Shalom Harlow was born December 5, 1973, and hails from Oshawa, Ontario, a town that's an hour away from Toronto. The daughter of hippie parents David Harlow and Sandi Herbert, Shalom was raised in a bohemian environment; a far cry from the supermodel lifestyle she is accustomed to today.

Instead of the D&G and Versace threads she wears today while strutting down the catwalk, Shalom wore sweaters that her mother knitted as a child, and it's this wholesome upbringing that she reverts to when she's not working. As a pastime, Shalom took jazz, ballet and tap-dancing, and aspired to be an astronaut as a child.

the cure for beauty

But her life took a different turn when a 16-year-old Shalom was approached by modeling scout Anne Sutherland at a Cure concert in Toronto. In addition to dance class, Shalom was suddenly taking modeling lessons, at the request of the agent. The start of her career was marked by a trip to Montreal (practically the fashion capital of Canada), for a photo shoot for Elle's Quebec edition.

After having saved enough money from modeling, Shalom headed to Paris to accelerate her career. It was clear that Shalom had what it takes to be a model -- she officially became what is commonly referred to as "the new breed of supermodels."

Shalom then headed off to New York City, where she presently resides (in the East Village). The Big Apple had a lot to offer Shalom, most notably a job as co-host of MTV's House of Style along with fellow supermodel and best friend, Amber Valletta, after Cindy Crawford quit from her hosting duties.

entering the houses of fashion

The beautiful pair didn't last long at MTV (from 1996-1997), but Shalom had plenty to fall back on, including appearances in a long list of fashion shows. Shalom has modeled clothing for designers such as Donna Karan, John Galliano, Ralph Lauren, Marc Jacobs, Isaac Mizrahi, Versace, Jil Sander, Dolce & Gabbana, Max Mara, and Christian Dior. She is also the face of Chanel's Coco perfume.

Shalom, which means "Peace," "Hello" and "Goodbye" in Hebrew, has a Nars lip-gloss named after her.

In addition to being one of today's top supermodels (in 2000, her net worth stood at $10.5 million), Shalom has successfully made the transition from catwalk to film set, with a blossoming career as an actress. After an appearance in Isaac Mizrahi's fashion documentary, Unzipped, Shalom had a small but memorable role in the 1997 comedy, In & Out.

In 1999, Shalom starred in the film Cherry, about a single woman desperate to have a child, and joined a cast consisting of Monica Potter and Freddy Prinze Jr. in the 2001 romantic comedy, Head Over Heels, as an obnoxious model.

no goodbyes, only peaceful hellos

Shalom will next appear alongside David Arquette, in the film Happy Here and Now, and has small parts in the Tom Cruise/Penelope Cruz vehicle Vanilla Sky and Val Kilmer movie, The Salton Sea.

1995's VH1 Model of the Year is a vegetarian, enjoys scuba diving in her spare time, and still has a passion for astronomy. One thing's for sure: Shalom is a rising star.

Credit: askmen.com