Model and environmental pioneer, Amelia Windsor, reveals how she is using her platform to help push a drive towards sustainability and more conscious buying
Words BECKY DONALDSON Photography DIMA HOHLOV Styling LAURA WEATHERBURN
Amelia Windsor has three main passions – fashion, gardening and museums. But for the model, brand muse and contributor to Hello! Fashion online… all of these paths lead back to her main love: sustainability.
Despite having five forenames, Amelia prefers to be known simply as Mel. “You can call me Mel,” she tells us with genuine warmth. “I think it was my sister that came up with it, but I flit between the two. I kind of forget sometimes and then go from one to the other, but Mel’s a bit easier – Amelia has so many syllables,” she laughs.
Tagged the coolest royal by Tatler magazine in 2016, Amelia, who is signed to Storm Model Management, has interned for Chanel, Azzedine Alaïa and Bulgari; walked twice on the catwalk for Dolce & Gabbana; appeared on the cover of Vogue Japan, Tatler and now Hello! Fashion. “It’s such an honour,” she smiles.
“Shooting editorials is a bit nerve-racking and very surreal, but it’s a real privilege. I always appreciate it and realise lots of people would love to be doing this, so I’m very grateful.”
She tells us that something she enjoys about preparing for a photoshoot is the chance to look different to how she would in everyday life, “It allows me to explore different sides of myself that I maybe wouldn’t have before. Being able to become different characters is pretty amazing.
“It’s quite funny because when I’m having my hair and make-up done, I might not have looked in the mirror and suddenly I do… and I appear completely different. I don’t recognise myself and think I’ve become a different person.”
Amelia enjoys photoshoots and catwalks equally, but it is the synergy on-set and backstage that she finds the most rewarding. “I love the human interaction and meeting different creatives. Being able to delve into different people’s imaginations, that’s quite amazing.”
Amelia was born and raised in Cambridgeshire, which she describes as “a lovely place to grow up, very beautiful”, and she goes back often. “It’s so easy on the train, just 45 minutes from London,” she adds, practically.
After attending St Mary’s School in Ascot, she read Italian and French at Edinburgh University, and was signed by Storm in her second year. “I was very honoured to be approached and work
