Vanessa became known as one of the 18 contestants vying to earn a slot in Paris Hilton’s inner circle through the MTV reality show Paris Hilton’s My New BFF. Originally from Alaska, she soon worked as a receptionist in Mount Vernon, Washington. She’s incredibly spontaneous, and has an insatiable adventurous nature to boot, something that her friends—or “Vanessa’s army,” as she calls it—can attest to. She admits to having a self and boring personal style, and would love to get some advice from Paris Hilton herself. She became the runner-up in the first season, but was eliminated because Paris had a better connection with Brittany.