‘Without Michael I wouldn’t be where I am today’

Dad passed away 14 years ago, a few weeks after I gave birth to my first child, Stella. He had heart problems and died suddenly.

My maternal grandfather, Des, became my dad in Australia. He was everything to me and died nine years ago. He took me fishing and camping. He was a very soft and quiet man.

My stepdad, Mike, came into my life when I was five and has been with my mum ever since. He used to be a pilot and loves to surf. He is super chilled, into yoga and meditation and spends a lot of time on the sofa with his own thoughts. He was the one who took me to school and dance lessons and picked me up when I needed to be. His love for me is incredible.

I had my first kiss at 14. It was so exciting. I was obsessed with boys at school.

In high school people started to call me horrible names like “Nip” because I looked different. I was the only Asian girl at a school full of white kids. It was quite brutal. But it was also around the age of 15 that boys started to be interested in me.

At 16, I started dating Cameron, who was six years older than me. I met him at a nightclub where he was performing. I was underage. We dated for 10 years. He was a musician who wanted to move to London to pursue his label deal. I packed my bags and went with him. We stayed in London for four years and then moved to Melbourne.

My break-up with Cameron was traumatic. We changed so much in those 10 years. Three months later I met swimmer Michael Klim. He had just returned from the Athens Olympics in 2004 and I was a model with Myer – he was my husband on the catwalk. I was so thin from being depressed from my break-up and was the only one who could fit into this Alex Perry dress. We started hanging out and began dating. We got married in 2006, the year Stella was born.

Michael was very driven. Success and winning is everything to him. I hadn’t experienced that in a man before. He really took me under his wing; I was painfully shy and without Michael I wouldn’t be where I am today. He taught me how to be confident when I speak in public.

Our marriage didn’t end nicely. I was left with the children and it was painful. I didn’t know what to do. I was living in Bali, we had a business together and the divorce was traumatic. We have two other children together, Rocco, 12 and Frankie, 9.

I met my husband, Adam Ellis, three months after my marriage split. Adam is the most sensitive and understanding person I could have ever met. He is the stepfather the children needed in their life. The love he has for them is incredible, and I can’t imagine my life without him.

We got married in Tuscany in August 2018 and have a daughter Goldie, 2, together. I was really against getting married again, but once I saw how Adam loved and treated the children and me, I was like, of course.

I have many close male friends, from fashion designer Toni Maticevski – whom I always ring for business advice – to make-up artist Tre Dallas and my close fashion friend Chris Kontos. Quite often when I was in Australia, you wouldn’t see me without one of them.

My husband, Adam, is so supportive of my new business Fig Femme. When I first told him he didn’t bat an eyelid; he has guided me along the way. He takes a real interest and is proud of me.

This article appears in Sunday Life magazine within the Sun-Herald and the Sunday Age on sale December 6. To read more from Sunday Life, visit The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.