Newsmaker of the week : Tess Holliday
Our newsmaker this week is plus size model and inspirator Tess Holiday.
The Los Angeles-based stunner became an Internet sensation in January for being the first model of her size signed by a major agency when she joined MiLK Model Management. Born and raised in the Southern Mississippi town of Laurel the rising star’s story is inspiring and unique as she wanted to be a model since she was 15 years of age trying to get into plus-size modelling old but faced many obstacles early on including relentless bullying in school where she recalls a difficult childhood and relentless bullying much of it due to her size.
Over the last four years she has become a force online with more than 826,000 Facebook fans and more than 645,000 Instagram followers proving that beauty comes in every size and is already in demand across the globe. She is also the founder of the hashtag-driven movement #effyourbeautystandards which she started after dealing with online bullies who berated her size. The successful movement with its strong devotion to sharing body-positive images is speaking out against body prejudices and encourages women (and men) who don’t fall into conventional ideals of beauty to share their photos and stories tagged with the hashtag, and to celebrate themselves and each other instead of hiding themselves in shame by sticking two fingers up at standard beauty ideals.
Describing the movement in her own words on her Huffington post blog she says “my #effyourbeautystandards hashtag was because I needed a way to deal with the intense pressure I felt from everyone to be something/someone I’m not. It was my way of taking the hurt away from the constant scrutiny I’m under and instead turn it into a positive place for women who struggle with the same feelings. In many ways, it saved my life. It’s much easier for me to really practice what I preach, my middle finger to a world so full of hate, judgment, and small-minded fools.”
Holliday’s first modeling break came in 2011, while working as a receptionist at a Los Angeles dental office, she was cast as the face of the A&E show “Heavy” after producers found photos on the Model Mayhem networking site. Since then she’s gone on to model for brands such as Domino Dollhouse and Jessica Louise Clothing. She was named one of the world’s top plus size models by Vogue Italia and has been featured in hundreds of blogs. She follows a regimented fitness and nutrition program working out with a personal trainer four times a week and enjoys walking, swimming, and hiking in her free time. She avoids soda, drinks a lot of water and cooks healthy.
Also known as Tess Munster she has been using her fiance Nick Holliday’s last name professionally since January. This week, she proudly revealed a gorgeous set of black and white photographs from her first official agency shoot and landed the cover of People magazine’s Body Issue in which she discusses her struggle for acceptance as a model in a skinny-obsessed world.
For more on Tess and her interview visit People Magazine’s website and check back next week to find out who our next Newsmaker is.
