Conversation | 07/17/2008 12:00 am

The Liz Smith Interview Part Two: Heidi Klum on Shoes, Stockerblog and Husband Seal

LIZ: No you’re not. So I wanted to ask you one question that people told me I should ask you. Do you ever feel when you say "auf wiedersehen" to those poor people who failed on "Project Runway" that you’re being mean? Do you get any response that people say, "Oh, that’s horrible?"

HEIDI: No, I mean, it’s horrible for those people in that moment just to leave the show, period. But really "auf wiedersehen" is not a terrible word. And if you go, literally, what that word means …

LIZ: What does it mean?

HEIDI: It means, "I’ll see you again."

I know for my work that, with the right team around me, I can walk into all these different vanities ... I know that I’m kind of a convertible ...

LIZ: Yes. Like "a bientot."

HEIDI: So it doesn’t mean you’ve fallen off the earth. I mean, it actually means, I’ll see you again. So it’s not like "you’re fired" or "you loser"…

LIZ: It’s not as terrible as, "You’re fired."

HEIDI: No. It means: "I’ll see you again."

LIZ: You know, a lot of people don’t like reality shows. The public loves them, though. Do you ever feel that you’re motivated to act certain unnatural ways, or are you just being yourself when you’re up there?

HEIDI: I think — now that I’m five years into the reality world — I’m more myself than I ever have been.

LIZ: Really?

HEIDI: Yes, because in the beginning, I would want to say a lot of things — and I was holding back a lot. I thought that I had to be very nice and … and maybe people tend to think now that I’m meaner … I, you know, say negative things or negative comments to them if I don’t like something, now I kind of just say what I feel. If I love something I say "I love what you did this week," to my designers. And if I don’t like something, I tell them and I tell them what I don’t like about it. And that is not purposely to be mean. It’s just my criticism, which is what I’m there for. I’m the judge.

Read more about: Fashion, Heidi Klum, Marriage, Project Runway, Q & A, Relationships

11 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Liz, I’ve never heard of the reality show, “Project Runway.” I must be out of the ‘loop’. Do women my age (50+) actually watch it? Just curious.

By Maizie James on 07/16/2008 10:16 pm

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Is it just me? Or does Heidi look like a younger version of Liz herself? Look at Heidi, then look at LIZ … LIZ looks way better on account she got where she got on her brains not her body. Dear Heidi, Take a lesson from this interview …. Liz completely stumped you with the sex question. I will pray that you understand what it means to give and take a good interview …. the interview you gave with LIZ should have gone smoother. My advice is that you don’t think so much when speaking to LIZ …. she is your friend …. If LIZ interviews you it is much different than and TMZ expose! Capice, Heidi?!

By Blue Circle Girl on 07/16/2008 11:13 pm

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I heard once that Heidi did not know those tapes on the sides of disposable diapers were fasteners. She was using safety pins. Probably an urban legend…

By Star Lawrence on 07/17/2008 10:01 am

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They discussed blisters on the feet. I read that putting some anti-perspirant on the feet can help prevent this, because moisture and friction cause blisters. I enjoyed the interview. Heidi seems sweet, while Liz comes across as just a super people-person.

By James the Game on 07/17/2008 2:28 am

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My 20 yr old daughter loves project runway. I watched one episode with her and the design aspect of it did hold my attention but the nasty, mean side of it was a real turn off. And it’s hard to describe but Ms Klum is a terrible speaker (and I’m not referring to her accent). Every time she opened her mouth it was so unnatural and stilted, as if she didn’t understand what she was saying but was trying to “act”. She comes across as rather dumb. It was painful to listen to her speak.

By DeBúrca obj on 07/17/2008 2:34 am

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Heidi will get better with experience. The trick to speaking on-air or during an interview is to sound like yourself. It’s easier said than done for relative beginners, especially those who haven’t developed an ear for their own voice.

By James the Game on 07/17/2008 9:55 am

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Great interview Liz, thank you! I edit what I say. I have been thinking about why I do this for a week. Funny that Heidi talked about this. It is from being careful about hurting feelings. In the retail business you cannot say what you think..heh that would be fun. “Hi, my, my, you look interesting, look into my eyes, good baby, come over here..lol So I edit, edit, edit, maybe I should edit this comment.

I always watch interviews with these two. They are a blessing to this world. Seal seems to know how to treat a woman. He should write about it. How He Learned to Treat a Woman”. He said in one interview, “Happy Wife, Happy Life” well, who wouldn’t want to keep Hiedi Klum happy? She is smart, sensitive, beautiful, and has her own show, of which I never saw myself . Me, in my fifties am not really interested in that kind of show. I like the game shows, Jeopardy, the new one with Al Roker, Family Feud, Password, are you smarter than a fifth grader? Me, I like up-beat shows. I do not care to watch people fighting, rape, molestation, violence of any sort. I mean people need to get a hold of these people who are writing these scripts and give them some spirituality, or lessons on how our world is in trouble, we need good shows like, the old “Stairway to Heaven, The Waltons. Now we are watching, Wife Swap, and The Nanny. Which really are not to bad, I watch them sometimes myself and they are Helping people so it is kind of spiritual, not sick exploitation. The writer’s need to move on up on the soul’s evolutionary scale a bit.

Seal does not write violence! When he writes he writes, and you feel his pain, but, it is not sick thoughts of violence, it is in response to the violence he has felt. I love Seals music, and I listen to him often. His music got me through, and still does get me through a hard day.

By Jeanette Foresta on 07/17/2008 8:48 am

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Nobody watches Project Runway? I do!

By Star Lawrence on 07/17/2008 10:03 am

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I’ve been watching Project Runway the last few days as the past seasons have been rerun. It’s been one of those guilty pleasures…like watching a train wreck…the designers stressed out and crying over their own poor design. Since I’m a size ample I find it all quite amusing.

By Tee Zee on 07/17/2008 11:17 am

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Thanks Liz! I loved the interview. Heidi is such a sweetheart and her family are adorable. I also kind of hate that she has three children under the age of 4 and looks like that! Her reaction to the “sex” question was cute. “It’s definitely one of the most fun things to do…after disneyland” BWAH! She is too much.

By Ariel O on 07/17/2008 2:29 pm

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Two very appealing ladies sitting around chatting. What’s not to like there. I don’t have a TV and wouldn’t watch a reality show if I had one…but I do think Heidi Klum is adorable and she comes off as a sweet, authentic woman. I saw photos of her home in Mexico….and photos of she and Seal. Perfect house. Beautiful architecture, great use of color and spare furnishings, not cluttered and overdone. Was one of the few houses I ever saw photographer that thought…that’s for me. The impression from that article and from eleswhere that she and Seal are a very happy couple. Nice to read. Thanks, Liz. And you look just as great as Heidi.

By No Way-No How -No McCain on 07/17/2008 10:14 pm