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By Meg Walters/Aug. 27, 2021 10:13 am EDT

If you think back to the ’90s, a few icons will probably spring to mind — Jennifer Aniston, Meg Ryan, Mariah Carey and, of course, there was Cindy Crawford. Crawford shot to fame as a teen after a picture was taken of her lounging beside a pool by a local photographer. She quickly became one of the models of the era. In fact, along with the likes of Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, and Christy Turlington, Crawford was one of the first to be dubbed a “supermodel,” according to Vanity Fair. Throughout the ’90s, Crawford was known for redefining what it meant to be a model. As Michael Kors once said, “Cindy changed the perception of the ‘sexy American girl’ from classic blue-eyed blonde to a more sultry brunette with brains” (via Hello!).

Crawford has never once slowed down. She is still modeling to this day, along with running her own skincare brand, Meaningful Beauty, and raising her two children, Presley and Kaia — both models themselves (via Du Jour).

It’s easy to see why so many people still look up to this ’90s icon today. If you’re a super-fan of this supermodel, here are some of the things even you may not have known about her.

Cindy Crawford was bullied as a teen

Cindy Crawford is now considered one of the world’s most beautiful women — plus, she’s shown herself to be smart and engaged, too. However, Crawford wasn’t always seen as the ideal woman. In fact, as a child, some of her peers even thought she was a little odd. That’s right — the young Cindy Crawford was actually bullied as a kid.

As Crawford recounted in her book, “Becoming,” some of her high school peers once played an especially mean prank on her. Apparently, a local clothing store called her and asked her if she was interested in being a model for them. When Crawford arrived at the store, the manager explained that no one from the shop had called her. “I felt all the air leave my body. I ran out of the store as fast as I could, only to see two girls from my high school standing on the corner laughing,” Crawford recalled. “I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach,” noted Elle. Well, it’s safe to say those high school bullies feel pretty idiotic now!

Cindy Crawford started an intermittent fasting diet during COVID

In 2021, Cindy Crawford spoke to the WSJ Magazine about her eating habits. As she revealed, she recently tried a new diet — intermittent fasting. The star explained that she had tried the diet when she was at home during COVID. “When I’m home — not when I’m going out — I try not to eat after 8 [p.m.] and then I don’t eat until 10 [a.m.] the next morning,” she said. The model also revealed that she had cut down on alcohol to a maximum of one drink a day during the pandemic. Crawford had previously told W Magazine that she avoids “fad diets” — clearly, this fasting diet is an exception that has worked well for her, so far.

During Crawford’s allotted eating hours, she likes to keep her diet healthy. “Diet-wise, I don’t eat crap, and I don’t eat a lot of packaged foods. I could easily be vegetarian, but it’s not practical with my family,” she told Into the Gloss.

Cindy Crawford didn't initially want to get into modeling

These days, lots of little girls dream of walking the runway when they grow up. But, for Cindy Crawford, becoming a famous model had never been the plan. In 1986, Crawford and her manager at the time, John Casablacas from Elite Modeling Agency, spoke to Oprah about Crawford’s early career. “With Cindy, in terms of looks, it was very easy — it was much more psychologically, she was not sure she really wanted to model,” Casablancas explained. 

Apparently, Crawford had felt that it would be a shame to put her university studies on hold for such an unpredictable, changeable career. “For her, it was more a question of mental stability — she wanted to feel good and comfortable,” he said. Crawford explained that she realized that she couldn’t have done both university and modeling, but she eventually decided on modeling. The rest, of course, is history.

Cindy Crawford is a dedicated early riser

It seems that Cindy Crawford is a real creature of habit. In an interview with Byrdie, the model explained that she has a longstanding routine of waking up early. “This is probably the single most important thing I do in my day: I get up first thing in the morning,” she said. Apparently, she’s always the first person in her family to get up — usually as early as 4 or 5 in the morning. The very first thing she does is head to her jacuzzi and then she does “two things.”

First, Crawford takes time for gratitude. Second, she prepares mentally for the day ahead. “I kind of go through my day to see where there might be problems, so I have time to adjust,” she explained. As she told The Cut, it’s also a perfect opportunity to watch the sun rise. For Crawford, this routine means she always feels calm and ready for the day ahead — we wish we could start our day in exactly the same way!

Cindy Crawford learned a lot from her parents' divorce

When Cindy Craword was in high school, her parents got divorced. As the model explained in an interview, her family struggled financially after the divorce. “Things got very tight and, also, my father used his financial power in a way that I felt was controlling to my mother,” she said. Crawford went on to explain that she felt “poor” as a child. This experience taught Crawford an important lesson that stuck with her throughout her entire life. “I’m never going to be her,” Crawford remembered thinking.

In another interview with Oprah, Crawford explained that she was determined never to be financially reliant on another person. As she put it, “I will never be in that situation where I can’t take care of myself.” No wonder Crawford is famous for her work ethic and professionalism — she’s been determined to be successful ever since high school.

Cindy Crawford was a straight-A student

Cindy Crawford may be known for modeling, but, it turns out, she almost had a very different career path. In fact, as Crawford revealed to Vogue, she came very close to becoming an engineer. As she explained, she had known that selecting engineering as her major at university would give her the best chance of winning a full scholarship — which she did. By all accounts, Crawford was more than capable of doing well in her degree. However, she often found that she had to prove herself a little more than the other students simply because of her looks.

Crawford’s school smarts had started when she was young. As the star wrote in her book, “Becoming,” “For a while I wanted to be a nuclear physicist, and later I dreamed of becoming the first woman president — the two biggest jobs I could imagine” (via Elle). Clearly, she had big ambitions to make the most of her intelligence — and, while modeling may not have been exactly what she had in mind, she certainly used her mind to create a business empire that lasts to this day.

Cindy Crawford was told to remove her beauty mark when she started out

It’s hard to imagine Cindy Crawford without her signature beauty mark on her upper lip. However, as the model explained to Naomi Campbell on her YouTube show, “No Filter with Naomi,” her mole wasn’t always so popular in the industry. In fact, in the early days of her career, some stylists even edited her mole out of their pictures. On other occasions, makeup artists would try to cover up her mole with makeup — but, as Crawford explained, it proved impossible.

Crawford went on to say that her first modeling agency actually asked her to remove the mole altogether. “My mother was like, ‘Okay, you can do that, but you don’t know what the scar will look like — you know what your beauty mark looks like,'” Crawford recalled. So, she decided to keep it.

Once Crawford had her first cover on American Vogue with the mole, it seemed that everyone accepted that it was simply part of her look — and thank goodness they did!

This is how Cindy Crawford approaches her long-lasting marriage

Cindy Crawford was famously married to Richard Gere for four years in the ’90s, noted Daily Mail, making him one of Cindy Crawford’s famous exes. Her second marriage was far more successful. As of 2021, Crawford has been married to businessman Rande Gerber for 23 years. As Crawford explained to Vogue, her second marriage is based on friendship, which is one of the reasons why it has worked so well. The pair were friends before they dated. “Relationships are hard, but if at your core level you’re friends, that doesn’t really go away,” she said.

In another interview with Red, Crawford echoed the same sentiment, saying that “friendship” was the secret to a happy, long-lasting relationship. “With my husband, I feel even if we weren’t together, we’d be friends,” she said. “Of course, you have to have sexual chemistry, but our relationship is based on friendship and mutual respect.” Clearly, this friends-first approach is working extremely well thus far.

Cindy Crawford was the inspiration for this Prince song

In a 2017 interview with Vogue, Cindy Crawford revealed that Prince had once written a song about her. “It was surprising,” she said. Her favorite lyrics? “When he said he’d pay the usual fee,” she said with a smirk. So, what was the Prince song that was inspired by Crawford? As Prince fans may have already guessed, the song in question is entitled “Cindy C.” and appeared on his 1994 album, “The Black Album.” Looking more closely at the lyrics, it’s pretty clear that the song is all about Crawford — Prince even mentions her “beauty mark.”

In an interview with W, Crawford recalled a time when she met Prince while dancing at a nightclub. Shortly after their meeting, someone told Crawford about the song. “Now I know what was going through his mind when we were dancing,” she said. It seems that Prince had a huge crush on Crawford when they met — a crush big enough to inspire a whole song!

Cindy Crawford is an activist and charity ambassador

In addition to her work as a model and a businesswoman, Crawford is also passionate about supporting several causes as an activist. In a video for Vogue in 2020, Crawford explained that she was working with a non-profit called Delivering Goods. “What I love about it is they take new merchandise from different manufacturers and companies and they take it to people in need.”

Crawford is also passionate about protecting the environment. In an essay for Vanity Fair, Crawford explained that she had become aware of the climate crisis after having kids. “As a mother, you obviously want to feel good about the Earth you’re leaving to your children, but there was something else going on as well: my kids were making me feel guilty!” she wrote. It’s pretty amazing to see that Crawford is trying to use her platform to make a difference and to speak up about issues that matter to her!

Cindy Crawford is descended from royalty

Even though Cindy Crawford grew up without much money in a small town in America, it turns out she actually has some royal blood. The model appeared on the show “Who Do You Think You Are?” in 2013 and learned about some of her ancestors.

Apparently, the model is distantly related to the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, who was around back in the 800s. A little more recently, Crawford also has ties to Thomas Trowbridge, who fought with Cromwell in 1644. Apparently, Trowbridge got into serious debt and his children were adopted by other families. “To find out I am directly descended from European royalty is incredible. Not too bad for a simple farm girl from Midwest potato-eating folk,” she said on the show, as noted by Express.

And it’s not just royal blood that runs in Crawford’s veins — she also has links to Ernest Hemingway, one of the most famous writers in American history.

This is Cindy Crawford's regimented skincare routine

There’s no denying that Cindy Crawford has had stunning skin for her entire life. As she gets older, the model takes extra-good care of her skin. In an interview with Byrdie in 2020, she revealed each step of her well-planned routine. “Dr. Jean-Louis Sebagh taught me the daytime is about protecting your skin and then the nighttime is about restoring it,” the model explained.

Crawford washes her face in the shower every day. Then, she uses various serums, such as the Youth Activating Melon Serum from her company, Meaningful Beauty. She then applies a day cream, such as her Environmental Protecting Moisturizer, which contains an SPF 30. “That is the one single product that I would tell everyone at whatever age to use. You’ve got to start protecting your skin during the day,” she said.

At night, Crawford removes her makeup and uses a night cream with retinol to help encourage cell turnover. “Especially as you get older, I think that becomes more and more important,” she said. She also does an exfoliation at night time.

Cindy Crawford has a very close relationship with her kids

Cindy Crawford has two children — Presley Gerber, born in 1999, and Kaia Gerber, born in 2001. In an interview with Town & Country, the model revealed just how important her relationship with her children really is. Kaia, who is following in her mother’s footsteps and becoming a well-known model, is in constant contact with her mother. Crawford explained that she helped her build her career and that she often travels with her to her international jobs. “We talk every day, at least, and text,” Crawford said. “If she doesn’t text me back within 15 minutes, I do one in all caps and a lot of exclamation points. Just respond, okay?'”

Presley is also very close to his mother. “My son lives in our guesthouse now, so he has more freedom, but somehow he still comes over for every meal and to do his laundry,” she explained. It sounds like this family is incredibly close-knit — and Crawford is pretty happy about it!

Cindy Crawford takes two jacuzzi soaks a day

As one of the most famous models of all time, Cindy Crawford obviously has access to quite a few luxuries. For one thing, the star has a gorgeous private jacuzzi at her Malibu home that is outside and overlooks the ocean. It turns out, this jacuzzi is a big part of Crawford’s daily regimen.

As she told the WSJ Magazine, she likes to take two dips every single day. First, she hops into the jacuzzi at 6:30 a.m. to relax and prepare for the day. Then, she takes another soak in the jacuzzi in the evening before dinner. “My husband will come in with me, so it’s our time to catch up and just enjoy the sunset,” she said. “I’m a Pisces, and warm water is definitely my thing.” As far as Crawford is concerned, having her own jacuzzi is a big part of how she maintains her mental health — as she put it, “With a jacuzzi, I think, if you amortize it, it saves money because it’s therapy.”

Wow, talk about living a luxurious lifestyle!

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