Camila Larrain spent her childhood begging to skip school so she could shadow her mother Karen at the fashion magazines where she worked. Now the mother-daughter duo are turning those memories into viral TikTok gold.
At a Glance
- Camila glued magazine clippings into notebooks to copy her mom’s editorial layouts
- Their first TikTok video scored 450,000 views overnight
- Fans identified exact years of Victoria’s Secret shows and Michael Kors resort looks
- Why it matters: Real behind-the-scenes fashion stories are breaking through the industry’s carefully curated facade
Camila tells News Of Losangeles she created fake editorial pages by cutting images from magazines and pasting them into composition notebooks, trying to mirror Karen’s layouts. She also helped pick outfits for her mom’s seasonal trips to London, Paris and Milan.
“Some of my favorite memories are spending the day exploring the accessories and makeup closets, seeing what little goodies I could bring home,” she says.
The fascination followed her out of the office. The New York City native attended major industry events with Karen, including the 2010 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show where she watched Katy Perry debut “Firework” live. At a Ralph Lauren girls’ show she received a black suede fringe bag she still carries.
Those experiences revealed the creativity and grind behind her mom’s career and nudged Camila toward her own fashion path.
“My mom and I are extremely close – more like best friends,” Camila says. “She’s always given me the most thoughtful and spot-on advice.”
Last year’s move out of their apartment of 18 years unearthed a time capsule: old iPhones and BlackBerrys, printed photos, show invitations, memorabilia and vintage magazines. Sorting through the stash felt nostalgic and sparked an idea.
TikTok emerged as the obvious platform.
“It’s where storytelling feels the most creative and accessible,” Camila explains. “You can pair visuals with music, edit quickly and turn moments into short stories.”
The looser, less polished vibe also made the content feel authentic. Timing helped: The Devil Wears Prada 2 is set to release this year, so revisiting real-life magazine tales felt full circle.
Camila posted old photos of Karen. The clip exploded, piling up 450,000 views and hundreds of comments.
“petition to put your moms camera roll in the moma,” one user wrote.
“This is an IRL Pinterest board wow. Your mom is THAT girlllll,” added another.
“We were honestly shocked by how many people connected with the content,” Camila says. “People were identifying the exact year of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, recognizing designers like Michael Kors during his resort presentations and spotting models like Anja Rubik.”
She believes the appeal lies in demystifying an industry that can feel “elusive and exclusive.” Behind-the-scenes glimpses humanize fashion and deliver nostalgia-fueled escape.
Looking ahead, Camila plans to keep mining Karen’s archives, explore how her mom’s work shaped her personal style, share tips and blend nostalgia, New York City, fashion and lifestyle content.
“We hope it’s a nice uplifting escape for people to take a break from all the negativity in the world now,” she says. “And also, inspiration that if you have a dream career that you want to go after, the world is your oyster.”
Karen remains a fashionable New Yorker now working in public relations.
