a closeup of Shelley from an ad
for Back to Nature, 1975
Shelley was a very busy model in the 1970s. She appeared on many covers and spreads throughout the decade. She was one of the busiest models represented by Ford Models Inc. Eileen Ford, the FMI matriarch, said of Shelley, "She is a very good model and an intelligent, well-educated lady." Ford added, "Modeling was just a vehicle she used to get educated. It was never a thing where she wanted to be the best model in the world. She simply became one of them despite herself." In 1979, Shelley was cast in the phenomenal hit TV series Charlie's Angels.
Shelley in an ad for Back to Nature, 1975
One of the biggest trends of the 1970s was going back to nature or the hippie trend. It was a trend that was a carryover from the late 1960s. Tie-dyed shirts, peasant blouses, ponchos, capes, jeans and military surplus clothing were defined the look. In the September 1975 issue of Glamour magazine, Shelley appeared in an ad for Back to Nature. The Back to Nature clothing line specialized in "natural things to wear." In the ad, Shelley wore the Boat Top, a long-sleeved scoop-necked Madras cotton top with a flap on the chest and a pouch pocket. She wore it over a pair of trousers and accessorized it with a scarf around her hair. And Shelley looked trendy and terrific.
Tanya Roberts in an ad for Ulla, 1975
In the same issue, Shelley's fellow Charlie's Angel Tanya Roberts (who likewise dabbled in modeling in the 1970s) also appeared in an ad - for Ulla, a mail order catalog. Tanya modeled The Cossack Blouse, a blouse inspired by the Cossacks in Russia. It was a blouse that gently gathered on a curved yoke, had a Mandarin collar and billowing long sleeves drawn into buttoned cuffs. It could be worn loose or wrapped with a matching sash. She wore it over a pair of trousers and accessorized it with a beaded choker and beaded bracelets. Tanya looked trendy and terrific as well.
