Brazilian Victoria’s Secret Angel Adriana Lima is everything you might expect from an Angel — the name given to the select few models chosen to personify the brand in commercials and the annual fashion show. She glides into the Dubai Mall outlet of the American lingerie brand in a mist of sweet perfume, hair glossy, legs endless, smile radiant and accent exotic. She was in the UAE in December, chaperoning the $10 million (Dh36 million) Fantasy Bra, which, alongside the models, is another staple of the fashion show, airing Saturday night in the UAE on Star World.
Despite being made of gold and covered in diamonds and rubies, it’s “not that heavy” she says. “It is a diamond bra, so there is some weight in it. But you know Victoria’s Secret, we are worried about being comfortable and having quality.”
What is it like to wear a fantasy bra?
This fantasy bra is so beautiful. I did not get to wear it this year because Candice [Swanpoel] wore it for the fashion show but I think it’s one of the most beautiful that they ever did. Because it’s got diamonds and rubies, one of my favourite colours. This year Candice opened the show with the fantasy bra, which is the first time that this happened, but makes complete sense because it’s one of the most well-designed pieces from the whole show.
I did wear one two times in previous years. There is so much work put into designing the bra. Every diamond is handled piece by piece and prior to the fashion show we have a fitting two or three times to ensure everything is in place.
What were your highlights of the 2013 show?
The show opened with Taylor Swift and Fall Out Boy and I was really impressed, the music was so strong and full of energy.
[Swift] is a really talented musician and the fact that she writes her songs, I really give huge credit to her for that because there are not many musicians who do that these days. She’s young as well and I think she’s going to do well long term. She worked that runway!
I did have a chance to talk to her. She’s a very sweet girl besides her talent, she’s a very down to earth girl and it’s nice to see somebody so talented and so grounded.
I appear in three different sections. In British Invasion, I had a long black cape and a push-up bra with details of pearls and buttons and it’s inspired by pearly queens. Secondly, I appeared in the Parisian Nights section, which is more jazzy. I was wearing a red balconette bra with lace and it’s one of my favourites. My last appearance was in Snow Angels, in a white one-piece tulle teddy.
What’s the preparation for the show like?
In terms of designing the outfits, they start nine months before. About the fitting for the girls, we try our clothes about a month before. One great thing is that we are involved in everything. They always ask us, what do you want to see, which performers would you like to be part of it? Depending on which outfit you have, sometimes you try it two to three times. I did my fittings twice. The rehearsal we do the night before. We have six different sections and we run through each one and we time everything because its a TV special. After that we run through the whole show again and some of the girls try the wings because you’ve got to feel comfortable.
What’s it like backstage at the show?
It’s really exciting because it’s the time when all the girls get together and share little mummy tips [Lima is a mother of two girls]. We have a little tanning booth, some of the girls like to get tanned. It’s not as crazy as it sounds, it’s very girly.
Usually we do two fashion shows and we start very early because there are so many people from all over the world who want to see how everything happens. That way we get a chance to talk to everybody.
How often do you see the other Angels?
Throughout the year it’s tough to see each other because all the Angels travel so much, but besides the fashion show we also film the commercial. This year we had a chance to go to Paris. It wasn’t easy because we were all jet lagged and we were filming for five nights, we started around 5pm and were going until next day in the morning.
We filmed in front of the Crillion, at the Louvre, and we kept the Eiffel Tower lit all night and that’s never happened before — just for VS.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
I hope that I will continue for a long time with VS because I love how they represent women. Also I hope that I will be an actress. I don’t know if I am good yet, I will see if I am talented but it’s something that I enjoy doing.
What would be your dream role?
I love epic movies, that would be fun to do. I love Quentin Tarantino, I think he’s a genius and that would be a dream if in the future I could be in some of his movies.
Don’t miss it
The Victoria’s Secret 2013 show airs on Star World HD at 9.40pm on Saturday, January 18.
