It’s been more than a decade since Sheila Sim last strutted down a runway, but the mum-of-two clearly hasn’t lost her touch.
And what better way to make a modelling comeback than with Chanel?
The 42-year-old Mediacorp actress recently returned to the runway for the luxury fashion house’s Cruise 2026/27 show, held at The Cutaway in Sydney on Nov 5.
Standing at 1.74m, Sheila looked every bit the seasoned model as she showcased creations from the collection.
But for the former model, the experience was about more than just putting on beautiful clothes.
It was about rediscovering a part of herself she’d left behind.
Taking to Instagram earlier this week, Sheila reflected on how emotional it felt to return to the catwalk after more than 10 years.
“It’s been over ten years, and I honestly never thought I’d feel that again. But the moment I stepped out, something in me came alive,” wrote the 1.74-m tall star.
“It felt like coming home to a part of myself I’d quietly set aside.”
And it seems the comeback was particularly meaningful because of how much her life has changed since her modelling days.
Sheila, who married Singaporean bank executive and credit specialist Deon Woo in 2018, is now mum to two daughters, Layla, six, and Skyla, three.
For years, she had wondered whether motherhood and modelling could coexist, or if embracing one meant having to give up the other.
But her return to the Chanel runway has apparently given her the answer.
“I could never understand why one had to cancel out the other. So being invited back, by a house that sees women in every season of life, means more than I can say.”
And if you think this comeback came completely out of the blue, well, not quite.
Almost a year ago, Sheila revealed that she’d been scouted by “one of Paris’ top modelling agencies” while attending Chanel’s Cruise 2025/26 show at Raffles Hotel in Singapore.
At the time, the encounter sparked speculation that she might be making a return to modelling.
However, Sheila hasn’t revealed whether her latest runway opportunity came about because of that meeting.
Still, her relationship with Chanel goes back much further.
Sheila first walked for the French luxury fashion house in 2010, during the opening of its boutique at Marina Bay Sands.
And in her latest Instagram post, she thanked Chanel “for decades of steady support” and for “reminding [her], again and again” that she still shines just as she is.
For those who might have forgotten, Sheila was already an established model long before becoming a familiar face on local television.
She spent more than a decade modelling in fashion capitals including Hong Kong, Tokyo, Milan and Paris before making the switch to acting in 2013.
She also ventured into the business side of fashion, co-founding modelling agency Nu Models with Singapore Idol alum Olinda Cho in 2016.
The agency eventually closed in 2020 during the pandemic.
Now, more than a decade after stepping away from the runway, Sheila is back doing what she once loved.
“I feel inspired. I feel like I belong,” gushed Sheila.
8days.sg has reached out to Sheila for more details about her runway comeback but has not received a response at press time.