Photo: Silent Models

With her energetic personality and perfect skin, the 20 year-old Saara Sihvonen is proving herself to be one of a few rising stars to watch these week. Her elegant looks have already landed her at Doo.Ri and Helmut Lang—there will be many more—before she jets off to the European shows. We caught up with the psychology-loving Finnish girl to talk hot yoga, raw chocolate and her best celebrity sighting so far.

ELLE: What’s the coolest part of being in New York?

SS: You can’t even describe it—it’s so nice! Especially Soho. All the little restaurants and then the shopping and the people, of course, because the culture is really easy going. You ask, “How are you?” and always have smiling faces, so I enjoy that.

ELLE: What do you like to wear when you’re not working?

SS: Big clothes. Very loose ones. Just really not “model” clothes.

ELLE: What about on your feet?

SS: Now I have these Marc Jacobs wedges—they’re so comfy and I can walk around in them.

ELLE: What are your beauty tips?

SS: I’ve always said skin, skin, skin. I’ve always said when you take care of your skin everything works so much better. I always remove my makeup before I go to bed, even if it’s so late—always.

ELLE: Any products you’re obsessed with?

SS: I love Dermologica’s daily microfoliant and sheer tint moisturizer.

ELLE: What are your hobbies outside of fashion?

SS: Friends, boyfriend, family. I’m traveling all the time so if I’m in Finland or if my boyfriend’s in Singapore, I want to be with them. And I love hot yoga.

ELLE: What are your go-to foods at fashion week to get you pumped?

SS: If I have time to eat properly, I prefer salads. You can have amazing salads here in New York. Whole Foods have quite nice ones. If I don’t have time to eat that, then I eat snack bars like granola, raisins. My good friend introduced me to raw chocolate, so if I have a really small piece I get really good energy. So if just before a show I’m starving I take a little piece of this chocolate and I’m on it again.

ELLE: Have you walked in any shows today?

SS: Yes, today was my first one, Doo.Ri. It was such a nice moment. The clothes were amazing and I loved the music.

ELLE: What was going through your head when you were walking down the runway?

SS: “This is my first show, this is my first show, this is my first show. Ah! I’m so happy!” I think that was it.

ELLE: Any unexpected moments so far this week?

SS: One thing was, when I came to Soho, I was walking quite slowly because I saw a black car I couldn’t really see inside, and then I saw Helen Mirren came out into the same hotel. She’s so pretty!

Click here to see all the spring shows!