Victoria's Secret model by day, computer programmer by night: How 29-year-old Lyndsey Scott maintains a 'double life' on and off the runway
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Former Victoria's Secret model Lyndsey Scott has revealed that she leads a double-life, walking the runway by day and working as a computer programmer by night.
The U.S.-born 29-year-old has walked in runway shows for Prada and Louis Vuitton, while simultaneously developing seven phone apps – two of which have been picked up by Apple.
A self-proclaimed ‘nerd’, Ms Scott says that she defies many modeling stereotypes and has ‘definitely had a few agencies tell me I need to be cooler,’ she told PandoDaily.
Digital babe: Lyndsey Scott, who appeared in the 2009 Victoria's Secret show, leads a double life as a computer programmer
Ms Scott attended Amherst, a prestigious liberal arts college in Massachusetts, graduating in 2006 with a double-degree in theater and computer science.
Despite her parents’ pressure to pursue computers, Scott focused her energies on modeling – receiving her big break in 2009 when she became the first-ever African American to get an exclusive runway contract with Calvin Klein (a label that has previously endured criticism for its preference for Caucasian models).
That same year, she walked the Victoria’s Secret runway in the show’s PINK segment and was also cast in presentations by Prada and Louis Vuitton.
As her brother Matthew Scott told the site: ‘If I had to liken her to someone, I’d say she’s like Gisele Bundchen mixed with Bill Gates. I can’t imagine those two combined, but if they did, it would probably by Lyndsey.’
Ms Scott says that she is no stranger to her confounding position within the fashion and computer industries.
Rather than cross-promoting her life as a model while working as a programmer, and her programming work while she models, Ms Scott instead prefers to keep mum about her dual occupations.
On the runway: In 2009 Ms Scott walked in shows for Prada (left) and Louis Vuitton (right)
‘The industry makes an effort to reduce the model and, in a way, simplify things,’ she said of fashion. ‘They wouldn’t talk about my education, they wouldn’t talk about me…in a way I understand.’
But Ms Scott did integrate her two careers in creating iPort – an app that allows models to upload their ‘book,’ or portfolio onto an iPad.
‘I built that app because it was something I personally needed,’ she told the site of iPort. ‘My book always ends up looking terrible, the books fall apart, the pages are tearing, it’s dirty, and it’s a mess.’
'I’d say she’s like Gisele Bundchen mixed with Bill Gates'
By contrast, iPad offers a clean, streamlined, and organized alternative to the paper book format.
Another app of her creation called Educate!, is charity-based and helps find sponsors for young scholars in Uganda.
Ms Scott is currently developing another program which will ‘help people develop romantic, friendship, and professional connections,’ writes PandoDaily.
In a recent Quora Q&A, Ms Scott answered a user question: ‘What does it feel like to go from physically unattractive to physically attractive?’
Ms Scott says that she decided to answer the prompt at a time when she ‘was up programming late at night and I was drunk on code.’
She responded by posting a photo of herself as a child with glasses and a hair scrunchie, juxtaposed beside a backstage photo of herself from the Victoria’s Secret show.
Editorial darling: Ms Scott has appeared in magazines including Vogue Italia, W, i-D, and Teen Vogue
She wrote: ‘It’s been a rather jarring experience having people see and treat me the way they suddenly do now. I as bullied and often friendless throughout puberty because people automatically judged me…The difference between then and now though is that back then, they wouldn’t give me the chance to show then that I was kind of cool, and now they readily give me a chance…and are then often disappointed that I’m kind of a nerd.’ [sic]
The response, which went viral and received media attention, only briefly mentioned her programming background.
‘It truly is my secret double life,’ Ms Scott wrote. ‘It’s not a nice way to live.’
But now, Ms Scott’s new modeling agent – Tony Vavroch at Elite Model Management – is interested in bringing her programming experience to the fashion forefront.
He told PandoDaily that ‘Anything which adds dimension to a model beyond her physical beauty is a good thing. Physical beauty gets a model’s foot in the door but her personality, combined with other gifts and abilities, makes her more interesting to advertisers and fashion and beauty clients.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2534733/Victorias-Secret-model-day-computer-programmer-night-How-29-year-old-Lyndsey-Scott-maintains-double-life-runway.html#ixzz2pf2occUD
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