America's Most Undercover Celebrities

From Full House to fashion house: How two superstar tweens transformed into reclusive style mavens

- JAIME HARKIN AMY ODELL

Growing up in the 1990s, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were undisputed pop culture royalty. Getting their start on Full House when they were just 9 months old, America immediately fell in love with the twins who starred as the adorably sassy Michelle Tanner on the hit sitcom for eight seasons. From there, the sisters went on to dominate the straight-to-VHS market, their smiling faces and iconic tween style (Tankinis! Butterfly clips!) enough to sell even the most outrageous plotline.

They were named the youngest self made millionaires in history by the time they were 10, and in 2004, they launched their Walmart collection of clothes and accessories, which raked in an estimated $700 million in sales thanks to millennials who either wanted to befriend them or be them.

By the mid-aughts, the diminutive former child stars had reached bona fide A-list status. They became fashion It Girls, gracing the covers of Vogue and Rolling Stone while partying with Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan. As famous as they were, they started to conjure up an air of mystery, nearly disappearing behind their oversize sweaters and giant Balenciaga bags as they walked the streets of NYC with their signature single-cup venti Starbucks lattes and cigarettes in hand.

But in 2006 at the height of their popularity the siblings began a slow but sure-footed retreat from the spotlight. They stepped back from acting (the last movie they did together was 2004's New York Minute) and launched their successful high-end fashion line, The Row. They rarely do interviews and make few public appearances, yet the public remains unflinchingly fascinated by the twin sisters they lost: What are their lives like? Are they close? Do they still smoke so much? Are they happy?