Harper's BAZAAR, October 2013
Onscreen she's fighting demons in six-inch heels and Lara Croft leathers in new supernatural teen-flick The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, but on the red carpet (and front row at the shows), 24-year-old Lily Collins is clocking up a hefty number of Best Dressed column inches. To be sure, rock’n’roll offspring continue to play fashion’s muse, but Phil Collins’s daughter is no Cobain, nor is she a glamourpuss Jagger; her style is a perfect expression of her personality, not a family legacy: charismatic, fresh and unafraid to experiment.She’s even upping the beauty stakes, taking risks with her lip colour and giving It model Cara Delevingne a run for Best Brows of 2013. Star on the rise? She’s already here.
Harper’s BAZAAR: You’ve done so much, from modelling to journalism. How did you get into acting?
LILY COLLINS: “I love trying out things I’m not necessarily familiar with. I started acting when I was little and did theatre and musicals, but when I was first auditioning professionally I was 16 and wanted to get a different kind of experience in front of the camera, so that's where the reporting came in. The first film I worked on was The Blind Side, and in the last five years things have gone in a direction I could never have imagined. With every project has come a co-star who's an amazing woman I've admired, so I've had the best schooling possible."
For our September issue, you were part of a shoot by Karl Lagerfeld and BAZAAR global fashion director Carine Roitfeld.What was that experience like?
“When I found out about that shoot I literally cried — it was a dream come true.Carine is such a lovely woman; she’s so collaborative and just a genius.The looks she had for everyone were so beautiful and effortlessly chic.”
How was it working with Karl? Is his reputation as a perfectionist justified?
“He shot me in four minutes. I kid you not — I was styled, I sat and started posing and he just shot me and was like, ‘Alright, we’re done,’ and I was just like, ‘Wait, what?! We’re done?!’ [laughs] I wanted to be in front of him just staring at him for- ever. I remember he was pointing his camera at me and I got teary because I know it’s one of those moments I'll never forget."
You’re topping every best-dressed list right now. What is your approach to red-carpet dressing?
“My style seems to be ever-changing. I’m 24, so I’m experimenting all the time. I like to push boundaries but always keep a sort of effortless sophistication to it. I admire Audrey Hepburn and how classic she always looked. I like to keep a classiness to any outfit, whether it’s, like, sexy or edgy.”
You seem like the kind who would take risks with fashion.
“I work with amazing stylists who’ll put me in things I normally wouldn’t gravitate towards. I would never wear something I feel uncomfortable in,but it’s great to have someone encourage you to try new things.”
What’s the single best piece of advice your parents have given you?
“Both my parents say the same thing: as long as I’m doing this because I love it and am passionate about it then it’s right for me.”