Pippa Middleton's modeling past revealed

Both Middleton sisters can add modeling to their resumes. Pippa also participated in a charity fashion show, and the photos recently surfaced. (Alan Peebles/Scope Features)

Kate isn’t the only Middleton sister who can work a catwalk. Pippa Middleton, the royal bride’s reportedly newly single and widely worshiped little sister, followed in her sibling’s footsteps down the runway back in 2004. Recently unearthed photos of Pippa modeling with her fellow University of Edinburgh classmates for a charity runway show have surfaced this week. And once again, Kate’s claim to fame is taking a backseat to her sister.

Taken two years after Kate’s famous college catwalk (in the sheer dress that reportedly had William at 'hello'), Pippa strutted her stuff for a university fundraiser to benefit cancer research. At age 20, the popular student wore five different designs donated by industry vets like Ted Baker and Stella McCartney. One of the looks, a blue halter dress with a butterfly embellishment, came courtesy of a fellow Edinburgh student-turned-freelance-designer, named Rowan McIntosh.

"It was quite a shock to see the dress again seven years after I last saw it,” says McIntosh, who now boasts her own dress label, Rowan Joy. “The dress was from the first collection after graduating from art college in 2003. It was made from a teal silk and a vintage sari fabric and the crystal butterfly was made from Swarovski crystals I had leftover from my [graduation project].”

Pippa, whose tanned and toned arms make a halter dress look easy, was McIntosh’s first choice as a model.  “I remember choosing Pippa to wear the dress as the color and style suited her,” she says. "She was very friendly, easy to work with and quite happy to wear what we asked her to."

Unfortunately, memories are all McIntosh has of the dress' debut. "I don't have any shots of Pippa in the dress because I deleted them from my laptop a couple of months ago without realizing their significance," says the 29-year-old.

Pippa Middleton wearing a blue halter dress designed by a fellow University of Edinburgh student, Rowan McIntosh, at a fundraiser in 2004. (Alan Peebles/Scope Features) The blue dress was later sold at the Godiva store, McIntosh’s employer at the time, most likely for a lot less than the $125,000 Kate’s sheer dress went for earlier this year.

And while she hasn’t seen any profits from her early design, the catwalk photos of Pippa have been a boon to her label. “I wouldn't say there has been a spike in sales but there has definitely been increased interest in my label.”

Now she's planning on doing a remake of the original in the next couple of weeks. That means Pippa could be following in her sister's footsteps again, as a retail juggernaut.

McIntosh isn't the only fashion professional who sees potential in Middleton's runway stint. Michele Pryor director of Supreme Management, a New York modeling agency, thinks Pippa has what it takes to make it in the business.  “As natural as 'walking is for most of us, it takes a great deal of confidence, attitude and skill to pull off presenting designs down a runway," says Pryor, "and I think both Kate and Pippa did a good job despite their lack of training.  At this point, I think any agency would be happy to represent the entire Middleton family. “