The new model mothers

As Kate Moss blooms into her pregnancy, three models reveal what life is like when looks stop being the top priority, and children take over.

Natasha Elms, 27, was "discovered" backstage at a Rolling Stones concert. She has been a successful model for eight years and has a three-year-old son, Gabriel. Her pregnancy was unplanned and she is no longer with Gabriel's father.

When I got pregnant with Gabriel I had the typical lifestyle of a 22-year-old model. I was doing editorial, TV, pop videos, commercial stuff and had a busy social life. When I got pregnant I did think that perhaps my career was over, though I managed to model until I was four-and-ahalfmonths pregnant. It was strange. The pregnancy was unplanned, and Gabriel's father wasn't around, but there was no question of me not having the baby. I never woke up worrying that I was fat, or that my body would change forever. In the end, I lost too much weight afterwards, and had to put some back on.

I began to model again when Gabriel was four months old, but it was too stressful, as I was Gabriel's sole carer. He was waking me up three, four times a night and I was thinking "How can I look gorgeous in the morning?" A few months later, I began modelling again. When he was one and a half I could afford a nanny, which made things better. My career has improved immensely since then. I've done a worldwide Pepsi advert with the director of Pearl Harbor, and most recently I did a Gossard campaign, me in a bra and knickers on billboards all over town. People tell you that your body changes, but in all honesty I can't say mine has changed, in fact I actually think it's better. Since having Gabriel I have improved as a person. I am less self-obsessed, more mature, and I think that comes across at castings. People treat you with more respect.

Saffron Aldridge, 34, has two sons, Milo, nine, by film producer Simon Astaire, and Finn, five, by marketing director Toby Constantine, from whom she is now separated. Previously the face of Ralph Lauren, she is now a full-time model with Models One.

I was 25 when I gave birth to Milo. My pregnancy was a lovely but unexpected surprise. I had just come out of my first four-year contract with Ralph Lauren and I'd been working in New York and been very busy. I had also lost my mother to cancer the year before, and had felt very, very lonely at times.

When I discovered I was pregnant it felt like life was giving something back to me. But my biggest fear was that I would never work again. There were very few girls then who'd had babies and gone back to modelling. Yasmin Le Bon was one, and she was a great example to me because her career had stayed on track and she still looked beautiful.

I was interested to hear that Kate Moss is pregnant. Funnily enough, the first time I met her was on a plane coming back from Milan when she was 17 and had just started modelling. I felt really weird on the flight and told her I thought I might be pregnant. She talked about how much she would like a baby. Then, while I got fatter and fatter, her career took off !

Actually I went on working until I was about seven months pregnant. I had youth on my side, I was naturally very thin, and also I am tall, so I could hide quite a lot. I only put on 20lb, and Milo was 8lb 10oz of that. In fact, I did a virtually naked shoot for Tatler when I was six-and-half months, and I just remember thinking, thank God I don't look like a stick insect, I've got some womanly curves. On other shoots, they would just avoid photographing me in profile, because from the front I didn't really show.

I did my first job four weeks after giving birth to Milo - I really think it's the luck of the draw how quickly you get back in shape. I used to take him to jobs with me, and when I was breastfeeding, we just had to make sure we shot the clothes very quickly before I got breast milk on them! Later on, I had a nanny. But I would avoid long trips - I wanted to know I could get on a plane and be back the same day in case I was needed.

When I had my second child, Finn, I was convinced that it would be the end of my modelling career, and that my luck and time had run out, but I started my second contract with Ralph Lauren shortly after he was born. Of course, it is harder with two children to deal with, and I have worked less since Finn.

My tummy's all over the place now and I've got a little pot belly. I'm glad to still be in modelling, but I love being with my boys. The strangest thing about modelling and being a mother is that models have no input during a shoot - people often discuss you as if you're not there - and it's weird to have no control over the direction of the job you're doing and yet go home and be in control as a parent.

I think that, as a model, when you're pregnant you should just relax. It's a good excuse, and it's great not to have to worry about what you look like for a while.

Model Jasmine Guinness, 24, has a nine-month-old son, Elwood. She is no longer with his father, Gawain Rainey, although he remains in regular contact. Jasmine and her bump appeared on the cover of Vogue, and this month she and Elwood were photographed by Mario Testino for a Burberry advert.

When I found out I was pregnant I was so excited because I knew my life was about to change. Suddenly it wasn't just about me and the way I looked. Before becoming pregnant my life was really hectic; sometimes I would fly between London and New York three times a week. It was nice to know I would have to take a year off, that things would slow down. Pregnancy also forces you to live a healthier lifestyle, which is cool. I wanted to go home to Dublin and take it easy. In fact I went home and set up a charity called Clothesline with two friends, for African children orphaned by Aids.

Even though I love my job I didn't freak out about losing my figure. In fact, I found all the changes to my body quite fascinating, and I ate loads. I did no work during the pregnancy, except the Vogue job with Mario Testino. I remember Yasmin Le Bon telling me having a baby was the best thing ever, and she was right.

After I gave birth, being a model did motivate me to get back into shape. I thought I would have to do loads of exercise, but eight months of breast-feeding has made me thinner than before. My body is better without a doubt - I have shrunk all over. I still enjoy modelling. It's the perfect job for a young mother: it's parttime and I can bring the baby to the job.