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The Androgynous Model Whose Career Changed With a Haircut

Left, Sailors wears their own clothes; center, Sailors wears Golden Goose Deluxe Brand blazer, Tom Is Not a Boy hat; right, Sailors wears their own clothes. Photo: Lucas Michael. Photo Editor: Biel Parklee.

Elliott Sailors moved to New York to model in 2001 and quickly began shooting with Ellen von Unwerth and appearing in Abercrombie & Fitch campaigns. In 2012, Sailors buzzed their long blonde hair in favor of a short crop, going from classic blonde bombshell to androgynous model and shooting menswear campaigns instead of womenswear.

Sailors faced some blowback, but still managed to open Vivienne Westwood’s menswear collection in 2015. Aside from modeling, Sailors heads the #BeYouBeTrue movement, which campaigns for diversity of all types in the fashion industry. They also run Tom Is Not a Boy, a unisex clothing line, and offer life-coaching sessions. Read on for their answers to our lightning-round questions.

Sailors wears a Golden Goose Deluxe Brand blazer, Tom Is Not a Boy hat. Photo: Lucas Michael. Photo Editor: Biel Parklee.

If you could be a magazine, what magazine would you be? 
Gentlewoman.

If you could speak to animals, which animals would you want to talk to? 
The first thing I thought of was a unicorn, then a sphinx. I should probably think of something real. I’ll go with lions.

Sneakers or slippers? 
Sneakers.

What’s something your social-media followers don’t know about you? 
I did my first model shoot in 1991.

What was the last website you looked at? 
NYCgo.com.

If you could be outfitted by one designer for the rest of your life, whom would it be? 
Vivienne Westwood, both her men’s and her women’s.

What time is your alarm set for in the morning? 
7:30.

What do you eat for breakfast? 
Chocolate protein shake, literally every morning.

If you could only eat three things for the rest of your life, what would they be? 
Not a chocolate protein shake. Pasta, croissants, and ice cream. Those three include a lot — from a flavor perspective, not a health perspective.

If you were a color? 
Blue.

If you could be trapped in an elevator with one person, who would it be? 
Marianne Williamson, the spiritual teacher. She’s technically Jewish, but it’s a Christian-based thing. You know that quote that everyone attributes to Nelson Mandela, “It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.” That’s actually her.

If you could tell Donald Trump one thing and make sure he would listen, what would it be? 
Go with the majority.

Sailors wears their own clothes. Photo: Lucas Michael. Photo Editor: Biel Parklee.

Elliott Sailors wears Golden Goose Deluxe Brand blazer, $1,335 at Golden Goose Deluxe Brand, Tom is Not a Boy beanie, $38 at Tom is Not a Boy.

The Androgynous Model Whose Career Changed With a Haircut