Hahaha
 
Make-up trends that you have noticed?:
I would say natural. People don't really wear much makeup. Of course they do but its not like BOOM! Most people I work with most of the time just wears like mascara and eyeliner. OH EYELINER! Its like what I see most people use. Every woman who wears makeup there eyeliner stand out the most to me. I don't know why. Some men wear makeup as well.
 
Favorite thing about working in this market?:
I would say the people :) If you are nice to them they are nice to you 10 times in return. I love working with people who I've met and haven't met because they are all super nice :)

What is the currency used for this market?: 
Thai Baht. I hope we are talking about money... but yeah, baht. 100 baht is about 3 dollars. :D
 
Something you'd recommend to eat for somebody who has never been?:
This is a bad question to ask me...Tom Yum soup is very good! Yum wen sen (spicy glass noodle), pak boong fai daeng (spicy morning glory), Kao Tum (Rice Soup), AND SO MUCH MORE! Those were just what I'm craving.

Lilly - photo courtesy of Angies Models in Ottawa

Daria returns from NYC

Fresh on the scene is the local Daria! The bright eyed, statuesque beauty just returned from a great first show season in New York Fashion Week walking for Libertine amongst several others.  After returning to Ottawa Daria took some time to answer a few questions for us about her recent experience in New York and a couple tips for travelers or new models going to New York for the first time.


Name:
Daria Ponomareva
 
Mother agency:
Angies Models and Talent
 
How long is your contract?
5 years
 
What could you tell us about the market for new models/models whom have not yet been?
 
The market is very good in New York because it needs everything. Not just commercial and not just high fashion so everyone gets a chance.
 
What is something interesting/different about the city?
 
As they say.. "the city that never sleeps"
And that is true. New Yorkers are out at all hours of the day. Castings sometimes happen at 11pm. It's much busier with a lot more people around especially tourists. New York also has several opportunities for new models.
 
What is the shopping like?
 
Shopping in NYC is amazing. You can find stores for absolutely anything you want to buy and with different prices everywhere.
 
Any current fashion trends that stand out/ different that you have noticed?
 
I have noticed a lot of models wear transparent white/black blouses that you can get from American Apparel, and long light skirts. Some dress classier with jackets from Zara and shoes from Zara.
 
Make-up trends that you have noticed?
 
A lot of the things I did notice involved natural makeup so I think that is what is "in" at the moment.
 
Favorite thing about working in this market?
 
My favorite thing about working in this market is that I get a chance to try everything and it is basically a whole new experience.
 
Something you'd recommend to eat for somebody who has never been?
 
I recommend drinking "Neuro" drinks and eating lots of healthy stuff :)

Photos provided by Angies Models in Ottawa