She didn’t even aspire to be a model until she was discovered by chance at age 13.
So how did Kloss go from St. Louis to the top of the New York elite?
What would her life have been like if she’d never caught the eye of modeling professionals?
And how has she changed from the girl she once was?
Read on to witness the stunning transformation of Karlie Kloss.
She did dance ballet, however, which would serve her well later in life.
Kloss' sister Kristine recalls her sibling’s intellectual curiosity.
“We used to joke that Karlie was the nerdy one,” she added.
“Imagine an adorable first-grader having fun with science experiments; that was Karlie every day.
She loved learning.”
It’s not surprising, then, that Kloss dreamed of becoming a doctor like her father someday.
But as she tells it, Kloss was not exactly popular with the opposite sex.
“I couldn’t pay a boy to date me,” she revealed in an interview withSunday Today.
Um, did Kloss grow up in some strange parallel universe?
and he was like, ‘Oh, Karlie, I love you, but you’re a friend.’
Friend territory," she continued.
“He crushed my heart.”
You have to wonder if he regrets that decision today!
“Every moment of that first trip to New York was a Cinderella experience.”
She added that if she hadn’t been discovered, her life likely would have gone in avastlydifferent direction.
“When I started my career, I wanted to just survive another season,” she continued.
“I thought of everything in six-month increments.
That’s a lot for a young teenager to have to juggle!
And her peers would call her a “weird, tall alien.”
“I’ve grown a thick skin,” she continued.
“It’s the 15-year-old, impressionable girls who I worry about.”
“I didn’t feel nervous or scared.
I was always very calm,” she shared in an interview withNet-a-Porter.
I still take a stab at keep my eyes and ears open to everything.”
That honestly sounds like a really exciting experience.
It felt as if my world had been turned upside down."
“That’s when I had a breakthrough,” she continued toVogue.
And that clearly paid off.
Naturally, Kloss was ecstatic to be featured in such a high-profile fashion event.
“I’m floating on cloud nine right now,” she gushed in a post-show interview withHollywood Life.
“It was such an amazing night.
I can’t believe I just walked in the Victoria’s Secret show!”
It hasn’t really sunken in yet.
It’s been a surreal experience."
She also became the face of multiple ad campaigns and wasfeatured on a host of fashion magazines.
Our girl was becoming a household name!
I want to do it all."
As for what Kloss specifically wanted to study, initially she kept it open.
“Like most kids starting college, my major is still ‘undecided,'” she continued.
“Next year will be a big balancing act but how exciting!
I haven’t written a paper in years.”
That proves it’s never too late to enrich the mind.
“I’m really passionate about girls,” she proclaimed in an interview withNet-a-Porter.
What an awesome initiative!
That doesn’t mean that Kloss thinks everyone should go into STEM fields, however.
She just wants to make opportunities available that weren’t there before.
“I’m not trying to force every girl to become an engineer,” she continued.
I want to be strong.'"
Kloss also had to accept her extremely tall height.
When Kloss prioritizes being strong over simply being thin, it makes her all the more well-adjusted and happy.
“I feel better in my own skin when I am like that,” she continued.
“It’s how I take care of my body, what I eat.
“It makes me want to do many more.”
“In my mind, I didn’t really see myself as a runner,” she continued.
“I did a half marathon before that.
And that’s when I thought, ‘Wow.
I can actually do this.
I can run more than 2 miles.’
I learned how to pace myself and how to build endurance.”
“It requires me to be stronger and self-loving and resilient.
I really did not take this lightly.”
To that end, she’s become a mentor for emerging models like Kaia Gerber, according toWmagazine.
Additionally, Kloss is both a host and an executive producer forProject Runway, as noted byVoguemagazine.
The accolades and accomplishments just keep coming who knows what Kloss will conquer next!
“I think I’m totally normal and boring in a lot of ways.
Maybe I’m way off base, but I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
