When Anneliese Seubert was making it big as a model in the 1990s for all the really, really huge names - think Dior, Gucci, Versace, Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Hermes - there was plenty of reference to her journey from the backblocks of Cooma to the runways of Paris.
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Twenty-five or so years later, it's become more about the return journey from Paris to Cooma. And she's more than happy with that.
In a nice full circle, the now Canberra-based mother of two has been enlisted to model for the debut collection of Cooma label Bird Keepers by Design.
It's the in-house label of the wildly successful Cooma online fashion business, Birdsnest.
Born in Germany, Anneliese moved to Cooma when she was nine and got her break into modelling while still a boarder at Canberra Girls' Grammar School.
She was a finalist in the Dolly covergirl competition and also won the Ford Models Supermodel of the World competition in 1990. She sacrificed the $250,000 modelling contract with US-based Ford to sign instead with the Paris agency Karin.
Her classic, elegant looks saw her model for all the high-fashion houses and the big-name fashion bibles, including Vogue.
She was one of Australia's first truly international models, walking the runways with the 1990s supermodels who still need only one name - Linda, Christy, Naomi, Cindy, Helena.
Two decades later her focus is firmly on family and enjoying a quietly satisfying life in Canberra.
She and her partner Robbie O'Farrell have two daughters, Camille, three, and Avery, one, very much settled in Canberra, not too far from grandparents in Cooma.
Anneliese's dad Dieter is still a hairdresser in Cooma and mum Gretta is a mobile travel agent.
And she's still refreshingly down to earth, including about a recent campaign she participated in featuring mothers and daughters for Country Road.
"Camille wouldn't wear the clothes and I had to explain, that's not really the point of being a model," she said, with a laugh.
Avery did comply and the results were stunning.
"She was perfect. I just held her."
The stunning 42-year-old also recently featured in fashion shoots for the Australian Women's Weekly.
With Bird Keepers, Anneliese showcases some of their contemporary designs, showing plenty of talent does come out of the high country.
"I was very happy to work with them. I think they're an awesome company," she said.
Bird Keepers by Design brand manager Yen Jiam was similarly thrilled to get Anneliese on board.
"Anneliese is a perfect fit for Bird Keepers by Design. As a working mother of two, she truly embodies the modern woman and, as an original Cooma girl, she shows that you can take on the world from wherever you are," Yen said.
