Model Behavior

Bravotv.com: How is Fashion Week going so far?

I'm a wreck and exhausted!

How was Fashion Night Out?

Crazy. I hosted something at Missoni, and then I went to Bergdorf's which was basically a fashion riot, then I went to Bally's, and then I had a dinner at the Armani 5th Avenue store.

You're hosting a party for Byron and Tracey? How do you know them and why did you decide to host the party?

Byron is one of my oldest friends. I met him when I first started coming to LA. Byron and Joey are pretty much the people I trust most in my life. My hair and my makeup. But Byron has really been here for ten years or more. He's one of the most brilliant and talented makeup artists in the world, and one of the most humble. I almost insist on promoting him, because he won't promote himself! Tracey is one of the most amazing hair colorists; he pretty much does the color for 80% of Hollywood at this point. They are so passionate about what they do. I played a part in merging their two businesses, and encouraged them to start this joint venture of launching a salon. So when they asked me to host an opening, it was never a question. I generally only host things that are very close to my heart, whether it's a charity, or it's a close friend, or it's a designer that I have a very good relationship with. And it was just very important to me to be a part of it.

And the party went off without a hitch.

It did! It was so much fun. It was such a great time. It was a great night.

So Taylor decided to bail...

Yes, she pulled a Taylor.

Does it bother you when she doesn't come out?

It bothers me sometimes more than others. This one upset me because there was no reason ... it upset me because she's a client of Byron's and there just wasn't a great reason why she couldn't make it. She wasn't sick ... I mean it wasn't about me. It was something that I thought was really important for her to attend, as a friend of Byron and Tracy and of mine. It was certainly not a requirement for her to be there. It's not a requirement, but when I think there's good reason, if she's sick or there's a lot of work going on that night, then of course, it's fine to miss an event. It's not a prerequisite in the Zoe Camp that you have to go to after-work events.

Brad seems to think that it is a requirement.

Well yeah, but Brad actually really enjoys it. He truly enjoys it. He really does love it and if I thought that he didn't, I wouldn't ask him to come.

Well, you mention that Brad likes the spotlight. Does that ever bother you?

No, I mean I think that he's excited about the business, and he hasn't been in it very long, and so it's still somewhat new to him. He feeds off that energy. He loves the after-work activities. He loves going to events, he loves going to fashion shows. He enjoys it, and for as much as he enjoys it, Taylor doesn't.

During the Marie Claire photo shoot, you admit that you're a poor model.

Horrible. Never want to see a picture of myself.

How do you think it went? Were you happy with how it turned out?

I was happy - as happy as I can be with a shoot of myself. It's not easy for me. I think when you spend years on the other side of the camera, that's where your comfort zone is.

And Brad "styled you," but he admitted that he wasn't really involved in any final decisions.

Well, I think it's no secret that I'm a bit of a control freak. It's of those things where I want to relinquish control and say, "OK, I don't want to make any decisions, tell me what to do." But at the end of the day it's hard. I completely understand why being styled is so difficult. It's a tough thing. It's a little bit like a hairstylist letting someone cut their hair, or a chef eating someone else's food. It's a little tricky.

Have you been wearing your hair back more now?

I've been wearing it up. I've worn it up during New York Fashion Week. I wear it up in Paris a lot.

You've been rocking the hats too.

Yeah, that's sort of when you just can't deal. I sort of love them because in a hat you can disappear.

In this episode we see you deal with tabloid gossip. How do you handle negative comments about your weight?

That's unfortunately a part of my life that resurfaces once and awhile. You know it doesn't get easier. You don't want to let it get to you. You don't want to let in control how you think. I get to the point where I really don't want drama and I really don't want scandal, and it's like why give anyone fuel for the fire? Why feed into it? It's a constant battle.

Watching you change your outfit was upsetting.

Yeah, and everything I own, because I'm built a little bit more like a boy. So I don't generally wear things that... I'm claustrophobic. So I don't love things that are super high on my back. And then all of a sudden you find that all these things in your closet are things that are going to cause drama. And you don't want to have that.

Has it affected how you shop for yourself?

Yeah, a little bit, for sure.

Besides gossip about weight, what's the craziest thing you've ever read about yourself?

Way too many to name. And none of it is true. So it makes it that much more frustrating. I think when you know yourself so well and the people in your life so well, you just say oh my god, this is so not even close to true that it makes it that much harder.

Can you almost laugh at it now?

I do and I don't. I do in the sense that it's so ridiculous. But I don't in the sense that it still hurts.

Rodger takes on the digital side of your business? What has happened with the business? Does Rodger still run that side?

Rodger does. I am still very hands on with it - I write the copy and I pick every single item. I am very, very hands on with it. I didn't think I would be, but I am. Shocker there! I thought it would be the one area of my business where...well I'm not so tech-savvy, but now that I understand it, I'm sort of obsessed with it.

You're twittering up a storm.

Yes, it's really fun. It's a really important part of my business. It's something that I really enjoy because it's the best way to directly connect with people. I'm really enjoying it. It's definitely another thing I'm doing.

We love The Zoe Report!

Thank you.

What's the feedback been like?

It's been incredible. People have been amazing. People are loving it. Are users are growing by the day. It's really fun. People are enjoying that daily dose of fashion.

It's one item, so it's not overwhelming.

Well that's the thing, no one wants to read a novel in the morning!