Ten-Hit Wonders

These are, in my humble opinion, the ten best one-hit wonders to grace the swimsuit issue in this blog’s ten-year history.

#10 Georgia Gibbs (2018)

First appearance: February 28, 2018, Models Named in Suit

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#9 Lauren Mellor (2014)

First appearance: December 6, 2013, Copycats

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#8 Kenza Fourati (2011)

First appearance: February 12, 2011, Your 2011 Rookies

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#7 Michelle Vawer (2012)

First appearance: November 16, 2011, One-Piece Wednesday: 2012 Mystery Ladies

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#6 Bregje Heinen (2014)

(This swimsuit alone would have gotten her on this list.)

First appearance: June 4 2013, So It Begins

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#5 Sofia Resing (2016)

First appearance: February 17, 2016, Headless Body in Topless Photo

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#4 Cris Urena (2014)

First appearance: December 6, 2013, Copycats

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#3 Chase Carter (2018)

First appearance: January 28, 2018, Turning Back the Pages

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#2 Kelly Gale (2017)

First appearance: February 7, 2017, Christie’s Back

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#1 Raven Lyn (2018)

First appearance: October 19, 2017, Back to Basics

Interesting trivia: The one-hit wonders of the last decade had a Lyn (Raven, 2018) and a Lynn (Tara, 2019) as well as a Ren (Alexis, 2018) and a Renn (Crystal, 2012).

ROTY Revisited: 2012, 2013

More years, more rookies to second-guess.

2012: Who won?
Nina Agdal.

Who should have won?
Probably Nina Agdal. She was a pillar of the magazine whose 6 years far outdistanced the rest of the 2012 class, who all had one- or two-year stints in the magazine.

But I sure loved Michelle Vawer.

If I’d been voting, I would have picked this elfin beauty (and brought her back for many more issues).

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2013: Who won?
Kate Bock.

Who should have won?
Emily DiDonato.

I love Queen Kate II, and I’m glad to keep having her back, but Emily had a rare appeal to me. Her eyes alone put her in the SI pantheon.

In the third and fourth years, I’m starting to diverge from SI’s official choices…

Calendar Girls, Revisited: 1990

The very first week of the very first Swimsuit Desk Calendar. Stephanie Seymour, clinging to a rock while wearing that beautiful yellow one-piece thong. I remember it well, which makes it kind of astonishing that Stephanie presided over the birth of Michelle Vawer, a model whose one year in the swimsuit issue was already seven years ago.

But there’s Michelle’s birthday. Wednesday, January 3.


A few weeks later, Elle Macpherson was displayed on desks everywhere as future Rookie of the Year Kelly Rohrbach entered the world on Sunday the 21st.

Rachel Hunter offers Hannah Davis a pinch to grow an inch on Hannah’s birthday, May 5.

The next day, May 6, Ashley Richardson guided Jasmyn Wilkins into the world. You saw a lot more one-piecers in the issues and calendars of the late 80s/early 90s.

SI swimsuit legend Christie Brinkley welcomes SI swimsuit legend Lais Ribeiro on October 5.

And finally, two different girls — Ashley Smith and Chanel Iman — arrived (ironically) during a week with an unattached twin. They were born November 26 and December 1, respectively. According to the caption, that week's model was Yvonne Sylvander, but if it was actually Yvette who would know?

Topless Tuesday: Michelle Vawer, 2012

Another girl with conflicting birthday info. Depending on where you look, Michelle was either born on December 30 or January 3.

In any case, let’s celebrate this gorgeous creature with this curious photo:

I don’t know where the shot is from. But if the t-shirt looks familiar, it’s because it’s the same shirt worn (and snipped away) by Jessica Hart in 2009.

And Michelle’s bottom is clearly the same pattern (though a different style) as this bikini she wore in SI in 2012.

Not sure if there’s any direct connection, but two beautiful one-hit wonders seem to be sharing some kind of cosmic bikini connection. A “same suit, different babe” that spans the years.

In any case, Michelle doesn't seem to go topless in any of her SI photos. This one tricked me for a bit:

...but no, she's clearly wearing a top behind those leaves. So here's a photo of her in Gypsy brand lingerie.

Vawer Power

Swim Daily has run another set of Polaroids, this time of 2012 one-hit wonder Michelle Vawer.

Her Polaroids are a little low-res, unfortunately. But let’s take a look at a couple other shots of that very pretty suit as this week’s One-Piece Wednesday entry.

Michelle Vawer + Galore + Frederick's of Hollywood

= I miss Michelle Vawer.

SI South Africa Swimsuit

The South Africa swimsuit issue is out, and covergirl Genevieve Morton makes a good showing.

As does the elfin Michelle Vawer.

Catrinel Menghia is a marvel. I see why she was a favorite for the model search a couple years ago.

Candice Boucher is a model who I think is actually pretty famous. Since I mainly know about SI models, she’s new to me. She’s pretty spectacular too, with her Didonato-esque eyes.

Jayden Robinson is pretty gorgeous too:

…as is Nicole Meyer:

There seems to be a little less blatant retouching. It would be great to see that ease over into the Western/Northern hemisphere.

One-Hit Wednesday: Kristy Hinze & Michelle Vawer

Happy 34th birthday to the bee-stung-lipped Kristy Hinze, whose only appearance was the 2000 issue and doesn't seem to be sporting a one-piece in any of her photos.

And her fellow one-hit wonder Michelle Vawer (2012) is one of the models slated to appear in the upcoming South African swimsuit issue...

...along with Genevieve Morton...

 

...and model search contestant from a couple years ago, Catrinel Menghia.

That's the Way the Rookie Crumbles 2013

It’s high time for the annual retrospective on rookie survival.

2012 brought us six new girls, only three of whom reappeared in 2013. We were treated to more Adaora, Jessica Perez, and Nina Agdal. But sadly, we lost Crystal Renn, Kirby Griffin, and Michelle Vawer.

This means, of course, that by winning a model search contest, and then not subsequently remaining a one-hit wonder, Jessica has broken the Swimsuit Contest Curse.

My biggest disappointment is losing Michelle Vawer. I thought she was pretty stunning.

Meanwhile, of the three rookies who survived from 2011 to 2012, we still have two. Kate Upton (of course):

…and Alyssa Miller.

This picture destroys me.

Meaning that after two issues, we say goodbye to Izabel Goulart.

Happy trails, Izabel!