UPEOPLEbodytalk

NATALIA
BRA TOP, €54,
WACOAL @
BROWN THOMAS
BRIEFS, €8.25,
M&S
GEORGIA
VINTAGE BRALET,
€120, JEAN
CRONIN VINTAGE
BRIEFS, €39,
WACOAL @ BROWN
THOMAS

BTOALDKY
Five women, five bodies, five takes on confidence

Photography: Lee Malone Assisted by: Dan Malone Styling: Courtney Smith Assisted by: Megan Fox
Hair: Trudy Hayes, Joinravenapp.com Makeup: By celebrity makeup artist
Christine Lucignano using Bourjois Assisted by: John Paul Lawrence

Models: Li Ann @ Distinct Model Managament, Appiok; Natalia; Georgia & Irena @ Not Another Agency

LI ANN SMALL

What does body confidence mean to you?
To me, body confidence means not caring
what other people think. It's not about your
body, it's about your mindset. Embrace
(what you think are) your flaws - I can
assure you that the more you discover and
love yourself and your body, the better you
will feel. I used to be so ashamed of the
scar on my torso, but now I love it; it tells a
story and it's part of me.

What’s your advice for being happy in
your own skin?
My advice for being happy in your own skin
is to stop comparing yourself to others.
As Eleanor Roosevelt said: "Comparison
is the thief of joy". There has never been a
truer expression, especially in the age of
social media where a picture seems to tell
a thousand words, but often those words
(just like the photos) are filtered. I think
the best way to be happy in your own skin
is to be a good person. I have known so
many seemingly 'beautiful' people that
have changed before my eyes because they
have an ugly personality, and vice versa.
Personality always shines through.

LI ANN
HAT, €280, FAO
MILLINERY,
FAOMILLINERY.COM
SHIRT, €59.95,
MASSIMO DUTTI
BRA, €56, WACOAL
@ BROWN THOMAS
TROUSERS, €34, M&S

APPIOK
BRA, €295, LA PERLA
@ SUSAN HUNTER
SHORTS, €95, CARMEL
BROWN STUDIO @
SUSAN HUNTER
RINGS AND HOOP
EARRINGS WORN
THROUGHOUT FROM
FOREVER 21, SETS
FROM €5.99 TO €12.99

APPIOK TONG

What does body confidence mean to you?
To me, body confidence means finding the positives in
your flaws and learning to love them because, as corny
as it sounds, they are what make you unique.

What's your advice to being happy in your own skin?
Take the time to get to know and love yourself because it
doesn't happen overnight! Also, don't seek acceptance or
validation from others because the only person that can
accept true happiness into your life is you.

GEORGIA MCCLURE GEORGIA
EARRINGS, €18,
What does body confidence mean TAYLOR AND ROSE
to you? BRA, €55, MAISON
I would say body confidence means LEJABY @ BROWN
feeling good in yourself, no matter THOMAS
what your shape and size are.

What's your advice to being happy
in your own skin?
My advice is to not let the likes of
Instagram give you a false impression
of what your body should look like.
You must embrace your own natural
shape and allow yourself to feel
beautiful. Curves, lumps, bumps - it's
all gorgeous. We must remember that
the capability of the female body is
so incredible, all women should feel
empowered by this.

(L-R) GEORGIA
BRA, €63,
CHANTELLE @
BROWN THOMAS
TROUSERS, €39.95,
ZARA
LI ANN
SLIP, €150, JEAN

CRONIN VINTAGE
IRENA
BRA, €53; KNICKERS,
€25.50, BOTH
FANTASIE @
ARNOTTS

SKIRT, €77, M&S
APPIOK
BODYSUIT, €135,
MARELLA @

ARNOTTS
NATALIA
SHIRT, €49, M&S
BODYSUIT, €109,
MAISON LEJABY @
BROWN THOMAS



IRENA
KIMONO, €59.95,
ZARA
BRA, €37; BRIEFS,

€34, M&S

NATALIA OGRODZKA

What does body confidence mean to you?
To me body confidence is the complete
energy between mind, body and soul. When
I smile on the inside, I smile on the outside
and my body reflects that.

What's your advice to being happy in your
own skin?
Learn to smile within. Your inner sunshine
can brighten any day and show you're
unbreakable.

NATALIA
SHAWL, €585,
JEAN CRONIN
VINTAGE
SLIP DRESS,
€159, GINIA @
ARNOTTS

IRENA DREZI

What does body confidence mean to you?
Being able to look in the mirror and like what
you see. I myself suffered from BDD when I was
16 so I know how hard it is to accept yourself
and actually realise it's normal to have stretch
marks, extra weight, scars and anything else
that is portrayed as 'abnormal' to society.

What's your advice to being happy in your
own skin?
Don't listen to other people and stop comparing
yourself to others. I got laughed at when I told
people I wanted to become a model. I had a
fixed image in my head of what I was meant
to look like. I ended up battling with an eating
disorder and kept thinking I had to be a size 8
to succeed, but day after day I realised I was
torturing my body and decided to start accepting
the fact that I'll never look like anyone else. I
always got the 'You don't have the right look,'
or 'You're not tall and skinny enough' but I just
turned around and said 'Watch me'. Go and
live your life, stop focusing on minor flaws that
don't define who you are!