The rise of curvy women

The curvy vs skinny debate may never be solved, but we are seeing a rise in curvier celebrities on our screens, as proved by Mad Men's Christina Hendricks.

The world of size zero beauties may well be threatened by a new wave of more womanly celebrities.
Lately there are in fact a few actresses on our screens that are a little rounder than the stars we have become accustomed to in the last few years and yet these women are enjoying fame, success and public adoration.

Watch out for the fully-formed woman

Christina Hendricks, Joan in TV show Mad Men, is currently carrying the torch for all women who are not a teeny-tiny size. Hendricks is in fact a UK size 14 and yet she's one of the most lusted after celebrities of the moment. Of course, aside from her size, the redhead is naturally stunningly beautiful and is starring in a hugely successful TV drama, yet her rounder frame has not been an obstacle for the actress. At the beginning of her career Crystal Renn lost a third of her body weight in order to make it as a model, but later on she decided she'd had enough of going hungry in the name of fashion and when her weight went up (she is now a UK 16), Renn re-marketed herself as a plus-size model. This move has not damaged her career, quite the opposite: she has recently appeared in campaigns for Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel and Jean Paul Gaultier.

If you've got them, flaunt them

However Hendricks and Renn are not the only famous women to have a curvaceous shape. Whilst by no means round, there are quite a few celebrities who are proud of their womanly figure. Beyonce', Salma Hayek, Kimberly Walsh, Liv Tyler, Kelly Brook and Kim Kardashian have all made the most of their assets, celebrating their bodies instead of aspiring to a pre-pubescent ideal. Alisha Keys too has always kept a healthy, stable weight as have Catherine Zeta-Jones and Julia Roberts, who recently claimed to be one of the few actresses whose weight has never been inversely proportional to her fame.
Britney looks slim, fit and toned these days, but she looks like a woman, as do Rihanna, Jennifer Love Hewitt and America Ferrera.

Even some models have embraced their curves

Even models let their guards down. As stunning as she still is, Tyra Banks is not the same body shape she was ten years ago, and neither is Kate Moss. Both women are slim of course, but they have a more average body type these days. Moss even said last year that she was thrilled at having put on a little bit of weight as it meant she finally had womanly breasts. 

Will fashion follow?

Hip designer Marc Jacobs has recently unveiled plans to design a line for women size 14 and up. It will be a year at least before the collection is available in shops, but his move has certainly sparked debate and it's not unlikely that more designers will follow in his footsteps.

Of course these are baby steps and the debate between curvy vs skinny has not been put to rest, and it probably never will, but maybe, just maybe, we might be moving towards accepting that women - and men - do come in different shapes and sizes, whether thin or less so.

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