It is still a few days until Ukrainian Fashion Week and Mercedes Benz Kiev Fashion Days kick off, but some Ukrainian models have already put their best fashion foot forward this month by participating in some of the biggest fashion shows during Haute Couture Fashion Week, which took place between Jan. 22-26 in Paris.
Ukrainians Elizabeth Pentsarska, Zhenya Migovych and Julia Ratner walked alongside the international stars such as Kendal Jenner, Lily Rose Depp and Bella Hadid in some of the major fashion shows: from Giambattista Valli and Valentino to Dior and Chanel.
For a 16-year-old Kyiv-born Elizabeth Pentsarska this Chanel spring/summer 2017 fashion show was a debut abroad.
“I took part in many fashion shows in Kyiv and Moscow, but this felt wonderful in comparison,” Pentsarska told the Kyiv Post.
Elizabeth Pentsarska presents a creation for Chanel during the 2017 spring/summer Haute Couture collection on Jan. 24, 2017 at the Grand Palais in Paris. (AFP / Patrick KOVARIK)
“The fittings, rehearsals and the shows themselves were very fairytale-like. Walking the runway in my stunning crystal-embedded dress, I felt like the most beautiful girl and also a part of this fairytale,” she said.
Another Ukrainian, Zhenya Migovych, despite being in the international fashion scene for longer has many reasons to feel proud too. The Kyiv-born model walked in a whopping six shows in Paris this January: Dior, Valentino, Armani Privе, Chanel, Francesco Scognamiglio and Giambattista Valli.
Ukrainian Zhenya Migovych from Kyiv presents Chanel, Giorgio Armani Prive and Valentino designs during the 2017 spring/summer Haute Couture collections between Jan. 22-26 in Paris. (AFP)
In an interview to Harper’s Bazaar, Migovych, who has a green belt in karate, shared her favorite spots in Kyiv, which include Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, PinchukArtCentre and Obolonska embankment.
Migovych presents Giambattista Valli, Dior and Francesco Scognamiglio designs during the 2017 spring/summer Haute Couture collections between Jan. 22-26 in Paris. (AFP)
A 17-year-old Ukrainian model Julia Ratner from Zaporizhia walked in Valentino, Giambattista Valli, Chanel and Dior this Paris Fashion Week.
Julia Ratner presents a creation by Giambattista Valli during the 2017 spring/summer Haute Couture collection on Jan. 23, 2017 in Paris. (AFP / ALAIN JOCARD)
She said to fashion website models.com that she was discovered when her friend’s mother went to another city to sell a cat and the woman buying turned out to be a director of a model agency.
Ukrainian Julia Ratner from Zaporizhia presents Chanel, Valentino and Dior designs during the 2017 spring/summer Haute Couture collection between Jan. 22-26 in Paris.
“I was so thankful that I was born in a small industrial town because I had thoughts and feelings that a person from a big modern city will never have,” Ratner spoke of her hometown Zaporizhia.
