THE FACE OF BEAUTY

Who said Barbie-doll looks were beautiful? Not us. To celebrate our special issue, we meet five women embracing the things that single them out as unique - and gorgeous

 

'I GOT TEASED FOR BEING GINGER - BUT I LOVE BEING UNIQUE'
Student Anna Tatton, 15, from Portsmouth, is unique. No one else in her family is a redhead. Bullied at school, she has just been spotted by a modelling agency.

“No one else in my immediate family has red hair, except for my grandfather – my brother and sister are both tanned with dark hair.

I love my colouring. When I was younger, I sometimes got teased or called ‘ginger’, but no one was ever particularly cruel.

Redheads do get a hard time, but you just have to look at people like Lily Cole, who embrace their looks. I love what she’s done for redheads. I’m hoping to follow in her footsteps and have signed up with Bookings, a model agency, after being spotted by a scout while out shopping.

As for freckles, I think they’re a sign of beauty. I think it’s great that everyone doesn’t have to look the same.”

 

 

'MY TATTOOS ARE A RECORD OF MY LIFE'
Part-time model Candice Casalegno, 25, has exchanged her long blonde locks and flawless skin for cropped locks, tattoos and piercings. She lives in London with her tattooist husband Andre, 35.

“People stare at me in the street and I do get nasty remarks about how I’ve ruined my looks with tattoos and piercings, but to me, they’re beautiful.

I used to have long blonde hair and was probably the conventional idea of ‘pretty’, but I didn’t want to be labelled like that.

Each of my tattoos is symbolic – I’ve lost count of how many I have, but when I’m finished, they’ll be a record of my life. My first was a small tribal design meaning power and strength on my back. I had it done when I was 19 – then married the tattooist!

My body art isn’t for shock value, I do it purely for myself. People ask how I’ll feel about having all these tattoos when I’m 85, but that doesn’t bother me at all.”

 

 

'MY BIRTHMARK HAS HELPED SHAPE WHO I AM'
Joanne Corbin, 27, used to be ashamed of her birthmark. Now the single lawyer from south London says she wouldn’t change it, even if she could.

“Most days I look in the mirror and don’t even notice my birthmark.

When I was a child, kids would point at me and adults would ask Mum what was wrong with my face. Being different upset me, but my parents told me personality was more important than appearance. They instilled in me a strong sense of self-belief and taught me not to be defined by my birthmark.

With boyfriends, we’ve always been mates first, so they’ve got to know me as a person and not judged me on my appearance.

If someone told me they could take my birthmark away, I don’t know what I’d do. It’s such a part of me and has helped shape the person I am. I don’t think I want to change me!”

 

 

'BEAUTY ISN'T JUST ABOUT LOOKING YOUNG'
Anna Von Ruden, 58, has never looked back after going grey at 25. Now a model and actress, she splits her time between London and Berlin.

“I got my first grey hair when I was 18. I was really shocked and immediately covered it up.

I didn’t want to be a grey teenager, so I started dyeing my hair blue, orange, pink – anything to make me stand out from the crowd.

But when I became pregnant with my first child at 25, I let my hair go back to its natural colour. Immediately, the compliments started. I think that’s because it’s a lovely white-grey and is very striking. People said it looked unusual, but suited my fair skin colour perfectly.

Now I’m older and have lines, my hair looks even better. Beauty doesn’t have to mean looking young. I went back to modelling at the age of 53, and I get more work now than I did in my 20s!”

 

 

'I SEE MYSELF FOR WHO I AM, NOT WHAT I LOOK LIKE'
Bianca Knowlton, 26, once hated being born albino. Now she loves what she sees in the mirror. Next month the massage therapist from Poole, Dorset, will marry her fiancé Simon, 26.

“I didn’t realise I was different until I was about six when I began to be bullied. I was pushed in a puddle, stamped on and called ‘ghost’ by other kids.

From that moment, I began to hate the way I looked and became very introverted. As I got older, the taunts became crueller – even today, I can be in a shop and a total stranger might shout ‘freak!’ at me.

But when I was 16, I thought: ‘I can hide in a corner for the rest of my life, or I can get on with things’.

No one else in my family is albino, but they have been a huge support. We’ve even set up a website to help sufferers of albinism – who are born without the pigment melanin and so have very pale skin and hair.

Most people aren’t happy with what they see in the mirror, but now I’m older, I can look at my reflection and see myself for who I am, not what I look like.”

 

Have your say: Tell us about your idea of beauty. Do you feel more beautiful as you get older? Have you overcome low self-esteem? >>

 

WORDS: JILL FOSTER, EIMEAR O’HAGAN PHOTOGRAPHY: LANCTON HAIR & MAKE-UP: ALICE THEOBALD AT JOY GOODMAN, SARA BOWDEN MODELS: ANNA TATTON AT BOOKINGS CANDICE BETTISSON AT UGLY THANKS TO CHANGINGFACES.ORG.UK