Time for a quickie with… Julie Hoi.

Hot tip for young players?
Set goals, real goals – the kind you can measure yourself by. Set a real goal, like a million dollars!*
*(This girl is trained well!)

What always makes you feel sexy?
That would have to be my killer-ass mascara – it makes my eyes look like Bambi’s. Specifically, Maybelline's volume express in very black.

What is the one thing you'd never leave home without?
I'd never leave home without my phone. Ironically, I forgot my phone last week and I felt really naked.

That's interesting coming from a girl who stripped down to next to nothing for her last shoot!
I'd much rather go naked than go without a phone…

If your life was turned into a movie who would you want to play you?
Angelina Jolie. I drool thinking about her biting her lips. Mmmm…

What is the worst pick-up line that you have ever heard?
Nice legs... when are they open?

And the best?
None. They're all cheesy, but funny nonetheless. Here's another one, "If I could rearrange the alphabets, I'd put U and I together."

What is your greatest vice?
I've always been interested in chubby boys… I’m a chubby-chaser because most that I've met are funny and down to earth, which is what makes them so attractive. I also like ladies with an attitude and pouty lips …mmmm…

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A Talent in Two Cities
Savvy Feature Gal, Julie Hoi, Stops Traffic

Julie Hoi is the kind of girl who’s not afraid to drink whisky straight; to tell a dirty story, or to skinny-dip with sixteen of her friends in a hotel swimming pool. She is not the kind of girl you’d think to find in Malaysia, a country under strict Islamic law. Regardless, this cheeky, doe-eyed 23 year-old calls this place home, and is doing very well for herself.

Her home, Kuala Lumpur, is a city of startling contrasts for its citizens. “There's so many things I love about here. There’s the 24-hour food stalls, the amazing shopping…” Julie can list the tourist attractions like a well-seasoned guide, the “beautiful beaches with clear blue water and soft, white sand” and the country’s “vast cultural heritage” among them. Her favourite is Malaysia’s Langkawi, her very own hot spot. “It was after a regatta, sixteen of us girls jumped into the pool naked past midnight, each nibbling on a drumstick, and drinking sex on the beach*.”

Postcard perfect to many, Malaysia is a dichotomy of cultures. Its capital, Kuala Lumpur, holds title as one of the major economic centres of South East Asia, doing billions of dollars of business with the west. But still it adheres to the strict conservatism of an Islamic state.

“For Islamic women, no beauty pageants are allowed; no catwalk in swimwear or lingerie, no revealing outfits,” says Julie. “In certain states, we even have a different queue for male and female in the grocery and in the cinema!” While she is Chinese and Christian, Julie recognises the restrictions on others with whom she shares her city’s sidewalks: while she acknowledges that all is not as it seems in paradise, yet adamantly denies that living in such a conservative country curtails her career.

“A lot of models have a lot of restrictions on a lot of things – the way they dress, act, eat, and so on. I guess I've grown used to the customs and culture in Malaysia to really be affected. I just try not to break any rules,” she laughs. As a model, she does almost all of her outdoor shoots in Singapore; her Malaysian shoots are restricted to private indoor venues.

Not just a model, Julie also works in TV, hosting a variety of shows, and as an emcee. She is no stranger to bizarre assignments: “I did a shoe shoot where the guy was practically sniffing and licking my feet! Another time, I was totally naked but airbrushed on for four hours,” she laughs, “… that was nice though.”

When asked what she’d do with Savvy’s million dollars if she won the Search for the Million Dollar Woman, she pauses before answering. “A million dollars? I guess the rational thing to do would be do save a chunk of it in the bank that yields a tidy sum in interest a month.” She speculates what she could do then with the monthly interest: property investment, gifts for her family, donations to charity…While Julie’s seems the most sensible answer Savvy’s seen so far, it is a nice example of how modelling can set you up for life. Julie explains that her dream for the not-so-distant future is to set herself up with a cooking school. In this, she admits, is where she’d put the small portion of the money she’d kept to her lonesome. One may be easily fooled into thinking she’s a traditionalist after all as she espouses that “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”. Fooled, that is, until she queries precisely how much whisky a million dollars would buy her.

*Ed’s note: Don’t get too excited. She’s not referring to a From Here to Eternity style shenanigans – sex on the beach is actually a drink.

Fancy getting a little frisky?
For your very own sex on the beach, shake up some peach schnapps and vodka with cranberry, orange and pineapple juice

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Credits: Photography by Kenny Yeoh, photographer assisted by Victor Chen, make-up and styling by Tai Sze Long, shoot produced by Candace Rae, interview and article by Savvy Editor Ele Glass, digital retouching by Daniel Parkinson.