Why I liked Krissy Taylor and still do.

First of all, paying a tribute to Krissy is not that easy to do. I don’t want this paper to be unhappy, or make even sad her family and friends. Krissy was everything to them all and I know how much it means to miss someone. 

Anyhow, Krissy was part of my life in this amazing models business and she deserves to be celebrating by a post here. So, Krissy, whenever you are, be sure that this paper is written with so much respect, love and sweet thoughts.

Krissy’s real name is Kristen Erin Taylor. She was born in 1978 and was a very lovely little girl, smiling to life and to her parents (Barbara & Ken) and her sibling Joelle & Nicole (aka Joie & Niki).

Krissy was what Americans call the girl-next-door. But she was more than that. She was a real sunshine and a true beauty. The first time I’ve seen her in early 1990, I was so surprised by her big smile and long legs that I thought she was a dream. She was only close to 12 and twinkled in this Seventeen March 1990 editorial, starring with her “older sis” Niki. 

Only a couple of photos and she was gone from the magazines. But I guess that, like me, Editors in Chiefs of fashion magazines saw the potential of her and finally casted her more often about two years later. Seventeen and Australian magazines (Dolly, Girlfriend, etc.) offered her their cover and editorials. At the beginning, she frequently worked with Niki and did some catwalks in Milan with her (for instance in 1993).

Soon, Krissy modeled on her own and won covers & editorials as long as many fans all over the world. She was this young lovely and fresh Floridian born teenager and she brightened the pages of youth magazines. Through the years, she became a splendid young woman, charismatic and with this incredible deep and warm voice. I know that it’s not obvious but here is an interview of her.

 

Krissy did start a career and she did great. She didn’t like to travel and go far away from her home, family, friends and life. She turned to be a Country girl, dancing in line and listening country music with her friends. All her shootings (or so) were done in Miami or its area. One of her last shootings was for Cosmopolitan UK june 1995.

She represented, for me, and many, an icon of beauty. Niki is perfection but Krissy was the woman we all wanted to be. I mean she was the kind of girl that I would have loved to hang out with and spend nights out with. The kind of girlfriend I would have loved to look alike.

I fully agree with Niki’s statement : “Krissy’s totally real”.  She had this incredibly smile and laugh than made me thought that she was really special. I liked her too and still do for all the reasons a person likes a famous one… because of her beauty whatever includes the word of beauty (inner, physical, etc.). through the interviews in magazines or TV show, she let me think that she was that easy going friend whom you could call up at any hour and talk for hours with. She liked her parents, her sisters, her family, her friends and she liked life. She liked her life and cared for others’.

So, if I had to choice to look like to someone, it should to be her. She was the girl to look alike, to talk with, to think about, to collect on… Krissy was a star that turned into a butterfly who flew away from us but still looks over us all… I hope that she is watching over us all and that her beautiful smile shines on and lights ours ways and mine too.

I clearly remember when I heard about her death on July 2^nd 1995. It was a total shock. She was so young but died from a right ventricular dysplasia (a heart condition). I won’t explain here the circumstances because it has been told many times and no need to hurt her family more about that.

Later in 1995, her family planted a Royal Poinciana tree at the Markham Park in Miami, where Krissy’s Memorial was held. I put a few souvenirs for her there (xoxo to my dear sweetie Leighton) and made a website for her and her sibling, Niki.

Her mom, Barbara, a great photographer, dedicated to her a website.

She was only 17, a glorious future to come and thousands of people who liked her, and still do.

"Remember her that way" headlines her website. I do it.

Why I like supermodel Niki Taylor

When I wrote the post about fashion and designers, I‘ve mentioned that I was into modeling and models. 

As I read fashion magazines around my 10-11, I noticed the models photographed. Late 1982 (on 2 ELLE France December issues), one model drew my attention. It was a lovely blue eyed and sublime young woman from Denmark : Renee Toft Simonsen. She won the Ford Agency contest face of the 80’s. She was going to be one of the few models whom can be honored to be called “supermodels”. She became one of my true favorites (basically, the only one !) and I always thought that she was the most gorgeous woman in the world (and still !). So, I started collecting on her and pen palled with dozens of fans around the world : “Models collecting business” as we nicknamed ourselves. 

The trading was papers/covers/clippings and we posted abroad weekly anything we found out (and bought the magazines for) to our “traders” and their wishing lists. Renee entered into another dimension than fashion when she began to date Duran Duran bassist John Taylor in the mid-80’s and attracted Duran Duran fans ! The trading became hectic and it was quite a full time job to look through magazines at the newsstands and get the ones my pen pals might want. It was expensive too. Very expensive !

Anyhow, I kept on pen palling and trading until a Seventeen magazine confused me and my collection life. It was SEVENTEEN, US magazine, September 1989. I had subscribed to that magazine because I liked a fashion photographer, Paul Lange, and he was doing a lot of photos with it. On that particular issue, a blonde and skinny model drew my attention and I asked directly the photographer about her name. His answer was Niki Taylor. I’d been told that she did a few Italian GRAZIA magazines (along with another soon-to-be famous model : Carla Bruni) and did the August 1989 SEVENTEEN cover. I knew instantly that Niki Taylor would be a terrific and great model. It was printed on the paper. She was astounding and so fresh. So, I wrote to any of my pen pals and asked for “Niki Taylor only”. I stopped Renee Simonsen collection (she was kind of quitting the modeling business, though).

   

Here start my collection about Niki. Yes, I can call her Niki. I’ve been collecting on her for 23 years now and I know her career so well, that she could be a professional relative of mine. But I’ve never been (too) intrusive into her private life.

Niki is the incarnation of beauty, kindness and cleverness. She is smart, a great human being (due probably to her parents, whom are delightful and caring persons), and a strong woman. Her life is well-known by most Americans. She’s been through so much in a so very short time that she looks like invulnerable.

From her early years, 1989 and the fastness of her line of business (1991-1993) to the Red Cross Ambassador (2010-2011) and mother of 4, she’s been into so much joys and pains.

Apart from her divorce, her car wreck in 2001 (in which she nearly died, and went under 2 months of coma and months of recoveries and dozens of surgeries) her greatest pain is surely the loss of sibling Krissy, back on July 2^nd 1995. I will post about Krissy later this month because she does deserve to be celebrated and that she is missed so much.

Anyhow, Niki endures a lot and despite her eyes looked darken on some pictures (especially the Delano layout from ELLE December 1995, a few months after Krissy’s passing), she was still smiling and looking healthy.

She is down to earth and surely knows that she is an exception in this modeling business (she’s one of supermodels, along with Cindy, Naomi, Christy, Linda, Helena, Claudia, Kate etc. You know the ones you don’t have to say the name to exactly identify whom they are, Supermodels of the 90’s). Been close to be a “retired model” but never stopped to work and been asking for commercial, advertising or even editorial. Putting Niki Taylor in a cover is being sure to double selling !

Nowadays, Niki works for her company, runs a shop, does TV shows, some editorials and covers, offers her face and fame to American Red Cross, helps others women through her NikiTaylorInc., enjoys her family, her friends and her way of life, raises four children (twin boys Jake & Hunter born in 1994, Ciel born in 2009 and Rex Harrison born in 2011) with her husband, Burney Lamar.

She shall never stop to incarnate the perfection to me. The older she gets, the more respect I have for her. I guess that everyone has its own heroes in life, people you are referring to whenever you need a bit of strength. For me, one of the happy few is Niki, someone whom gives me strength, happiness (knowing that she is blissed in her life lately) and the determination to go on. It might be a bit superficial or stupid to say so, to call a supermodel a leader, but her job doesn’t determine what she is inside.

Once a magazine referred to Niki as “Supermodel, Super sexy, Supermom, Super smart… Niki Taylor is gorgeous inside and out”, it sumps up it all. 

Happy ThanksGiving

This is not one of my photos, but I just wanted to celebrate that special day for my very special american friends whom I miss sooooooooo much !!