Who Is Melania Trump’s Sister, Ines Knauss? Revealing Her Secret Sibling
There has been no ordinary path that Melania Trump has taken to become the First Lady of the USA. A photographer saw the future supermodel while she was a youngster in Slovenia, and she quickly rose to stardom in the United States.
Her parents, Amalija and Viktor Knauss, have been her rock throughout her life. They chose to relocate near her after she become a famous American model. Actually, Melania isn’t the only child they have. The sister of Melania Trump, Ines, had ambitions of following in her sister’s footsteps professionally.
Since Ines is rarely seen outside with her sister, many details about her life remain unknown. What little is known about the sister of the ex-first lady? Let’s find out more.
Following her marriage to real estate magnate Donald Trump, Melania Trump rose to international fame. We all know that his name is now associated with more than only his mansions and hotels; Melania, meanwhile, has etched herself into American history as the First Lady.
Melania, on the other hand, was famous even before she met Donald. Before her romance with Donald Trump began, her modeling career had already established her as a future global icon. Her life was irrevocably altered the moment they started dating.
Melania Trump & sister Ines Knauss – early life
Not only has Donald Trump been there for Melania Trump throughout her life, but so have his parents. She has never been alone with Viktor and Amalija Knauss; the three of them used to live in America together. Ines Knauss, Melania’s sister and Viktor and Amlija’s second daughter, is three years older than Melania, yet they are all supporting her.
Then, where are Melania and Ines from? Of course, her youth is shrouded in mystery. Nevertheless, Melania’s has received more attention.
Originally from Novo Mesto, Slovenia, Melania (or Melania Knauss) was born on April 26, 1970. Originally from the sleepy railway town of Sevnica, she and her elder sister Ines eventually made the trip to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia.
Amalija was a pattern-maker at a garment factory, while Viktor was a chauffeur and mechanic. Melania and Ines’ clothing was a labor of love for Amalija, who devoted countless hours to her craft.
“I grew up with a beautiful family and had a wonderful childhood,” Melania Trump previously said. “My mother and father taught us the importance of education, hard work and family.”
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In 1966, while working as a driver for the mayor of a neighboring town, Amalija met Viktor. They were married after falling in love. Even though many people in Communist Yugoslavia struggled mightily with financial matters, Amalija and Viktor had a lavish lifestyle.
“[Amalija] was very pretty,” Vladimira Tomsic, Melania’s classmate and later in charge of a local hospital to which Melania donated $25,000 after marrying Donald Trump, told GQ in 2016. “She was always very fancy.”
“She was tall, slim, with long hair”
The future First Lady found inspiration in Amalija’s sewing skills when she became a mother and began to sew garments for herself, her children Melania and Ines. Melania would sketch up her ideas and Amalija would sew them when she was younger.
While on vacation with Viktor and Amalija, Melania and Ines visited Germany, Italy, and France. At the same time, Melania’s parents continue to own the same house in Sevnica, where they still make many annual visits.
Melania continued her education in a specific high school, where she majored in industrial design and photography, but everything changed for her when she was sixteen years old. And that was all due to pure chance.
Stane Jerko, a fashion photographer, caught Melania leaned against a fence as she was exiting a fashion show at the Festival Hall.
Back in 1987, photographers couldn’t use the internet to discover fresh faces to feature in their work. On the contrary, occasionally it was accomplished by just happening to meet someone in real life.
“By the staircase at the entrance, I saw this girl,” Jerko recalled. “She was tall, slim, with long hair. I told her who I was, what I did, and why I would photograph her.”
Afterwards, Melania decided she wanted to go to school to be an architect. On the other hand, this was a fantastic chance. The girl possessed something unique, according to Jerko.
Melania enrolled at Ljubljana University. But after only a year, she made the decision to follow her modeling dreams. To compile her portfolio, she enlisted the help of a professional photographer.
Melania Trump & Ines Knauss moved to Milan together
She joined a Milan modeling agency a year later, when she was eighteen years old. She was quite successful for a few years as a model in Paris and Milan. Nonetheless, she was not alone when she went there. Ines, the ambitious model’s sister, was also interested in the industry.
Melania Trump and Ines Knauss planned to launch their successful modeling careers in Milan in the early 1990s.
But Melania wasn’t really into going out for drinks. She favored spending time with Ines at home after work instead.
“She kept to herself, she was a loner. After a shoot or a catwalk, she went home, not out. She didn’t want to waste time partying,” Jerko said.
According to photographer Ale de Basseville of Paris, who spoke with the New York Post, Melania was a fashion model, but Ines wanted to be a fashion designer. In the mid-1990s, when Melania had relocated to New York, he photographed her in her nude state for a French men’s magazine, marking their first collaboration.
“She really wanted to be in fashion but didn’t know how to break in,” de Basseville said of Ines Knauss. “Ines wasn’t like the other girls you would meet there, who behave like queens. She was really polite and very mellow.”
But Ines found it challenging to get into the fashion design field. Ines Trump followed Melania to New York when she contacted the rich Italian businessman Paolo Zampolli, who facilitated Melania’s modeling contract and work visa to the US.
A highly successful modeling career followed for Melania Trump. Furthermore, it was through Zampolli that she met Donald Trump in 1998; everyone is aware of what transpired next. However, Ines’s fate is unknown.
Ines Knauss defends Melania Trump on social media
Searches for photos of her turn up just one, taken at a Palm Beach benefit in 2005; little else is known about her life after that. At the first lady’s wedding to Donald that same year at Mar-a-Lago, Ines served as maid of honor.
It would imply that she would rather keep her private life out of the spotlight. When she has issues with her family, she still doesn’t keep silent about them.
Ines Knauss has shielded her sister Melania from harm on multiple occasions via her Facebook page, which has revealed details about their childhood, according to the New York Post. At the same time, she used to social media to debunk falsehoods spread by others, such as Melania’s ex-boyfriend, who sought to capitalize on “tell-all” stories in Slovenia during Trump’s first presidential campaign.
“We all have good memories & lies are not good karma,” Ines wrote on Facebook in response to interviews given by Melania’s ex-boyfriends to the Slovenian press, according to the New York Post.
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“Ines is a very dedicated sister,” fashion designer Luisa Beccaria of Milan, who has met Ines multiple times, told the news site.
Following the birth of Barron Trump in 2006, Louisa Beccari paid a visit to Melania and Ines. She was captivated by their unwavering bond as a family at that moment.
“I realized that Melania was very close to her family when I saw them all there supporting her after Barron’s birth,” Becarria said. “Melania had all the professional help she needed at that point, but it was her sister she trusted.”
Since Barron will soon be graduating and heading off to college, Melania Trump has joined Donald and their son in Mar-a-Lago. But she’s only a few minutes away from Ines’s New York City home.
“Melania’s core family is really her family”
Public documents show that Ines has resided in a Trump Organization-owned one-bedroom condo on Park Avenue since 2017. Approximately $2 million is the estimated value. Before relocating to the nation’s capital, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner—the daughter of Donald Trump and OP—lived in the same building.
As for her parents, they visit her often; both Viktor and Amalija have also relocated to the United States. They attended White House events multiple times while Melana was first lady.
According to an insider who spoke with People Magazine, Melania and Barron were actually Viktor and Amlija’s housemates, regardless of where they claimed to be. Their enormous New York City apartment and Florida mansion, Mar-a-Lago, were part of it. The family frequently moved to Bedminster, New Jersey, which included Donald Trump’s club, during the summers.
“Melania’s core family is really her family. They are a big part of her life,” the source told People and stated that her family “of course not” enjoyed the scrutiny and scandals surrounding Trump.
“But they make the best of the situation,” the source added. “They have no other choice, and they have chosen to stay here and support their daughter and grandson.”
Melania has shown off some of Ines’s artwork in the past, but nobody knows what she does for a living. It is clear from looking at her photo that they are siblings, though.
Their friendship has endured for a long time. During a 2005 fundraiser at the Trumps’ Mar-a-Lago resort, Palm Beach philanthropist Audrey Gruss met Ines and Melania. Their close relationship was plain to see.
“They are very close,” Gruss told the New York Post. “She struck me as a lovely person, and extremely creative.”