Collin County Living Well Magazine March/April 2020 | Page 11

Heidi Klum makes the cut beyond “Project Runway.”
T
hey say that German engineering is as close to perfection as you
can get. No, we aren’t talking about a Mercedes or a BMW;
we’re talking about German-born Heidi Klum, who has been rat-
ed one of the sexiest models in the world. For crying out loud, she
even had her legs insured for $2.2 million dollars, and that was
20 years ago! German engineering indeed! 
Cover Story
Much like the Mercedes Benz, the stunning and multi-tal-
ented entertainer, model, mother, and all-around super-
star, Klum, has been a household name for generations.
She’s been in the limelight since she won a modeling
contest in her home country of Germany at 18, and has
sustained global recognition well into her 40s. Now 46
years old, many wonder how she continues to maintain
her superstardom. The answer––by keeping things fresh,
branching out into new markets, different art forms,
and always being the hardest worker in the room.
BEYOND BEAUTY
Klum is an archetype of physical perfection, a flax-
en-haired blonde goddess with as much brains as beauty,
a beloved role model for business-minded creatives, a
wryly humorous German-American exotic personality, and
an all-around loveable force to be reckoned with.
She is a woman of many talents and even more life
interests: A former Project Runway presenter, a talent
show judge, and a philanthropist––in addition to being a
model, actor, singer, and a carefree, body-positive nudist.
(Rumor has it that she enjoys brushing her teeth topless!)
At an age where the entertainment industry often
chews up mature women and spits them out, Klum
has continually raked in the money and the fans
without any slowdown in sight. She still makes head-
lines several times a year, for various projects.
LAID BACK OUTLOOK
Sure, she’s been a Victoria’s Secret Model and graced
the cover of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Edition, but
she’s also a perennial Halloween favorite, conjur-
ing up costumes that would make creature feature
artist Rick Baker jealous. She’s undergone hours of
prosthetic makeup for Halloween to transform herself
into fun and imaginative monsters and aliens, ren-
dering her unrecognizable as the supermodel under-
neath. Sometimes beauty is a bit more than skin deep.
Despite being gorgeous, hip, and fashionable, Klum
doesn’t claim to always be at the apex of haute couture.
She admitted to USA Today that she’s often “The worst
dressed” when in public, and doesn’t mind. Fans agree
Klum’s willingness to be casual and her generally laid-
back demeanor makes her more relatable.
Hollywood and the entertainment industry are fiercely
competitive and fans can be fickle and forgetful of the
greatest talents. To compensate for the vagaries of Hol-
lywood, Klum has always pursued multiple creative and
business goals to cultivate a diversified and interesting
career, everything from writing to acting to producing.
MAKING THE CUT
What current projects does she have in the works? Well,
in a recent interview with Variety, Klum dished about her
newest project, and how it came to be. Following a wild-
ly-successful ride of 16 years producing and hosting
Project Runway, Klum and Tim Gunn decided to graduate
to the next level, creating a new hit show called Making
the Cut. As they discussed with Variety, “Project Runway
is the undergraduate program, Making the Cut is the
graduate and PHD program.”  This new fashion competi-
tion reality program on Netflix speaks not only to Klum’s
competitive nature for self-improvement, but also a realiza-
Continued, page 10
COLLIN COUNTY Living Well Magazine | MARCH/APRIL 2020
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