on how they look. They think people
are not as interested in them but the
reverse is true. I don’t have any of
those issues, I’m happy.
Your health sounds important to you?
Yes. In my 20s I had zero idea how to
eat healthily. It was only when I was
pregnant that I started thinking about
what I was putting into my body. But
now I know so much about it. I’m
totally against diets; it’s all about how
to be healthy in the long term. I try to
explain that to my kids, too. I grew up
on a very heavy German diet, which
was absolutely delicious, but in
retrospect is not the best thing for you.
I still love green cabbage and potato
stew with sausages though!
What do you like to do when you’re
not working?
I like art galleries. I love established
names like Damien Hirst, Louise
Bourgeois, Kiki Smith and Roni Horn,
but also lesser known artists like
Tomma Abt and Adam Fuss. And I love
reading biographies; anyone from
Picasso’s muse [Lydia Corbett] to an
18th-century princess.
Otherwise I love seeing friends,
doing Pilates and every weekend we go
SCHIFFER HAS PUT
HER INSECURITIES
BEHIND HER
to our house in the country. Matthew
and I both work hard during the week
so it’s nice to get away and do nothing.
We have lots of friends to stay and just
read newspapers and play board games.
Do you suffer from the typical
working woman’s guilt when you’re
away from your family?
Yes, constantly. I think every mother
gets that and I often feel torn. I try to
fit in my work around them. When I’m
not modelling, I make the most of it
and pick them up from school, take
them on play dates – but I think I’ll
always have that guilt.
What do your kids think of their
supermodel mum?
They’re very aware of my job but I try
to explain to them that it’s just that:
a job. My daughter will say: “Mummy,
that’s you,” when she sees my picture
and even though she’s only four, she’ll
say: “I like that dress.”
But I think they should remain
innocent for as long as possible. At
the same time I don’t want them to
be as innocent as I was because it
does make life more difficult. And
also nowadays, it’s a little better to
be a bit more grown-up because we
live in a dangerous world. Nothing ever
happened to me, but I was completely
lucky, because there were many things
that could have.
How do you think becoming a
mother has changed you?
Everyone says it, but obviously it’s a
huge change. I’ve always been very
grateful to my family, but even more
so now that I have my own children.
Your priorities change and suddenly
things that you would normally get
very stressed about, you realise are
unimportant, as the reason for life
is to have a family and be healthy.
As a working mother how do you
find time for yourself?
On the weekends I allow myself
either Saturday or Sunday to sleep
in. My husband or the housekeeper
take over and take care of the kids.
For a few hours I don’t feel any guilt
as I know they’re absolutely safe. I so
look forward to it as by the weekend
I’m absolutely dead!
You’ve been married for seven
years. What’s the secret to
maintaining a good relationship?
Compromise. Also, every time you
have a disagreement you have to
think: Is it worth it? Do you really
have to push your point across? Do
you always have to be right? I always
ask myself those questions and 99.9%
of the time the answer is ‘no’. I think
that’s a healthy attitude. My husband
is exactly the same. Because of that
we have such a great relationship.
We both know exactly what we
want out of life, too, and have the
same goals. Most of the time, from
what I can see, people’s arguments
are mostly about stupid things.
What’s important is to find out why
you are irritated in the first place and
if the answer is that you’re tired, then
that argument is a ridiculous waste of
time. Just always step back and look
at the good.
Claudia Schiffer is the face of the new
Alberta Ferretti fragrance and will be
in Harrods at 12pm on 4 Nov with
Alberta for a special signing event
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