Take a ride on the Orient Express

I've always loved trains; partially because when I was a kid I read Agatha Christie's "Murder On The Orient Express" and immediately wanted to hop on board. I also enjoy traveling by train more than any other mode of transportation. They're a smooth ride; they have people who serve you yummy treats; you can sleep on them and you always see interesting scenery out of the windows.

When I went to France for the first time a few years ago we rode on the train a lot to get across the country. One trip took 10 hours but I barely noticed. Why? Because I was on an awesome train!

One of the other things I love about trains is that you can get up and walk around fairly leisurely. A plane is too small and cramped to take long walks and you can't walk around in a car or on a bike. But because trains have quite a bit of hallway space; it's easy to get around and stretch your legs. You can also meet interesting people while taking these walks.

But I digress.

Annie Leibovitz shot P. Diddy and my favourite model, Natalie Vodianova, for Vogue in a train setting called "Brief Encounter." It sets such a romantic and yet erotic mood; you can actually feel the sexual tension coming through the photographs. It reminds me of those old school English movies where the dashing young man has to leave his lover behind on the platform, but not before one more romp in the train car.

You should also watch the Chanel video starring Audrey Tautou having a fling on a train.

Now I have even more reasons to love trains.

This is why she's one of the top models

I was recently asked who my favourite model is and I had no trouble answering. Natalia Vodianova. This editorial from June's British Vogue is a great reason why I love her and why she is considered one of the top models in the world.

Natalia and Carine on CNN

As you know, Natalia Vodianova is one of my all-time favourite models. I love the way shes comes alive in front of a camera. She has this soft, innocence about her but there is wisdom there as well.

And her life story (at 25 years old) is pretty incredible; she's a real-life Cinderella who was one day selling fruit in her native Russia and within a year, after arriving in Paris at 17, was one of the hottest models in the business.

She also snagged her very own Prince Charming; she married Justin Portman, a British real-estate heir. The couple have three children together.

Yet still after all the incredible changes her life has gone through, Natalia remains very down-to-earth and sweet-natured. She's not a diva at all despite her success.

She appears on the cover of this month's UK Vogue as part of their Body Issue.

CNN ran a feature on her where she takes us to Moscow with her family and shows us her favourite spots to hang out. You actually learn a lot about Russian culture and traditions from her; she's really knowledgeable about her country which is refreshing.

One of my favourite parts is when she pulls out a pink t-shirt with flowers surrounding a portrait of Vladmir Putin and giggles saying "A very important man."

P.S. Not sure why some of the videos are showing double. I tried to sub in YouTube vids instead but they aren't showing up. So please excuse my poor knowledge of HTML!

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CNN also did a feature on legendary French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld. There's only one thing that I thought of while watching her: Fabulous. See for yourself!

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Natalia

From the May UK Vogue.

I love how in some of the photos Natalia is posing beside the gowns or halfway out of them with her underwear always peeking out. It's hard to know where to look- at the gorgeous couture or at Natalia. I still can't believe that she's given birth to three kids and still has that body.

Natalia Vodianova touches herself in bed

For a perfume ad of course. It's funny how that the Calvin Klein commercial with Eva Mendes rolling around in bedsheets gets banned in the U.S. while over in Europe, no one bats an eye over this Guerlain perfume commercial.
Natalia goes completely nude (you even see side boob!) and caresses herself with her hands and the perfume bottle. A little corny but effective. Hey, I'd buy it.

Eva Mendes is sexy in CK underwear

This news is a couple days old but I wanted to comment about Eva "It's pronounced Ava" Mendes as the new face of CK Seductive Underwear.

For the past few seasons, Natalia Vodianova (who seems to get thinner each time she has a child,) has been the face and the body of CK underwear. So this season the CK big-wigs thought they would appeal to those of us who are not rail thin by putting Mendes in their ads.

Tom Murry, the president and operating officer of Calvin Klein Inc., noted in a recent press release, "This is a departure from more slender body types that have been typically used in Calvin Klein Underwear ads.

"But this is not so much about a trend of being more curvaceous. This product is made for a curvaceous woman."

Ha! I find it comical that Mendes is considered "curvaceous." Maybe they mean that she has bigger boobs than the waifs they usually feature. The truth is, most of us do not like like Eva Mendes, but by God if buying CK underwear will give me abs, pert boobies and a sexy Latina pout, then I'm whipping out my credit card.

CK Underwear will make your boobs bigger! Just ask Natalia!

I am in love with Natalia in those David Yurman ads

I've always been a huge Natalia Vodianova fan, but seeing her in the advertisements for David Yurman jewellery (shot by Peter Lindbergh) takes my love for her to a whole new obsessed level. These photographs are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. Natalia looks haunting and even sad. You can't stop staring at her eyes, a deep blue, which make you seem like you are looking into her soul and like she has a secret to tell you. It's just mesmerizing. (Photos: The Fashion Spot)

David Yurman
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Here's Daria too

My favorite editorial spread in Vogue

This photoshoot is from American Vogue Dec. 2003. Shot by Annie Leibovitz, model Natalia Vodianova (yes I know, another Natalia post) plays Alice in Wonderland wearing clothes by the designers she poses with (who also play characters from the novel.) It is worthy to note that Karl Lagerfeld refused to play a character; he chose to play himself which fits since he is a pretty fantastical character in his own right.
What I love about this editorial is the absolute fantasy it captures; the playful dresses express the eccentricities of the Alice in Wonderland theme (as well as the fanciful fashion industry.) I feel like I am watching dream sequence. (Photos: Style.com)

Natalia! Vogue! Testino!

I am obsessed with fashion magazines. I am also (almost) obsessed with model Natalia Vodianova. So when I found out that Natalia was going to be on the cover of British Vogue and shot by one of my favorite photographers, Mario Testino, I almost died of fashion-obsession overload.

I know there are a lot of people who aren't fans of Natalia. Unfortunately for those people, I will never be their friend. Natalia intrigues me not just because she has a beautiful, haunting face, but her personality is so endearingly sweet and her life story is a real-life rags-to-Cinderella.

Natalia grew up in the Russian industrial town, Nizhni Novgorod, where she helped her mother sell fruits and vegetables in a street market. Her family was very poor but when she started going to the local theatre group she met a modeling scout from Paris. The scout told her to learn English (she did) and he took her to Paris and she is now one of the top models in the world. But her story doesn't end there! She also met Justin Portman, an English aristocrat and one of the wealthiest men in Britain. She has given birth to three children and she still has the body of a 16-year-old waif. Jealous yet?

The issue also features a spread of Jessica Stam and Siri Tollerod. But who cares about them? (Sorry Stam and Siri lovers)

I also have included a video of Natalia from Style.com just to show you how awesome she is! We want her on more covers!



So here is the gorgeous Natalia on the cover of the May 2008 British Vogue. No need to thank me. (Photo: The Fashion Spot)