Today, LS&Co. celebrates the birthday of a denim icon. Born in the London borough of Croydon, Kate Moss was discovered at JFK Airport in 1988, at the age of 14. Three years later, the original waif gained instant superstardom when she posed—and by ‘posed,’ we mean ‘straddled a young Mark Wahlberg’—topless, wearing a pair of relaxed-fit blue jeans.
So began Moss’s knack for defining denim looks for generations—not to mention her decades-long modeling career, which continues to this day. Deemed by scientists to have a perfectly symmetrical face and features that obey a certain golden ratio, the doe-eyed beauty has come to be known as much for her style as for her looks, and launched subversive style movements ranging from heroin chic to grunge to high-low glamour.
Moss has always been one big blue-jean clad step ahead when it comes to her denim. After being one of the first to wear skinny jeans, she made waves in the early 2000s for sporting high-waisted ‘70s flares in a sea of narrow leg openings. She’s been a longtime advocate of tiny cut-offs and beloved boyfriend jeans—yes, the ones that inspired Levi’s recent 501 CT launch—styling each and every pair to a tee. That is, with a classic black jacket, smoldering eyes, and her trademark messy, bedhead hairdo.
Indeed, the too-cool-to-care rocker rebellion that Moss has exuded from day one has always made her a perfect match for lived-in and well-loved denim. So, it should come as no surprise that the supermodel has countless times been spotted in Levi’s throughout her impressive career.
In the early ‘90s, a U.K.-based creative studio, theDesignCorporation, presented Levi’s with a promo pack featuring a then unknown Kate Moss in a Levi’s vest and white short shorts. Throwback: Based on the time period, we would venture to guess that her Levi’s burlap bag holds none other than a Discman. The shot was photographed by the late Corinne Day, who went on to shoot Moss on the very first cover of Vogue that she ever appeared on. It was one of many; Moss graced the front page of the magazine 300 times internationally.
A mere quarter-century after Moss’s aforementioned Levi’s debut, she was interviewed for this September’s issue of W magazine. She not only shared her beauty essentials, but was once again photographed in her Levi’s—this time a scantily buttoned western shirt, which she wore with shorts just as miniscule as the pair she donned 25 years before.
Happy birthday Kate! Here’s to great Levi’s ensembles spanning 25 years of your amazing career.
