Amber Valletta is surprised her mother let her become a model at 15.
Amber Valetta
The American star was one of the most recognisable faces of the catwalk in the 90s along with the likes of Kate Moss, Cindy Crawford and Linda Evangelista and her journey began when she was just a teenager when she enrolled for modelling school at the Linda Layman Agency.
Looking back, Amber is shocked her mother Theresa Malaby agreed to let her leave her home in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at that age and she thinks both of them were "naïve" about the realities of the fashion business.
Amber, now 41, shared: "I think she (my mother) was really naïve. We were naïve, both of us. We were all naïve ... In your 20s you can learn a lot and you can be very smart and clever and savvy."
Amber thinks the current generation of supermodels seem to be much more in control of their careers and lives, but she'd be interested in getting their thoughts when they're older.
The model - who is friends and a mentor to young stars like Kendall Jenner and Cara Delevingne - added: "These kids today. They seem like they have it all together. But let's talk to them again when they're 40 years old and see really who they are. Is it who they thought they were at 25?"
Amber - who has a young son, Auden, with her ex-husband, Olympic volleyball player Chip McCaw - has been much happier since she reached her 40s and thinks she has more focus in her life now she's a mature woman.
She told the new issue of Porter magazine: "I feel so much more aware of who I am today as a woman since I turned 40. I don't know, it's kind of like the light bulb clicks on and you're like, 'OK, who I used to be is sort of behind me. Who do I want to be and how do I want to live for the next 20 good years?' "
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