From sifting through bins to the catwalk: The poverty-stricken teenager poised to become a top fashion model

From sifting through bins to the catwalk: The poverty-stricken teenager poised to become a top fashion model

By Mail Foreign Service
Last updated at 12:38 PM on 05th January 2009

A beautiful but poverty-stricken teenager who scraped a living by rummaging through bins in Argentina has become one of the country's hottest fashion models.

Stunning Daniela Cott, 16, is tipped for super stardom after being signed up by the world's biggest modelling agency Elite.

Daniela, who stands 5ft 10ins tall and has emerald green eyes, was spotted two years ago as she sifted through rubbish on the streets of Buenos Aires.


Tipped for the top: Daniela Cott, 16, who was discovered while sifting through bins in Argentina

She and her family were among 10,000 'cartoneros' who survive in the city by selling scraps of cardboard and used cans and bottles to recycling plants.

But the youngster's life was transformed overnight in 2005 when necklace designer Marina Gonzalez spotted her going through a bin in the fashionable Palermo district of the city.

Ms Gonzalez noticed her natural beauty through her rags and tangled hair and told her: 'You should be a model'.

Daniela, who became a 'cartonera' when her parents Hernan and Olga lost their jobs in the country's economic crisis, agreed to pose for some photos.

Ms Gonzaelz sent the pictures to agent Ribardo Pineiro, who also recognised her potential as a model and called her in for an interview.


Spotted: The 16-year-old has been signed up to model agency Elite

Last year Daniela beat 1,000 other hopefuls to win Argentina4s Elite Model Look final - a competition which previously launched the careers of Cindy Crawford and Gisele Bundchen.

She has since gone on to work in Milan, Paris and Madrid.

Daniela, who grew up in a slum in the Villa Caraza suburb of Buenos Aires, has been dubbed the Argentine Cinderella by the South American press.

She said: 'I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would one day become a model. I started working as a cartonera when I was 13 because my family had no other choice.

'I worked every day after school from 6pm to 10pm. Between me and all my family we earned around 50 pounds a week. The work was very tough, and I did it every day for 18 months.

'We went through people's rubbish looking for cardboard, newspapers or glass bottles to sell to the recycling plant for a few pence.

'It was a dirty job, and I didn't like it, but I did it to help my family. After working at night, every morning I had to get up for school.

'One day when I was working I met a woman called Marina, who told me "You're so beautiful, you should be a model". She persuaded me to pose for some photographs, and sent them off to an agent. Everything took off from there.'


Luck: A necklace designer spotted Daniela as she was sifting through a bin in Palermo

Daniela, the fourth of nine children who weighs nine stone, had lengthy treatment on her hands because they were covered in calluses, cuts and scars.

She said: 'I had no idea about makeup or modelling, and couldn't walk in high heels. I spent six months practising walking properly.

'When they entered me into the Elite competition I thought there was no way I could win it. I burst into tears when I won. It was the greatest moment of my life.

'Now my career is starting to take off. I love posing for photographs and being on the catwalk.

'I have travelled to Europe, working in Paris, Milan and Madrid, something I never, ever dreamed would be possible.

'Now I want to use my career to highlight the problems of the cartoneros living in Buenos Aires. Working as a cartonera helped me, because it gave me a strong character and a determination, and taught me never to be afraid of anything.

'I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. The modelling work hasn't been easy. I used to say that modelling on a catwalk or posing for photographs couldn't be very difficult. Now I realise it is difficult, but not as hard as collecting rubbish.'


Desperate: 'Cartoneras' rifling through rubbish in Argentina

With her first pay cheque for a modelling job in 2006 Daniela treated her who family to an 'all you can eat' buffet meal in a restaurant.

Her first foreign trip came in January this year when she was paid £3,000 to travel to Spain.

Daniela, who still lives at home with her mum and her three sisters and five brothers, is now learning English to help with her modelling.

Salvadore Jaef, president of Elite Models in Argentina, said: 'Daniela is a natural model. She loves the glamour and the modelling world. She's going to have an extraordinary future.

'At our agency we look for rough diamonds. Daniela is unbelievably photogenic. She transforms in front of the camera.'

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1105663/From-sifting-bins-catwalk-The-poverty-stricken-teenager-poised-fashion-model.html