Through magnetic charm and a captivating presence Valentina Ruby has become one of the most alluring faces of fashion. And with ambitious plans, the model beckons us to pay close attention – and to that we will.
Ruby's effortlessness to finding beauty in the intrinsic details of her everyday life is the liberation her visions embrace. Her artistic playfulness has infused her visions, propelling a life of creativity. Ruby insightfully shares with us how her passion for sustainable fashion has led to her latest venture in becoming an emerging fashion designer with her upcoming clothing line that is yet to be announced.
Here photographer Kristina Yenko captures a contemporary elegance of the fresh-faced model through a collaborative creative effort, embellishing the print with pressed flowers for a whimsical touch that perfectly encapsulates the lively day.
The first thing you should know about me is ...
I am a crazy cat lady. The best things in life are cats!
My star sign is ...
Capricorn and most of my chart is Capricorn as well...
It suits me because...
I am very stubborn, fairly sensible and very protective of loved ones.
My secret talent is ...
Cooking!
Something I truly believe in is ...
The most important thing is to try and do everything out of love and kindness. I think we must all do our best to be kind to ourselves, each other, animals and to the earth.
Someone I look up to is ...
My mother. Always and forever. She is strong but gentle. I adore her heart and her mind. She is my biggest inspiration, my favourite human and best friend.
The most important lesson I’ve learned is ...
The importance of practising gratitude. I think it’s been something that has saved me in the times where I have struggled with my mental health.
My favourite film is ...
Drop Dead Gorgeous or The Grinch. The Grinch is probably a weird answer but that scene where his heart starts to grow makes me tear up.
First impressions are ...
Often inaccurate. At least I know this is true for me. I don’t think I can read others very well a lot of the time. And I think that as I am very shy sometimes on first impression I could seem rude or uninterested in conversation when I am really just awkward.
When my imagination runs wild it ...
I daydream about my future a lot and how I can get to where I want to be.
Three words to describe me are ...
Crazy cat lady?
This year has been ...
Honestly one of the hardest years of my life. But there has been and will continue to be a lot of growth from it all that was necessary for me.
The most exciting project I worked on in 2023 was ...
I was so excited to work on this shoot with Kristina. I had shot with her before and absolutely loved her and her work. Then I was meant to do a test shoot with her that I missed out on due to health issues. I reached out to let her know I really wanted to be able to make it to the shoot and explained what I was going through. She was so kind and showed me so much support and compassion although we had only met once previously. I’m not sure she knows how much it meant to me but I hope when she reads this she does! At some point we started talking about a shoot incorporating flowers and it was so fun creatively collaborating on this. We had the idea to place pressed flowers onto the prints and spent a lovely afternoon doing this together. Some of the flowers were from the shoot day and some were ones I collected last spring.
I had this moment of reflection on it all as last spring I was really struggling with my mental health. Going on walks and picking flowers was one of the only things that brought me joy. I filled up every book I owned with them. Although it reminded me of the pain it made me realise how far I’ve come. I am feeling like myself again and getting back in touch with creativity. I’m so grateful to her and the rest of the team for being a part of that.
I have also been working on starting a clothing label with my mum which we will be releasing very soon! It will be made to order, using deadstock fabrics and all the garments will be made by her. I hope to encourage more people towards slower fashion that is kind to the earth. I would love more people to appreciate well made garments you will cherish for life rather than following trends and constantly consuming to try and keep up with whatever is “cool” for a brief moment. It has been really special to work with her on this, she is so talented and I am so lucky.
My idea of paradise is ...
There are many! At the top of the list would be a beach with calm and still water (I am scared of waves), my parents house where I can eat vegetables from the garden or watching trashy TV in bed with my kitten and boyfriend.
Introvert or extrovert?
I am 97% percent introverted according to the 21 personalities test I did earlier this year haha.
Creatively I’m feeling ...
More inspired than ever.
I won’t compromise ...
My beliefs and morals. I would never push them onto others but for me and my choices, I won’t stray from what I think is the right thing to do even if compromise seems like the easier road.
The future looks...
Beautiful in my daydreams.
My words to live by are...
Be kind and loving to yourself, all living things and this planet we share.
In 2024 I am most looking forward to...
I’m looking forward to continuing to work on the label with my mum and having something we built together with love!
