Here’s what Lara had to say;

“Well, I’m a bit better now, but I was pretty self-conscious about it a few months ago because everybody kept going on like, “Oh, she’s so curvy!” and “She’s a plus-size model!” and this and that. It’s all people would talk about-how I’m not very skinny. For a while, it made me pretty upset and I got a bit obsessive about it. I did a bunch of dieting and exercising and everything. I was losing weight, but I was still much bigger than everybody else. I didn’t really see the point of making myself crazy anymore, so I kind of toned it down a little bit.”

It does beggar belief that a size 4 could be referred to as a plus size model and it is a testament to just how thin models have become that someone of Stone’s enviable frame would start to think she was fat and make efforts to rectify this. Whilst I think its good that Stone speaks out if it helps to highlight just how crazy the standards of thinness have become, it is also worrying that some aspiring models or young girls may too start to believe that a size 4 is not thin. As a size 10 I don’t really consider myself plus sized so for Stone to do so has really shocked me.

I’ve posted a pic of Stone naked on the front cover of LOVE magazine just so we can all see what we are calling plus these days….

Women come in all different shapes and sizes so surely models should? I mean I’m all for model being an example of the best type of body but couldn’t we have it so it was the best at a variety of different sizes? Women can be beautiful at a range of weights and shapes surely?

It is especially baffling to me that someone of my size is either too thin or not thin enough!

But this time I didn’t care; I finally feel happy in my own skin and I honestly wouldn’t want to lose weight and go back to my super skinny former self. Mark’s clothes made me feel amazing and I felt strong and powerful on the runway. Sound like a major cliche but I really did. 

Its fired me up again about promoting a good body image and about drawing attention to why more healthy figured girls are not used more in fashion. I spoke to my agent here today to tell her that I’d be happy to do press arising from the show; I think she is a little bit wary but its something I really feel that I want to do. Hope I don’t regret it….it may mean I come out of the closet here…

Check out Mark’s show here! http://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/show.aspx/catwalk-report/id,8759

The best thing about the fitting was that I ran into Crystal Renn, who I lived with in New York a lifetime ago and is in town to do Mark’s show. We had a lovely catch up, trying to cram the last 5 years into a 20 minute coffee! She looks amazing though; great figure and such a stunning face. It seems crazy looking at her that she is the world’s biggest ‘plus’ model as to most people she would just be a gorgeous, slim girl.

I love her though as she told me I had an amazing body and should do Sports Illustrated… I wish! 

My booker just called- I got the show! Will post tomorrow about how it all goes!

A panel formed of industry insiders such as one of my favourite models Doutzen Kroes, casting director James Sully and designer Zac Posen, discussed whether putting an age limit on models walking the catwalk would help to solve the problem of too small sample sizes dictating what a models weight can be. Doutzen, who started modelling at 18, spoke out about the frequent pressures she felt too lose weight and that she was often not booked for shows for being unable to fit into sample sizes.

I too started modelling at the relatively (in modelling terms) old age of 18 and the pressure to compete size wise with 14 and 15 year olds is immense. At 14 I too was a lanky beanpole but by 18 most girls find that without severe calorie restriction their bodies take on a more womanly shape.

For me, I am fully in support of having a minimum working age for models; not only do I think this would help to stem some of the super-skinny madness we are now seeing, along with taking fashion back to being an industry that celebrates strong, sexy women, but it would also help to prevent young, vulnerable girls being chewed up and spat out by an industry that doesn’t always have their best interests at heart.

A 14 year old girl should be enjoying school and friends, not being thrown into a cut-throat industry where her only asset is her youth, her face and her tiny frame.

I know Sara from when we both used to do the show circuit together and she was one of the smartest, coolest and funniest models I met, an opinion that has only be confirmed to me with her wise yet candid words surrounding many of the issues raised in this documentary.

She is attempting to bring to light some of the more unsavoury aspects of the modelling world, that remain hidden behind the glamorous facade; the reality that young girls, who are far away from home being exposed to a world that they are ill equipped to deal with. The documentary, filmed by her former boyfriend Ole Schell, reveals a world where some achieve money and fame but the vast majority live crammed into model flats, paying extortionate rent and coping with the pressures of working long hours whilst trying to maintain their prepubescent frame.

From what I understand of the doc, is that Sara manages to do this without attacking the industry itself; in fact in one interview I read with her she notes that ‘considering how many smart, talented people there are in this business I think we could do better’. A sentiment I could not agree with more.

Have finally come out of the daze of wine and tears and am starting to feel a little bit more like myself again. I mean I still veer between wanting to punch his immature, emotionally retarded lights out and sobbing about how much I love him but last night I didn’t cry myself to sleep for the first time since it happened and today I pulled on my slinkiest dress.

Which has led to the discovery that I have lost some ‘break-up’ weight, not sure how much as I don’t way myself, but my once too-tight dress is now a bit looser all over. I think what’s worrying me is that I like it and can find myself thinking of how to keep it off. With my history of using food as a form of control in emotionally intense situations I really don’t want to do that here, but the little devil in me keeps whispering in my ear…

I’m going to ignore it though; I’ll never be able to have a rebound fling if I’m a bag of bones and that will hopefully be incentive enough!

This led to an impromptu dress up session as one of my friends is clearing out her (rather extensive) wardrobe. I got some lovely dresses and shoes, but (and it could have been the wine talking) I felt the all to familiar pang of wanting to be super skinny again. One of my other friends, a model of course, got to try on all these beautiful designer gowns because she would be the only one who could fit into them. Something in me still wants to be the skinniest girl in the room. Rationalising this nonsensical thought seems to do no good at all but I am choosing to attribute it t my feeling blue over my love life.. Bloody men!

Chatting with her also made me realise how much I’ve grown since my modelling days (mentally that is not just size wise!) Talking to her I felt really happy with the size I am. And then I went on Facebook this afternoon and started looking through a load of old uni photos were I was a good dress size smaller than I am now and that annoying little devil inside me still thinks I looked better then.

Its my own fault; I was being too complacent in my position of body acceptance. ha! I should have known those little demons can’t be silenced for too long. I am however going to make a determined effort to ignore them, this is merely a momentary blip. Especially as said booker couldn’t have been more complementary about how I looked and has promised to put me up for any bigger girl castings/TV stuff that she gets. Yay!!!

I loved that he seemed to positive about promoting diversity in the industry and that he’d been unable to stomach a brief foray into booking for skinny models, upset at the efforts those girls had to make to maintain their sample size measurements.

As I was not in New York to meet with him personally he asked me to email over some pics of me in a bikini (words to strike fear into the heart of anyone) along with my measurements. I dutifully did this, and even gave him my honest measurements. The response when it came back was unequivocal ‘This is sad’ he said but you are just too small.

My hips at present are somewhere between a 36″ and a 37″ and the minimum for plus over there is 41″-42″. It would seem that my measurements don’t fit in anywhere.

Whilst I understand that there should be a limit to how small a girl can be if ‘plus’ is going to accurately reflect what a plus woman is (although many would argue that even with a 42″ hips they are too small to do this), what I don’t understand is why there is no room for those of us who fall somewhere in between?

Surely an attainable, athletic and healthy figure is something that we should celebrate?