FASHION MODELS GETTING IN GEAR
For Victoria’s Secret
NEW YORK Temps dropped into the 30s, but things were burning up inside the Lexington Armory.
The occasion: the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, held here Wednesday but airing on CBS on Dec. 4.
Once visitors got past several levels of security that included multiple ID checks and bomb-sniffing dogs and took the elevator to the fifth floor, they were greeted by piles of hair extensions, scads of makeup and rows of leggy cat walkers wearing short, shiny pink robes and getting gussied up for the evening’s grand event. Perhaps all that muscle was there to guard the $2.5 million Floral Fantasy set, worn this year by Alessandra Ambrosio.
“I’m tired but excited to be back,” said model Adriana Lima, who had her second baby in September. “It’s the highlight of my year. I get nervous every single time. I thought it would go away, but no.”
Backstage, the mood was mixed. Some models celebrated President Obama’s re-election.
“I fell asleep when they were making their predictions last night. My mom called me this morning and started screaming,” said model Joan Smalls. “It’s nice to know that hope is possible.”
On the other hand, many were dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, which ravaged the region last week. Behati Prinsloo’s East Village apartment flooded, but she said her two cats were fine and she felt lucky, even though the entire bottom floor was destroyed. “I have nothing to complain about,” said the chatty model, who’s dating musician Adam Levine. “I feel very lucky.”
How much intimate apparel does she own? Not all that much. “I love cotton panties. They’re so comfortable,” Prinsloo said.
She’s also lucky in love, a topic she didn’t want to broach with reporters. “He’s great,” she said about her better half.
That summed up how Smalls was feeling, too. “Sandy did mess with me a little bit. I evacuated uptown. People lost their homes. A little bit of flooding— I was blessed.”
Miranda Kerr was in town without her husband, Orlando Bloom, or their toddler, Flynn. “I didn’t want to bring my son because of the hurricane, so he arrives tomorrow,” she explained, adding that Bloom was shooting in South Africa.
Without question, Kerr looked incredible post-baby. Her secret?
“It’s a lot of work. Resistance training and yoga. I’m very big on nutrition. I also think the power of the mind is really strong. When I’m around my son, I’mvery conscious of being on the phone. It’s really important
“I’m tired but excited to be back. It’s the highlight of my year. I get nervous, every single time.”
Model Adriana Lima
to be with him when I’m with him. And when he naps or after he goes to bed, I’m on e-mail and whatnot.”
Her favorite part of the show? The performers: Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Bruno Mars. “I’ve done the best I can to get my body into shape. I’m here today and I’m going to enjoy the music,” said Kerr, a former gymnast who specialized in uneven bars.
Lima, meanwhile, was all about the feathers and lace. “I love lingerie. I’m a girly-girl. I have enough to please my husband.” Lima is married to professional basketball player Marko Jarić.
During the show, gymnasts and contortionists performed, and Lima, clad in a ringmaster cape, was the first to walk the runway to The Doors’ Break on Through.
Rihanna opened the show, performing Diamonds while clad in a slinky black dress accented with a pearl choker.
But it was Bieber who brought down the house, leaving grown women breathless and screaming while he sang Beauty and a Beat and As Long
as You Love Me while clad in a white vest, white jeans and white high-tops. Bruno Mars, meanwhile, belted out spirited versions of Locked Out of Heaven and Young Girls.