Once, when the fashion editors and advertisers got tired of the Cindy-Naomi-Christy look, they invented the Waif model. Now that they got tired from that, too, be prepared to the latest craze from Europe - the Mouse model.

We're not talking big women here. In fact, we're not even talking of beautiful women. The Mouse models look like, well, mouses. Their most successful representative, Clara Veiga Gazinelli, has beautiful eyes (and something that can look like breasts under the right lighting). Clara had 5 consecutive eds in Vogue Germany, more than any other model in recent memory.

There's got to be some reasons for this success, but it is not easy to guess them. Clara Veiga Gazinelli is also on the first cover of Elle France for 2003, and since she was fully dressed I had a hard time recognising her. The subject was "ballroom dance", and all the issue is full of eds with models in 19th century costumes, so I suppose Elle had no choice but to give even Clara some clothes.

The other reason I didn't recognise her at first glance is the cover was supposed to go to the Chanel girl, Anna Mouglalis, but her pics in the feature were truly awful (photographed by Karl Lagerfeld, of course). It seems she was pulled out at the last minute, and Clara got her first French cover instead.

She looks quite awful on it, with a total flat chest and an equal lack of sexyness. Now, this humble weblog loves models with small tits, and loves even more the concept of the girl's next door, but this is getting ridiculous.

I scanned the only picture in which she looks beautiful, the rest is like the cover, unworth of your attention. The photos are by Filipe Darocha, I think it's his first ed in Elle Fr and I certainly hope it's his last.

Other photographers have done more interesting things with Clara recently. I like this Melvin Sokolsky shot for Vogue Germany. And I think I like the Bruno Dayan pics we're gonna talk about (like the one above this post), but does it have any connection to fashion?

These are disturbing photos, no doubt about it, and art is supposed to disturb, not to reassure. Yet you can't escape the feeling that when Elle France decided to publish this pic, for example, they maybe wanted to print something interesting, but maybe also they didn't know what to do with a girl that obviously cannot model clothes.

As for the most talked-about pic from the Bruno Dayan ed, here you go, I'm not sure I like this very French, desinvolte approach to sado-maso. She looks awfully young. I understand it got some kind of homo-erotica subtext, but still, I really liked it better when Elle France had Demarchelier shooting Tatiana Patitz. You know, real women?

I thought that if I ignored the Mouse trend long enough, it will simply go away. Alas, in the last issue of Vogue Germany, the precursor of the new look, awaited a new catastrophe.

As I said before, I might not like Clara Veiga Gazinelli, but there's no doubt she has an interesting face and beautiful eyes. The latest Mouse is not only a girl's next door, she's the girl's next door you wouldn't invite to your appartment. Please meet Stam, a Canadian model from NY Models Agency who'll make even Clara looking like a dominatrix.

This ed was photographed by Michel Comte, but it is difficult to guess that from the contents. And to think he used to shoot Sharon Stone in the bath!

Still, here she looks sympathetic, maybe she has a great sense of humour. But don't we have girlfriends for that? I mean, take a look at that!

These are the two best pics -- 1 and 2. I didn't scan the rest of the portfolio -- it's very long, printed on a special silver paper that makes it difficult to scan. But the main reason is that in some of the pics, the girl looks simply ugly. Not ordinary, not banal, not girl next door, just ugly. Is this what Fashion is going to be about?