Fann Wong, now 8 months pregnant, has gained 17kg so far

Eight months pregnant, Fann Wong says a faux nude shot is to remember the moment

Happy expectations: Fann Wong at the Diner En Blanc picnic on Sentosa, her last public appearance before she gives birth, and her nearly nude shot (above). -- PHOTO: MARIE FRANCE BODYLINE
Happy expectations: Fann Wong at the Diner En Blanc picnic on Sentosa, her last public appearance before she gives birth, and her nearly nude shot (above). -- PHOTO: MARIE FRANCE BODYLINE
Happy expectations: Fann Wong at the Diner En Blanc picnic on Sentosa (above), her last public appearance before she gives birth, and her nearly nude shot. -- PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
Local actress Fann Wong attends the Diner En Blanc picnic, which will be her last public appearance before delivering her baby. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG

She made headlines recently with a faux nude shot, but actress Fann Wong abashedly laughs off comparisons to the iconic Vanity Fair cover featuring a heavily pregnant Demi Moore in 1991.

"No, it is not lah," she says of her advertisements for weight management company Marie France Bodyline, for whom she is spokesman. In the pictures, Wong is seen cradling her eight- months-pregnant belly, her modesty protected by two blue sashes of chiffon and silk. The print advertisements, which she has shared on her Facebook and Instagram, have received more than 73,000 and 13,000 likes respectively.

Says the 43-year-old: "It is a very beautiful moment as a mother-to-be and I just wanted to have in print this moment to keep as a beautiful memory."

Wong was looking radiant at the Diner En Blanc picnic last Saturday evening at Tanjong Beach in Sentosa, in her last public appearance before her delivery.

There are days, however, when the dewy- skinned actress feels far from attractive.

She says: "When people tell me I look stunning, I just look in the mirror and see a lump (because of) all that water retention."

Her feet are also beginning to swell, she says, so her husband, actor Christopher Lee, 42, massages them for her each night.

For 45 minutes daily, Lee also helps her exercise by doing water walking, where she works against water resistance by walking the length of the swimming pool.

When asked if she feels the stress of needing to bounce back into shape after delivery, the actress - who put on 17kg in the past eight months - demurs.

"I don't feel the pressure. My concern is that I want to breastfeed, so I make sure that I have the right diet to be able to do so. That is most important for me," she says.

But the bubbly mother-to-be gives a hint of peer pressure: One of her friends who is also eight months pregnant has put on just 7.5kg so far. Wong exclaims: "I thought, oh no, what did I do?"

The former MediaCorp actress - who, like her husband, is now signed to Taiwanese artist management agency Catwalk - says she plans to raise her child on home ground. She says: "Well, because I'm Singaporean. This is the best place to raise a child because it is safe."

The education system, she adds, is excellent. But like many Singaporean parents, she is starting to get antsy about her unborn child's education. Specifically, the chances of nabbing a spot at a good preschool and primary school, she says.

Former actress Diana Ser, who has three children, had warned Wong of the tough-as-nails fight to give a child a headstart - starting with the kindergarten years.

Wong says: "I was told that I have to get prepared, once my baby is born, for preschool. I didn't know I had to look so far ahead and prepare for primary school too. My nursery has not even been done up."

While the child's future educational path has started to register on her radar, she and Lee are determined not to find out the baby's gender. As a result, the nursery room in their home will be a gender-neutral white and green, and her stockpile of baby clothes is white. Wong will go shopping for essentials such as a baby cot next week. She also gets tips from a support network of celebrity mums, who are eagerly dispensing parenting advice.

"Every bit of information counts. I'm a bit kiasu, but this is very important to me," says Wong of her friends, getai star Liu Lingling, who had a baby boy last year; mother-of-three Catherine Ng - the wife of actor Mark Lee - and actress Pan Lingling, who has two sons.

The store of tips she is fervently collecting includes ways to make babies sleep soundly at night, the best nutrients for infants and how to prepare a child for preschool.

She is opting for a natural birth, with an epidural, when her time comes. Depending on gender, she and her husband will have a fortune-teller come up with a Chinese name. The couple will then decide on an English name, if any, later on.

She says: "I just hope that my baby will be healthy, and optimistic and jovial - like his or her father - and as conscientious as me.

"I'm excited and trying not to be too nervous. I can't wait to see my baby."

keziatoh@sph.com.sg

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.