Chanel's Upper-Class Face

AS far as Stella Tennant, the new face of the House of Chanel, is concerned, modeling is "a bit of a lark." And for Karl Lagerfeld, who is in charge of Chanel, that attitude is just what he was looking for. She's totally modern, but not without roots of what is considered elegant in the past," Mr. Lagerfeld said. "Stella has lots of class." Though pleased with his description, Ms. Tennant, a rail-thin, six-foot, 25-year-old Briton, bristles when pressed about her classy roots. "Everyone wants to write about me because my grandparents are titled, because I'm the granddaughter of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire," she said. "Sure, that's part of who I am; I mean, I love my family, but that's not who I am. I grew up on a farm in Scotland." Asked what her family thought of her career, Ms. Tennant said, "Pass." It is hard to dispute, though, that Ms. Tennant's lineage has helped her to rise as a model. Women like Ms. Tennant, Shalom Harlow and Amber Valletta bring to fashion "something else," Mr. Lagerfeld said, adding, "No matter what they are wearing or how they are photographed, they seem always like themselves -- whether they are that person in reality or not."