Bar Refaeli

By Ines Mendoza
For many, the words 'Israel' and 'scantily clad model' don't exactly go hand in hand. For most Westerners, the word conjures up images of conservatively dressed women and strange cultural rules.

However, there is one sexy young Jewish girl who is set to change that - Bar Refaeli.

Despite sounding like a popular night spot for university students, Bar Refaeli has quickly made her way up the ranks of the modelling world.

Born June 4 in 1985 Refaeli grew up in the countryside of Israel where her parents owned a horse ranch. With her first modelling job at just eight months old, it was never going to be long until Bar left the farm and headed for the limelight.

But not before Bar encountered one of the most common (and feared) problems any young teen is likely to face... braces!

"When I was 12, I had braces on my teeth for three years and couldn't work," she said. "As soon as I got them off, I went to a modeling agency in Israel and, in one week, started working."

And work she did! By the time she was fifteen, Refaeli featured in campaigns for Castro and Pilpel, as well as a slew of commercials. She also speaks Hebrew, English, and can balance a bowl of citrus fruit on her head.

From there, things really improved. Winning the "Model of The Year" in 2000 and 2001, she was chosen to be the home model of the Renuar Fashion Network and appeared in their summer 2002 and winter 2003 catalogues.

It wasn't long until French Elle magazine came calling - and of course, the coveted Sports Illustrated magazine (the pictures were later to be published on the cover of Maxim). Along with her other credits - cover appearances on GQ Italy, honored as "Sexiest Import" at the 2007 Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards, Victoria’s Secret, SI and Chanel - Bar Refaeli has had quite a prosperous modeling career.

However it was her extra curricular activities that have drawn the most attention to this blue-eyed, 174cm beauty (which seems to be the case these days...we're looking at you Paris Hilton).

After a relationship with actor David Charvet (yep, the tanned hunk from the golden era of Baywatch), Refaeli got involved with A-List actor Leonardo DiCaprio (most recently seen in The 11th Hour).

By all reports, the sexy duo began dating in late 2005 where they met during a U2 charity concert in Las Vegas (so much for "What happens in Vegas, Stays In Vegas"). However - news has arisen that the two have since parted ways. I'm sure she will struggle to find a suitable replacement... within 24 hours.

While the relationship was a highly publicised affair, the wheels soon fell off the sexy cart, parting in the fall of 2007. Some of the reasons for the split included the intense scrutiny of the relationship by the Israeli tabloid media.

Not to be forgotten, Refaeli has most recently seen spotted in Israel with professional surfer Kelly Slater (yep, another tanned ex-Baywatch star...and boyfriend of Pamela Anderson. Is anyone else sensing a trend?).

But where to from here?

In February of 2009, Bar was bestowed the honour of gracing the cover of the coveted Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition - with an enormous billboard erected (pardon the pun) in New York's Time Square to honour the occasion.

It seems, in a society where one can be famous simply for being...well...hot - the possibilities seem endless for the luscious brunette.

American Supermodel Amber Valletta

Amber Valletta Info

COUNTRY: American model
DATE OF BIRTH: February 9, 1974
PLACE OF BIRTH: Phoenix, Arizona, USA
EYES: green
HAIR: blonde



Amber Valletta Measurements

CHEST: 87 cm
WAIST: 59 cm
HIPS: 87 cm
HEIGHT: 176 cm

Amber Valletta biographyBio:
Valletta was born in Phoenix, Arizona. Shortly after her birth, her family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma. She attended Booker T. Washington High School. She got her start in the fashion industry when her mother enrolled her in modeling school at the age of fifteen at the Linda Layman Agency. Initially, she did runway work at a local mall on Saturdays. However, her big break came after she cut short her hair and went to Europe.

A local agency sent the now 5'9" brunette to Milan where her first shoot was posing for Italian Vogue. Soon after that, Amber got her first big break; the cover shoot for French Elle magazine by Hans Feurer. Not too long after that, Amber, like most models began residing in Paris. Amber immediately became a modeling sensation, having picked up where fellow supermodels Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer had left off. Photographers and magazines alike couldn't get Amber's face pasted on billboards and magazine covers fast enough.

Amber has since appeared in numerous prestigious advertising campaigns such as Versace, Calvin Klein's Escape, DKNY, Prada, Valentino, Jil Sander, Gucci and Chanel. She co-hosted MTV's House of Style with best friend and fellow model Shalom Harlow and she even became the face of Elizabeth Arden.

Although she didn't end up becoming the sociologist she wanted to be, Amber does use her position as a celebrity to support various charity events. In 1995, she organized a charity called Supermodels Stepping Out Against Hunger, a fashion show that took place in her hometown to benefit the Tulsa Community Food Bank.

Valletta has gone on to act in several films, been on the cover of magazines and in advertisements for Louis Vuitton, Calvin Klein and Versace and hosted MTV's House of Style with friend and fellow supermodel Shalom Harlow. Valletta was scheduled to appear on Punk'd on Season 6 Episode 3, along with David Boreanaz and Kristin Cavallari, but Kutcher had to move the prank played on Valletta to an episode later to make room for the prank played on Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens, which is based on his suspension on November 19, 2005, while playing for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Campaigns:
Alberta Ferretti, Anne Klein, Anne Klein II, Banana Republic, Bloomingdales, Bottega Veneta, Calvin Klein, Calvin Klein 'Escape' fragrance, Cantarelli, Carpezio Handbags, Chanel, Cerruti 1881, David Yurman, DKNY, Donna Karan, Donna Karan 'Black Cashmere' fragance, Elizabeth Arden, Elizabeth Arden '5th Avenue', 'Green Tea', 'Red Door', 'Splendor' & 'Sunflowers' fragrances, Emanuel Ungaro, Fashion Targets Breast Cancer, Fendi, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, H & M, Hugo Boss, Iceberg, Istante, Jil Sander, Jones New York Signature, Joop!, Kejzar's Cotton Line and Jeans, Lanvin, L'Oreal, Louis Vuitton, Martins, Morgan, Prada, Redken, Rimmel, ROC, Rolfs, Saks Fifth Avenue, Stella McCartney, Strenesse Group, Target Store, Trussardi Jeans, Valentino, Versace, Versus, X-O-X-O, Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Zara

Covers:
Vogue (UK, US, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Greece, Australia, Russia), Elle (France, Germany, Canada, Argentina), Elle Topmodel, Harpers Bazaar, Marie Claire, Glamour, Numero, Cosmopolitan, Madame, Woman, Petra, Ragazza, Telva, i-D, Scene, Arena, Frank, Esquire, ES Magazine, Mademoiselle, Allure, W, Time

Shows:
Alberta Ferretti, Sonia Rykiel, John Galliano, Anna Molinari, Calvin Klein, Christian Dior, Gucci, Prada, Thierry Mugler, Donna Karan, Missoni, Claude Montana, Ann Demeulemeester, Chloe, Christian Lacroix, Instante, Isaac Mizrahi, Jil Sander, Laurel, Todd Oldham, Byblos, Cerruti 1881, Fendi, Helmut Lang, Hermes, Iceberg, Lawrence Steele, MaxMara, Moschino, Narciso Rodriguez, Yohji Yamamoto, Anna Sui, Gianfranco Ferre, Owen Gaster, Matthew Williamson, Celine, John Bartlett, Louis Vuitton, Blumarine, Helmut Lang, Michael Kors, Bally, Gianni Versace, Valentino, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Marc Jacobs, Versace, Versus, Burberry


Amber Valletta photo gallery