Size 12 model branded 'too fat' for TV competition

[twitchy]

The stunning size 12 model branded 'too fat' for TV competition

By TAHIRA YAQOOB Last updated at 23:39pm on 27th November 2006

Poured into a gold swimsuit, Make Me A Supermodel winner Jen Hunter looks as if this outfit was custom-made for her.
But the one-piece triggered a furious row about stick-thin models when her rival finalist Marianne Berglund appeared painfully underweight in the same attire.
Appearing here for the first time in the outfit which sparked the debate about size zero models, Miss Hunter - who was criticised on the show for being too fat - said: "This is what a real woman should look like.
"I am all curves and flesh, not skin and bone. Boys, who would you rather snuggle up to?"
Looking as different as chalk and cheese, the swimwear clings to Miss Hunter's voluptuous curves and reveals acres of cleavage while on clinically underweight Miss Berglund, it shows her protruding hips and ribs and appears to hang off her.
Barmaid Miss Hunter, 24 - who weighs 11 stone and is a healthy size 12 - was reduced to tears when she was castigated on the reality TV show for not taking a food and exercise regime seriously.
Judge Tandy Anderson, managing director of Select Model Management, criticised her for having "stocky" legs while supermodel Rachel Hunter, a fellow panellist, reprimanded her for saying she wanted to prove larger women could be successful models.
Swedish blonde Miss Berglund, 18, who made it to the final with her, was meanwhile praised for having a "sensational" body for modelling despite having a body mass index of 16.1.
It fell well below the minimum BMI of 18 for models taking part in Madrid Fashion Week in September, set after catwalk model Luisel Ramos dropped dead from self-starvation.
But mother-of-one Miss Hunter triumphed when viewers voted her to the top female slot in the contest - and claimed she owed her success to her favourite dish of hotpot and chips.
In a refreshing admission which will have millions of women breathing a sigh of relief - and letting out their stomachs - she said: "It's fantastic to know the public prefer a woman with a few wobbly bits over a stick insect.
"I am a northern lass - I like my hotpot and my shepherd's pie and I have a very sweet tooth.
"My wardrobe is stuffed with clothes that don't fit but I scrub up pretty well. I like to think men see me as a yummy mummy."
Her confession comes after a chorus of calls for the fashion industry to stop using stick-thin and underweight models. Designer Giorgio Armani recently took a stand by banning size zero models from his shows.
Wigan-born Miss Hunter, who beat five female hopefuls to the top slot after refusing to bow to pressure, claimed her win proved women could not relate to skinny models.
The divorcee triumphed over eight-stone Miss Berglund - who was dubbed "the walking skeleton" - but was beaten to the overall prize of a modelling contract by a male competitor.
In a blog diary she kept throughout the show, in which she cheekily gave herself the nickname "fat bird," she announced: "I am doing this for every hardworking single mum and every woman who isn't a size eight or below.
"You don't have to be a size eight to be beautiful. I am trying to change an industry that is so set in its ways and its definition of what is beautiful. It is so hard and harsh at times.
"You analyse every step you make, every mouth full of food you take. As long as I am being me, I am not going to regret anything I do."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/liv...n_page_id=1773

You've got to check out the pictures! ^

[Goose]

The "skinny" model looks horrible in that swimsuit. Jen Hunter looks absolutely beautiful. I can't believe that the image of "beauty" is that twig with the ribs sticking out.

[travelbug]

Are sizes different in the UK? Cause that "size 12" woman looks to me like she would be a size 6-8 US.

Most women in the US who wear a size 12 are overweight, chunky, however you want to call it. There are some exceptions, like very tall women who are large boned or women who are muscular and stocky.

This woman in the picture is not what I would consider overweight, she is certainly larger than the very thin "ideal" we see in magazines, but not fat. If this were the "average" size woman, that would be great. But she is still smaller than most women.

[Laurent]

The curvy model looks very close to what pinups looked like in the 1940s and they were considered the epitome of beauty.

That thin "ideal" looks like a twig in gold lame'.

Sad to see how far we've come in 60 some years.

[sputnik]

yeah, it's a UK size. that's about an 8-10 in US size.

ok, hope i don't get slapped here but i do think the first chick is a bit too heavy for 'real' modelling - and by real modelling i mean runway, couture, etc. for the big designers. she doesn't have the legs for it.
and the second girl looks ill and is too thin.
i think there's a happy medium. remember how models used to look in the 80s and early 90s? still tall and thim enough to show off clothes but before the fashion scene was invaded by malnourished 14 year-old russian girls. i mean, you know it's gone too far when kate moss is no longer among the really skinny crowd of models.

[Chilly Willy]

ok, hope i don't get slapped here but i do think the first chick is a bit too heavy for 'real' modelling - and by real modelling i mean runway, couture, etc. for the big designers.

Well, she looks a little flabby. But other than that, she has a good body. Nevertheless, I know what you mean. But that's just because we have been brainwashed by the industry for most of our lives. And even though we're aware of that, we can't help it.

Brainwash or not, the skinny model looks like she belongs in a clinic.

[Martirio]

Jen Hunter looks great! ! She's very sexy too. Anyway, I still think her thighs need a little bit more muscle tone. Apart from that, I think her body is nearly perfect.

That twig looks like crap.

[jocelyn]

i think jen hunter is a size 8-10 us. she is normal (normal, not average! beacause today the average person in the western countries is overweight at least if you believe the statistics) sized for her height and age. but there is no way any high fashion designer would hire her because of todays standards. there is a big difference between what most people find attractive and what fashion designers like for their models to look like. she might get work as a commercial model though or in campaigns...

[Sojiita]

Well I can see where they might think the one has thighs that might not be the very best for modeling..but the other one! DAMN! Those bones sticking out are a clear indicator of being unnaturally underweight. The ones who are naturally that thin..while being very very slender...do not have bones sticking out. If they are going to use these thin reeds at least use the ones who are genetically programmed to be that thin and do not look like emaciated concentration camp survivors. They at the very least need to have the standard of 'naturally very very thin looking yes, unnaturally underweight and starved looking NO".

[Mr. Authority]

As a trainer I think the "fat" model looks really beautiful. There's nothing wrong with her curves or her thighs. Plus she looks healthy and has a nice smile.

The skinny chick is fucking ugly. Not only is she sickly thin, her face looks horrible and not that attractive in the least.

[Nerissa]

The stick thin girl looks so hungry and UNhappy... Sad sad sad..

The curvy girl is beautiful =)

[Rondette]

I was reading an interesting discussion on this report on another forum. Basically everyone was saying similar things, about how 'gross' 'sickly' 'unwell' the skinny models looked, and the a girl piped up (she is a regular poster there) who shut everyone up. She is naturally skinny, almost to this girl's extent, and she HATES it-she cannot put on weight for love nor money and found it quite insulting that everyone was so happy to assume that the skinny girl starves herself into looking that way and slamming her for it.
I'm not saying that this is the case with this Swedish girl, but why is it so much easier to say really awful things about the skinny girl but not the larger? Hunter does look better IMHO but I would be interested to hear the skinnier girls opinion on people calling her some quite cruel names.

Here is the discussion for anyone interested, there are some very good points made on it-
http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/u.../t/001447.html

[Chilly Willy]

I was reading an interesting discussion on this report on another forum. Basically everyone was saying similar things, about how 'gross' 'sickly' 'unwell' the skinny models looked, and the a girl piped up (she is a regular poster there) who shut everyone up. She is naturally skinny, almost to this girl's extent, and she HATES it-she cannot put on weight for love nor money and found it quite insulting that everyone was so happy to assume that the skinny girl starves herself into looking that way and slamming her for it.

Here is the discussion for anyone interested, there are some very good points made on it-
http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/u.../t/001447.html

We had the same discussion here, with a poster claiming the exact same thing. Only you don't shut us up that easily:

Vlada Roslyakova is too skinny

[Aella]

yeah, it's a UK size. that's about an 8-10 in US size.

ok, hope i don't get slapped here but i do think the first chick is a bit too heavy for 'real' modelling - and by real modelling i mean runway, couture, etc. for the big designers. she doesn't have the legs for it.
and the second girl looks ill and is too thin.
i think there's a happy medium. remember how models used to look in the 80s and early 90s? still tall and thim enough to show off clothes but before the fashion scene was invaded by malnourished 14 year-old russian girls. i mean, you know it's gone too far when kate moss is no longer among the really skinny crowd of models.

Agreed. It's not her size I mind so much, but I think she'd look better with some more muscle tone. The other girl looks ill though-I'm at a loss on how anyone could find this beautiful.

I miss the 80s and 90s models: Cindy Crawford looked fantastic in her day, and so did Naomi, Christy, and Tyra Banks for that matter.

[Rondette]

I guess all we can hope for is the fad blowing over, I cannot see how they can get 'em any skinnier than some of the girls out there. Perhaps next year they will be using life sized barbie doll robots to go down the runway. Nothing would surprise me!