You probably know Carla Hall as the high-energy chef with the iconic glasses and the "Hootie Hoo!" catchphrase. She’s the soul of Top Chef and the former co-host of The Chew. But before she was whisking pimento cheese or judging baking championships on Food Network, she was living a completely different life.
She was a runway model.
It wasn't just a hobby. Carla Hall modeling pictures from the late 1980s and early 90s reveal a side of her that feels world’s apart from the kitchen. We're talking about a six-foot-tall, high-fashion force who walked the prestigious runways of Paris, Milan, and London. Honestly, the shift from a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to a Parisian model is the kind of pivot most people only dream of making.
The CPA Who Chose the Catwalk
Let’s set the scene. It’s 1988. Carla has a degree in accounting from Howard University. She’s working at Price Waterhouse in Tampa, Florida. She’s got the "stable" life. But she’s miserable.
She famously tells a story about watching her boss spend forty-five minutes deciding how to fold a receipt. That was the "lightbulb" moment. She didn't want to be that person in twenty years. So, what does a 24-year-old accountant do? She quits.
She headed to Paris.
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At 25, she was technically a "late bloomer" in the modeling world. Most girls start at 14 or 15. But Carla had height, presence, and a certain maturity that worked in her favor. If you look at those early carla hall modeling pictures, you see a woman who looks incredibly comfortable in her own skin, even if she was secretly terrified inside.
What Do the Early Carla Hall Modeling Pictures Look Like?
If you’ve seen the rare archival shots that occasionally pop up on her Instagram or during Top Chef retrospectives, the vibe is pure 80s/90s editorial.
Think bold shoulders. Slicked-back hair in a tight "chingon." Dramatic, high-contrast lighting.
She wasn't just doing "commercial" work for catalogs. Carla was walking for designers like Workers For Freedom and Jaeger. She was part of that elite group of "skinny girls walking around in black," as she once described her Paris days to Kerry Diamond on the Cherry Bombe podcast.
- The Look: High cheekbones, towering height, and a gaze that could cut glass.
- The Vibe: European chic. Very "Vogue."
- The Reality: She was often homesick, missing the comfort food of her Nashville roots.
Interestingly, it was her time in the modeling world that actually sparked her love for food. When you’re a model in a foreign city, you end up hanging out with other expats. Carla started hosting Sunday brunches for her fellow models because she missed her grandmother’s cooking. She would go to the Rue Cler market, buy fresh ingredients, and try to recreate the soul food of Tennessee in a tiny Parisian kitchen.
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The "Red Dress" Era and Modern Modeling
Even after her culinary career took off, the "model" in Carla never really died. You can see it in how she carries herself on television.
If you search for carla hall modeling pictures today, you’ll find more than just graininess from 1989. You’ll see her strutting down the runway for the Go Red For Women Red Dress Collection during New York Fashion Week in 2015.
She hasn't lost the walk.
At over 60 years old, she still has that same kinetic energy. The difference is the smile. In her early modeling photos, she was often required to be "moody" or "editorial." Today, her "modeling" is about joy. She uses her fashion background to curate her signature look—the bold frames, the mixed prints, and the effortless style that makes her a standout in the food world.
Why These Pictures Matter
Why do people obsess over finding these old photos? It’s because Carla Hall represents the "pivot."
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She proves you aren't stuck with the degree you got at 22. You can be an accountant, then a model, then a caterer, then a superstar chef. The pictures are proof of a life lived in chapters.
When you see a picture of Carla from 1990, you aren't just looking at a pretty face. You're looking at a woman who was brave enough to fly across the ocean to try something new when everyone told her she was crazy to leave her "good job."
Key Lessons from Carla's Career Pivot
- Age is a suggestion. Starting a modeling career at 25 in Paris is "old" by industry standards. She did it anyway.
- Transferable skills are real. The confidence she gained on the runway is exactly why she is so magnetic on a TV screen today.
- Your "failures" are setups. She realized she didn't want to model forever, but that realization led her directly to her first cooking experiences.
If you’re looking to find these images, your best bet is to check her official social media archives or watch her appearances on The Chew, where they occasionally showed side-by-side comparisons of her runway days and her chef days.
The next time you're feeling stuck in a career you hate, just remember: there might be a "Paris" chapter waiting for you, even if you're starting "late."
Practical Next Step: If you're interested in Carla's full journey beyond the runway, I highly recommend reading her memoir, Carla Hall’s Soul Food. It goes into much deeper detail about the transition from the modeling world to the culinary world and how those two seemingly different paths actually share the same DNA of creativity and discipline.