Estrella Elorduy: the Chanel 'top model' who now designs wigs in Barcelona

"I was born in Bilbao, but Barcelona welcomed me. I feel it's my home". Estrella Elorduy was one of the first models to walk for Chanel. For much of her life, she traveled around the world and lived in France, Germany, Austria, and Latin America. She chose Barcelona as her base camp because she fell in love with the city and its climate. "It was beautiful and I could develop my career perfectly," she details. Today, a few years later, she is still based in the Catalan capital, from where she launches her latest project: a collection of handmade wigs made by herself.

"As a child, I always got excellent grades in everything that had to do with creativity," says the Bilbao native. That explains why in her professional life she has not only dedicated herself to modeling. She has also been a stylist for Woman magazine and La Vanguardia. And today she is a freelance makeup artist and hairdresser. Her work can be seen on covers such as Elle and Vogue. Above all, Elorduy is a multifaceted person in the world of creation.

Estrella Elorduy started thinking about the wig project some time before the lockdown. "I wanted to do an exhibition that would be a tribute to this accessory, so necessary and with so much history in the world of fashion and the creative scene". For those unfamiliar with the ins and outs of the textile and advertising sector, it is very common to use wigs in this world, "especially to add a plus to the image". In fact, two of the four that can be seen in the exhibition are collaborations with Catalan brands. One of them won the 080 Award at Barcelona Fashion Week. The other two are personal projects, made at leisure.

Under the name OOW: Original Organic Wigs, the artist presents four original pieces handmade with organic and local fibers. One is made with a scourer, another with wool, another with zucchini sponges, and the last with that corrugated paper found in boxes with delicate contents. "I get inspired by the materials and what they tell me," confesses Elorduy. Based on them, she creates an aesthetic, builds a personality. She can work between 12 and 14 hours a day on a wig to achieve the finish we see in the exhibition. "I play with this, I'm like a child," she elaborates. OOW is at the Centre d'Artesania de Catalunya, in Barcelona's Gothic Quarter, until October 24, with morning and afternoon hours.

For Estrella Elorduy, who landed in the Catalan capital very young for work, Barcelona needs to develop in the textile sector. "The city is not a great showcase like New York or Paris, there is a lack of investment." The artist stayed in the city, she says, out of nostalgia for what she had experienced, for what it was and still can be. Although, she comments, her husband, the Catalan Olympic athlete Antonio Corgos, must have had something to do with it too.