It’s the list that keeps on giving! Grace Elizabeth is the latest stunner to land the final spot as the newest Victoria’s Secret Angel. Elizabeth joins newly announced Leomie Anderson, Alexina Graham, Barbara Palvin in addition to longtime faves like Candice Swanepoel, Lily Aldridge, Elsa Hosk, Behati Prinsloo, Josephine Skriver, Martha Hunt, Sara Sampaio, Lais Ribeiro, Romee Strijd, Taylor Hill, Stella Maxwell and Jasmine Tookes.
The 22-year-old Florida native took to Instagram to share the news with a sexy video of her strutting her stuff down the 2016 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show runway, dancing in girlie lingerie when she was announced as the face of PINK, and showing off her toned figure on the beach along with other shots of her on the catwalk.
The Angel wrote in her caption, “This almost feels unreal, I’ve been pinching myself all morning! Since the moment I entered the modeling world my goal was to work with Victoria’s Secret. Today I am proud to announce I am… (drumroll please) THE NEWEST ANGEL!!! I can’t even express how grateful I am to all my family, friends, and fans for your consistent support and belief in me. You guys have been the biggest force behind my journey. I’m so excited for this next chapter in my life and my career. Thank you Ed Razek, Monica Mitro, John Pfeifer, Sophia Neophitou, and Michelle Priano for welcoming me with open arms to this incredible family. I love you all.”
Victoria’s Secret congratulated Elizabeth on its page saying, “From the face of PINK to full-fledged ANGEL! Congrats, @lovegrace_e!”
Keep reading to find out more about the newest Angel!
She’s From Sunny Florida
Elizabeth was born in Lake City, Florida, and began her modeling career in her teen years when her mother sent her photos to a modeling agency. “I used to do mall shows for a prom store in my town, and I also did some wedding stuff. I was 16, which was crazy, but my mom decided to take things to the next level and submitted my photos to NEXT in Miami. I signed with them, and then was picked up by NEXT New York,” she told The Daily Front Row. Since then, her mother has stayed supportive throughout all her success. “She’s so proud, and has a subscription to every single magazine just in case there’s a tiny, tiny picture of me. She still travels with me everywhere!”
She Started as a Guess Girl
Before gracing (get it?) the runways of Diane von Fürstenberg, Miu Miu, Michael Kors, Alexander Wang, Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Dolce & Gabbana, Missoni, Fendi, Versace, Moschino, Stella McCartney, Balmain, Chanel, Victoria’s Secret and plenty of more, Elizabeth first gained recognition with a print campaign for Guess. “When I was in Florence with my dad, we were in a Guess store and that was the first time I’d seen a picture of me in a store, so I took a picture with it. The lady at the store asked me to leave! She said, ‘No pictures, no pictures.’ As I walked away to leave, she realized it was me in the pictures. She was like, ‘You look so much different without makeup!,” she told W magazine in 2017.
She Got to Work With Karl Lagerfeld
Other than of course landing a gig as an Angel, working with Karl Lagerfeld has been a standout moment in the model’s career. Elizabeth opened the late designer’s Chanel fall 2018 show and starred in the brand’s spring 2018 campaign video. She told W magazine, “Karl always puts up the most extravagant displays. I met him three seasons ago when I did a Resort show. Our first shooting was for a look-book, and I’ve done the campaign. He’s incredible. He takes maybe three pictures, so don’t sneeze, because that might be the shot. He has such a vision and likes things to be real and raw. And he’s one of the sweetest, funniest people to be around.” When Lagerfeld passed away in February, Elizabeth took to Instagram to write, “It saddens my heart to hear this news. I’m so lucky to have had the opportunity to work with @karllagerfeld and get to know him. Under those glasses were the kindest eyes. We will all miss you.” She also paid tribute to him on the cover of Vogue China’s May 2019 cover alongside his other muses Claudia Schiffer and Sasha Pivovarova.
She’s Been Starstruck by Adriana Lima
While Elizabeth has been in the presence of fashion royalty, there’s one former Victoria’s Secret Angel that left her speechless. “Adriana Lima. She is the queen of VS. When I met her, I was just kind of staring at her from afar, and she noticed, so she came over to me and introduced herself and just started talking about her children and telling me to enjoy the moment. She gave me tips on how to walk, how to be confident. She’s so down to earth and amazing,” she told W magazine.
She’s Interested in Acting
When she’s not busy modeling, Grace has opened up about wanting to pursue a career in acting as well. “I have had an [acting] audition before, and it’s really crazy because it really is like what you see in the movies; there are people playing instruments or rapping with each other and then you have people fake crying in the hallway,” she told W. “With modeling, we are kind of acting in a way without words, but when you add words into it and have to do these small gestures, it’s quite a big difference. You definitely have to take classes.”
