Caroline Vreeland poses with Steve Madden
Socialite Caroline Vreeland has revealed a seriously tough side to herself in a new photo shoot, which sees her throwing a few punches while going head to head with footwear designer Steve Madden.
The model, musician and socialite, 28, has just been revealed as the face of his brand's Fall 2017 campaign, and celebrated the news by posing with the designer and businessman in a series of powerful pictures published by Footwear News.
In the black and white shots, Caroline, the granddaughter of the iconic fashion editor Diana Vreeland, can be seen wearing a pair of Everlast boxing gloves, eschewing the high-end designer dresses she is most frequently pictured wearing, in favor of a sporty, and much simpler, look.
Uppercut: Socialite Caroline Vreeland (pictured) took part in a fierce, boxed-themed photo shoot with Steve Madden, taking her first steps as the face of the company
Ka-pow! For the shoot, Caroline, 28, swapped her normally-girl, high-end looks for a much sportier style, posing in a pair of Everlast boxing shorts and gloves
One of the snaps features the model and singer with a pair of shoes strapped around her neck, showcasing a pair of laced ankle boots with a platform heel.
Caroline, wearing a white tank top, shoots a strong glance at the camera, strands of her short blond hair framing her face.
Holding her fists up, the model looks ready to go several rounds in the ring - a far cry from the overtly girly side of her usually seen in public.
But, Caroline said during an interview between herself and Madden, while her public image might not immediately link itself with the tough-girl exterior displayed in this shoot, the socialite insists it's not actually that far from her everyday life.
'I consider myself a fighter,' she explained. 'It appears glamorous on social media and being in all these fabulous places, but every day I have to fight too, and, I mean, it sounds crazy.
'The whole thing with body shaming has been huge lately. A lot of brands aren’t really as willing to embrace different body types. I think they say they are, but I’m not really sure if that’s true. It’s hard. Your inner voice is telling you to fight it. Stay true to who you are. Don’t change who you are to work with certain people and do certain things, but you falter a little bit.
'You have to keep that voice really strong.'
Strength is certainly one quality that Caroline proves herself to have in spades in her new shoot, with one particularly powerful image showing the blonde flaunting her left hook, as she is picture mid-punch, swinging her arm towards Madden, while gazing intently at her victim.
What's in a name: In one of the black and white pictures, the model turns her back to the lens, instead showing off a furry robe reading: 'MADDEN'
Two sides: Although her life may look glamorous on Instagram, Caroline insists that behind the scenes, it is far less luxurious
In another picture, the model turns her back to the lens, instead showing off a furry jacket reading: 'MADDEN'.
However, far from being a simple spokesmodel for Madden's brand, the Californian beauty pointed out that she and the designer had 'hit it off from day one'.
Madden offered a simple explanation for their instant chemistry.
'We are both people persons. Like a true diva, you’re aware of where you are,' he told Caroline.
'A true diva walks into a room and knows everything that’s going on within three seconds. You’ve got the whole room figured out, and that’s [you].
'The word "diva" gets a bad rap. But you’re a nice diva as opposed to the ones who need their green M&Ms only.'
The socialite also touched on her growing fame, noting that she lives in a somewhat unique in-between world that sees her sitting front row at a fashion show one minute, then hefting bags of dirty clothes to the laundromat the next.
'Well, working with a prestigious man like [you] has amplified things,' she told Steve of her 'level of fame'.
Friends: The Californian beauty interviewed Madden (pictured) as part of the photo shoot, and pointed out that she and the designer had 'hit it off from day one'
Saucy: Caroline's new shoot sees her showing off another side to her normally-girly image
'But I still wash my laundry in the laundromat. I live a strange dichotomy because I’ll be in Paris for Couture Week, seeing all the amazing shows, but then I’m still the girl who has a broken-down [Toyota] Prius and lives in her one-bedroom apartment in Los Feliz.'
But despite the somewhat strange balance between her glamorous public appearances and her less-than-luxurious home life, Caroline says she wouldn't have it any other way.
'I like having the mixture,' she admitted. 'Hopefully, no matter what happens with the trajectory of my career, I’ll still be doing my laundry in the laundromat.'
Caroline, whose grandmother Diana was once Vogue's editor-in-chief, has previously posed for LOVE magazine and GQ - however she admits that she spent many years actively avoiding fashion and acting, because of a desire to establish herself as being separate from her famous last name.
'In my early 20s, I hadn’t embraced the fashion side and acting,' she explained. 'I was only strictly music- focused, and I was averse to having the Vreeland thing be my thing because I wanted to make a name for myself on my own.
'And then I realized what a fool I was. It’s such an honor. It has opened a lot of doors. Once I embraced it, I realized the immense power and the beauty of it. [My great-grandmother] gives me courage, and she makes me feel like nothing is off limits. I really feel her fire.'
While Caroline has begun to embrace both acting and modeling in recent years, she is also a gifted singer who competed in American Idol in 2013, and continues to write her own songs.