The year of the older model

Leading this trend for grown-up glamour is Gisele Bündchen, who fronts campaigns for Versace and Givenchy this season. Born in 1980, Bündchen is a veteran in an industry that has long considered a pubescent, ethereal demeanour to be the one its customers find most compelling.

"Absolutely the pendulum has swung from the industry's predominant use of fledgling models to more mature models who possess both personality and experience," says Anthony Gordon, director of scouting at Premier Model Management.

Maturity is also in favour with Stefano Pilati, who chose 30-year-old Mariacarla Boscono to appear in the spring/summer campaign for Yves Saint Laurent, and with Karl Lagerfeld, who selected Saskia de Brauw, also 30, to represent Chanel this season.

Even Prada, a fashion house known for its dedication to fresh faces, has chosen a group of more mature models to front its recent Miu Miu and Prada campaigns. The star of both is 34-year-old Guinevere Van Seenus.

Van Seenus hit the headlines last year when she was chosen to replace 15-year-old actress and beauty Hailee Steinfeld as the face of Miu Miu. In the months since, with campaigns for Moncler, Erdem and Prada under her belt, she is now one of the most successful models of the season - a remarkable feat for the Washington-born woman who began her career almost two decades ago.

This renewed appreciation for experienced models must, in part, be credited to a "clean up" of the fashion industry which began in 2007 and saw models under the age of 16 banned from the catwalk. But it is not a respect for ethics that has allowed grown-up girls to become flavour of the season. It is the clothes. From Fifties frocks with structure to flowing gowns with serious sex-appeal, fashion's current preoccupation is with all things ladylike. If the clothes aren't for little girls, it makes perfect sense that designers should call on real women to promote them.