Victoria's Secret Model Candice Swanepoel Nabs Swimsuit Catalog Cover

It may not be such a cruel winter after all.

Victoria's Secret model Candice Swanepoel bares her best assets for the cover of the brand's swimsuit catalog.

“It was such an honor to be picked for the cover,” the model tells PEOPLE. “It is such an iconic catalogue. Before I was a model, I used to see Gisele Bündchen, Tyra Banks and all of those iconic women on it. It is amazing that a little South African girl can get on the cover.”

The South African-bred beauty sports a sparkly bandeau top--which will be available in VS' 2013 line--and glistening skin. “I love it — it’s so sexy and gives me amazing cleavage,” she says.

For this issue, Swanepoel and the Angel gang jetted to the beaches of Miami and Turks and Caicos to be shot by esteemed photographer Russell James. While the pressure to keep their bikini bodies on-point is enough reason for competition amongst the models, the cover girl reveals that is not the case. “Victoria’s Secret is like a big family,” she says. “The swim shoots are always really fun, and I love being on the beach. I can’t really complain [about my job] — I feel very lucky!”

So do we--three more catalogs, shot in Tulum and St. Bart's, will be hitting mailboxes this season. Check out the girls frolicking in very little to the sounds of Bruno Mars below.