Carolyn Murphy has a modelling CV that reads like a who’s-who of the fashion industry, she’s starred in campaigns for everyone from Estee Lauder to Oscar de la Renta, and racked up catwalk turns for everyone from Calvin Klein to Versace in a career spanning three decades. And most recently she’s taken on the role of ambassador for UGG.
The 42-year-old stars in the laid-back campaign images for the brand’s new Classic Luxe line of slim-fit, reinvented classics. Shot by Josh Olins and with her beach-blonde hair and lean limbs - she’s the perfect poster girl for the brand’s first new collection in 37 years. In fact it’s a label she’s long had an affinity with - ‘I got my first UGGs at 10’, she told Grazia Daily when we chatted to her on the phone. Though it seems she was more than impressed with the new look: ‘I was really surprised when I showed up to do the shoot, because of this new collection— they weren’t your typical UGGs, they were more tailored and a little more refined. I was so excited about that! UGGs were a part of my life growing up, so I have an authentic connection with them,’ she explains.
In fact, the boots go hand-in-hand with one of Carolyn’s oldest passions: surfing. ‘ I come from a family of surfers,’ she explains. ‘My uncles are surfers and spent a lot of time between Australia and Santa Barbara, where they would surf. So we were given UGG boots at a really young – when no one was really wearing them yet.
'Then when I moved to California and went surfing I would get out of the water and one of the first things I would do was put my UGG boots on to get my feet warm.’
Given the freedom to create the look she wanted for the shoot by photographer Josh Olins, she goes makeup free in the shots, as she tells us she does most days. And even without a scrap, Carolyn's skin looks flawless. So what are her secrets? ‘I’ve always used Estee Lauder products,’ she told us. 'You can’t go wrong with the Re-Nutriv line - your skin soaks it right up. Now I’m starting to see signs of my sun-worshiping, so I use lots of Zinc sunblock. I use my Clarisonic to take that off, especially after the beach.’
Carolyn’s outdoorsy lifestyle might also have something to do with looking so fresh-faced in her 40s. She admits that while like most of us she’s not into working out in the traditional sense ‘I don’t like the gym as I feel boxed in,' she stays in shape with yoga, 'It's great because I can travel with that, and do it in hotel rooms. But really I’m happiest in nature, so I love surfing, I love hiking. Most of my holidays are orientated around the beach, and I’m in the Hamptons quite a bit because my daughter rides horses there,’she explains.
Daughter Dylan, 14, doesn’t just share her mum’s passion for the outdoors, she’s into fashion too, in a big way. ‘She has her own beauty blog - Le Bleue Print - which is amazing. She's also really into health and she's really trying to tell an audience her age how important it is to be kind to your body.’
As for whether she thinks he daughter will follow her footsteps in fashion, Carolyn says ‘She’s so close to it—but she could go with it or against it’ Watch this space.
Though it's clear Carolyn can see a shift in the industry for models of Dylan's generation, and the new supers like Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid. ‘I think [what’s changed in modelling] is how important self-promotion is - so many new models are so savvy on social media. And I can talk about other brands forever, but promoting myself? I find it kind of awkward. I'm not good at giving too much away and sometimes get shy [about what she posts on social media]. I guess that’s really what people want to see - i'll have to work on that.’ We’d have to disagree – it seems like Carolyn is a pro at giving people what they want to see.
You can shop the UGG Classic Luxe collection at uggaustralia.co.uk now. Prices range from £160 to £220.