Jupiter High senior Katherine Carter had her runway modeling debut in London and Paris for each city’s Fashion Week. Carter walked for big-name designers, including Yves Saint Laurent and Chanel.

“My experience in Paris was unreal,” Carter said. “I got to see things and do things I never thought I would; everything there was unbelievable and breathtaking.”

Carter, who is also a starter on the JHS volleyball team, was discovered at a volleyball tournament in Jan. It is typical of modeling agents to attend volleyball tournaments in search of tall, modelesque girls. An agent for Public Image Management approached Carter at a game and gave her their card. Shortly after, the agency began communicating with her, and her modeling career took off.

Carter explained that in order to get chosen to walk in a show, she had to go to a casting with roughly 200 other models. Afterwards, they chose which models they wanted to walk in which shows.

“I went over to Paris with the possibility of not getting anything,” Carter said

Little did she know she’d be walking for some of the most world-renowned fashion houses.

Carter’s first show was in London on Feb. 18, walking for JW Anderson, a British fashion label. Celebrities and fashion icons, including Anna Wintour and Odell Beckham Jr., attended the show.

“The production of JW wasn’t huge so I actually was not nervous at all,” Carter said. “The only show I got nervous for was YSL, which was my first show in Paris, because the production was huge and I knew my mom, boyfriend, and friends were live streaming it.”

In late Feb., Carter modeled for designer label Yves Saint Laurent, showcasing their Spring 2019 Ready-To-Wear line. She walked the runway in a leopard print fedora, a colorful evening coat, mini shorts, Swiss-dot leggings and knee high boots. Carter made friends with Kaia Gerber, daughter of supermodel Cindy Crawford, as well as with other well-known models who walked in the show.

Being one of only three models who’ve have never walked for Chanel before, Carter wrapped up her time in Paris by walking in the somber Chanel show that honored the life of legendary creative designer Karl Lagerfeld. In a poignant moment, the show closed with Lagerfeld’s favorite song.

“Everyone was emotional backstage because he touched so many people,” Carter said. “It was such an important show and all the girls have walked in shows for years that Karl hand-picked himself, so being a part of the show was an honor.”

Carter walked across a fake, snow-covered runway in an all-black ensemble with a long black cloak flowing behind her. The outfit wasn’t planned beforehand and was thrown together backstage before the show.

“I didn’t know what to expect going into fashion week because I’ve never done it before, so the craziness and the chaos between castings and fittings and shows and even the chaos backstage was something I didn’t expect,” Carter said.

After a brief return to home to Jupiter, Carter traveled to Denmark where she will continue to make her mark on the modeling world.