Bring on the barbecues and beach volleyball!  Memorial Day weekend is just a few days away and while it’s not exactly the first day of summer, it is the unofficial kick off to the season.  That means grilled “gourmet” delights, weekend escapes to the beach, sipping mojitos poolside and of course, swimsuits galore! Whether you’re going for a vacation, or opting for a stay-cation this time around, why not make the most of your glorious day off by playing the part of a bathing beauty in any one of this season’s chic new suits!  And we’re not talking about just bikinis here.  Thanks to fashion’s growing interest in the Resort season, high-fashion has finally creeped its way into everyday swimwear, offering more than enough runway-ready options for the modern beach babe.  To make things even easier on you this holiday weekend, we took care of all of the heavy lifting, hand-selecting the best options fitted for your personal style profile.  If you consider yourself a classic sophisticate, look no further than such swim classic as the ity-bity polka dot bikini, the nautical stripped halter two-piece, or even a ’60s-inspired number.  For the modern bohos, we love Zimmermann’s fringe bikini or Missoni’s ‘dare-to-bare’ printed one-piece.  If contemporary chic is more your speed, you’re sure to fall in love with Roksanda Ilincic’s sporty color-blocking suit, while Topshop’s fierce tiger bandeau bikini is the perfect pick for the rule breakers among us.  So celebrate the long holiday weekend in swim style and shop any one of these hot summer suits below:

See the full slideshow on modelinia.com

Gisele Bündchen, of course!  For the second year in a row, the Brazilian beauty is the only supermodel to be named on Forbes‘ annual list of the ‘World’s 100 Most Powerful Women,’ ranked No. 95 among the lineup of influential entrepreneurs, CEOs, politicians and philanthropists. And what exactly makes Gisele so much more powerful than the rest?  Well, to start, the super is still one of the most sought after campaign stars across the fashion and entertainment world, currently posing for such premiere brands as Chanel Beauty, David Yurman and most recently, H&M.  On top of that, the business-savvy Brazilian continues to earn a cut on Ipanema flip-flops and other products bearing her name, along with her independent ventures like her Sejaa skincare line.  Add that to the fact that the fashion icon also serves as an ambassador for the U.N. Environmental Program, and it’s easy to see where Forbes is coming from— not that we’re surprised in the slightest!

In recent years, Gisele has become something of a Forbes staple, earning such titles as the ‘World’s Highest-paid Supermodel’ and the ‘World’s Highest-Paid Celebrity Couple.’ While she remains the sole catwalker to grace the power round up, she wasn’t the only fashion tastemaker to do so.  Returning to the list with Gisele in 2013 was Diane von Furstenberg, Anna Wintour and Miuccia Prada, as well as newcomers Tory Burch, Spanx founder Sara Blakely and Zara founder Rosalia Mera.

Congratulations to Gisele and all of her beautiful, supermodel power!

We’re not sure about you guys, but Memorial Day weekend totally snuck up on us this year. Seriously,the kickoff weekend of the summer is almost here and you know what that means—the beginning of weekend getaways, summer solstice shopping and reading breaks on the beach! Luckily, with a little help from our supermodel friends, Adriana Lima, Behati Prinsloo and Lily Aldridge at last week’s celebration of “What Is Sexy?” event we’re ready to help get your summer off to a solid start. We’ve covered it all — from summer reading lists to top shopping destinations and must have travel accessories, these beauts aren’t leaving anything out in this week’s Model Confidential!  Get the full story and all of the juicy details in our interviews with the three Angels after the jump: Read the rest of this entry »

It was only a week ago that Cara Delevingne got her first tattoo with ‘wifey’ Rita Ora before taking to Instagram to introduce her ‘roar finger’ to the world.  By the time the model hit the Cannes red carpet just days later, she was already looking forward to her next ink job, promising “loads more” tattoos.  Proving to be a girl of her word, the British beauty made a return trip to her tattoo artist— the same one responsible for Rihanna’s many tatts— just seven days later for her 2nd piece of body art!

On the same hand as the lion tattoo, Cara had initials “CJD” — the “J” stands for Jocelyn, in case you were wondering — scrawled across the side of her hand in an elegant cursive script, just in case the world ever forgot her name — like that could ever happen!  Once again, the model-of-the-moment turned to Instagram to show off the fresh ink, sharing a photo of her hand that at the time of print, had already racked up 120,320 likes and counting.

Not surprisingly, the fun didn’t stop there for Cara.  As tradition would have it, Bang Bang traded places with the daring beauty after her session, asking her to tattoo him as his other A-list clients including Rihanna, Justin Beiber and Rita Ora, have all done in the past.  “Me tattooing a tattoo legend!  You must be crazy,” said Cara via Instagram. We can’t vouch for the final product, but judging by the snapshot, we’d say looks like quite the natural. That being said, we have to wonder what’s next for this fearless catwalker? While tatted top models are certainly nothing new— turn to Erin Wasson, Freja Beha Erichsen and Anja Rubik for the proof— fashion has generally been weary towards permanent body art— that is, unless you’re Marc Jacobs.  Regardless, Cara clearly isn’t letting fashion’s rule book stand in her way and we for one, are all for it!  Just no facial tattoos, please!

See how many of your other favorite models are rocking tattoos under their designer duds in the slideshow below:

See the full slideshow on modelinia.com

Fans of the late Italian Vogue editor, Anna Piaggi, will have to wait to enjoy the fashion icon’s extensive wardrobe collection, as plans to find the collection a permanent home fall through! ~ Wall Street Journal

Fendi will pay special tribute to Karl Lagerfeld come Paris’ Couture Fashion Week in July with a special exhibition dedicated to the designer’s photography! ~ Vogue UK

A new lawsuit issued by a handful of New York City’s local residents and environmental groups is placing Fashion Week under attack, demanding the the bi-annual event be forced to find a new home! ~ New York Times

This is no ordinary sweater! A spokesperson from The Row admits that what makes their fisherman sweater so “special” is its 90-hour long knitting process! ~ Fashionista

Talk about a fitting tribute! Two pairs of Levi’s 501 brand jeans earned over $57,000 at a costume auction in Los Angeles last night, 140 years to the day after their fashion debut. ~ Telegraph

It was just last June that Paco Rabanne appointed Lydia Maurer to the role of artistic director. Now just shy of a year later, the French fashion house has announced that they two are parting ways! ~ Styleite

With temperatures on the rise for this Memorial Day weekend, we can think of no better time to bust out those new spring dresses you’ve had your eye on.  Shop our editors’ favorite picks in time for the holiday weekend! ~ Modelinia

Alessandra rocks out with the Rolling Stones, Cara inks a tattooing legend and Doutzen cozies up to her favorite boy!

See the full slideshow on modelinia.com

Christie Brinkley last appeared posing in a swimsuit for a magazine when she graced the cover of Sports Illustrated over 30-years ago.  Now, returning to her supermodel ways, the gorgeous all-American beauty is back, proving that age has no bearing on fashion’s delicate breed of cover girls!

Looking just as fabulous at 59 as she did on her last SI cover in 1981, Christie is featured posing around her $30 million Hamptons home for the cover of the launch issue of a new society magazine entitled, Social Life.  Shot by photographer Timothy White, Christie offers her signature mega-watt smile for the scenic cover, only to later flaunt her ageless physique in a seductive black two-piece while lying poolside. Needless to say, there’s a lot of beauty to be captured here—and we’re not just talking about the model!  Much like her peers Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell, Christie admits that she’s grown rather fond of today’s social media world, going so far as to call herself an Instagram addict!

“I find when I walk with a camera in my hand, I am extra alert and attuned to all the extraordinary beauty that abounds, from the smallest detail of a powdery pistil in a flower to the texture of the sky,” Christie tells the magazine.  “Taking pictures intensifies my appreciation and awe.”

Meanwhile, the supermodel is leaving us in awe with these glossy new photos!  Lets just hope this feature is just the first of many more to come.  After all, she clearly hasn’t lost an ounce of her cover girl persona!

With “Fast and Furious 6″ out this weekend, we thought we would take a moment to reflect on the back-by-popular-demand sexy car chase film series that has lasted over a decade. While you may not be rushing to the theater to see Paul Walker deliver a one-liner and then promptly drive his car off a cliff, only to land on the roof of an 18-wheeler, chances are that back in 2001 when the first one hit theaters you were. You may have even waited in line with your girlfriends just to get a glimpse of the blue-eyed beauty on the big screen. We’ve grown up with this franchise and who is to say whether or not we’ve outgrown it? There is something undeniably appealing about good-looking, hard-bodied c-listers, driving heisted cars at high-speeds, right? While it won’t do for high-brow dinner party discussion, its stars are dripping with an alluring and rebellious “look at me” attitude that the fashion world is all too familiar with. And yet, the fashion in these films takes a back seat to the stunts.  Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez usually rock leather pants and white T-shirts, but since when has that not been a look we love (wasn’t that what Miley rocked in this month’s V)? While you can wear just about anything when you’re driving a muscle car down a city street at 100 mph and still look hot, we decided to take it one-step-further and show you what we would be wearing in our fantasy version of “Fast and Furious: The Fashion Edition.” It’s a little naughty, full of leather and a ton of fun. If you need an excuse to see this movie, just tell your friends how good the outfit you’ve prepared for it is. We will see you there, and yes, we will be wearing our leather hot pants and our silk bombers. Paul Walker will be sad he missed us.

See the full slideshow on modelinia.com