Ali Michael
Encyclopedia
Alexandra Nicole Michael (born May 15, 1990, in Colleyville, Texas
Colleyville, Texas
Colleyville is a city in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States. Located roughly from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, the population was 22,807 at the 2010 census. Emerging from a number of small, rural settlements along the Cotton Belt Route, Colleyville was established in the...

) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 fashion model who attracted international attention for her weight as a fashion model
Size Zero
Size 0 is a women's clothing size in the US catalog sizes system. Size 0 and 00 were invented due to the changing of clothing sizes over time , which has caused the adoption of lower numbers...

.

Ali grew up in Colleyville, Texas, and graduated from Grapevine High School
Grapevine High School
Grapevine High School is a public secondary school at 3223 Mustang Drive in Grapevine, Texas, United States. The school is a part of the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District.GHS is located in the northeast region of Tarrant County....

 in 2008. Her modeling career started after winning the Fashion Dallas/Kim Dawson Model Search contest in 2005 at age 15. She has walked many runways,including Chanel, Christian Dior, and other famous designer brands.

In February 2008, she was sent home from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 fashion week after being told that "her legs were too plump". This was after Michael had gained five pounds after struggling with an eating disorder
Eating disorder
Eating disorders refer to a group of conditions defined by abnormal eating habits that may involve either insufficient or excessive food intake to the detriment of an individual's physical and mental health. Bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are the most common specific...

 that caused her weighing only 106 lb at 5'9". She was then the center of the article "Wasn't Skinny Supposed to Be Out of Fashion?" in The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....

on February 28, 2008.

In May 2008, she appeared on the Today Show and talked about the pressure to be thin as a model and the alarming increase over the years to be skinnier. She stated that she "hadn't had [her] period
Menstruation
Menstruation is the shedding of the uterine lining . It occurs on a regular basis in sexually reproductive-age females of certain mammal species. This article focuses on human menstruation.-Overview:...

 in over a year" and had a wake up call when on a plane she "ran [her] fingers through [her] hair, and when [she] took [her] hand away there was a dry brittle clump of hair in [her] hand". This was before Michael's mother forced her to see a nutritionist
Nutritionist
A nutritionist is a person who advises on matters of food and nutrition impacts on health. Different professional terms are used in different countries, employment settings and contexts — some examples include: nutrition scientist, public health nutritionist, dietitian-nutritionist, clinical...

, but then she began purging
Bulimia nervosa
Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating and purging or consuming a large amount of food in a short amount of time, followed by an attempt to rid oneself of the food consumed, usually by purging and/or by laxative, diuretics or excessive exercise. Bulimia nervosa is...

 after meals to avoid gaining weight.

In May, she was also in Teen Vogue
Teen Vogue
Teen Vogue magazine began as a version of Vogue magazine for teenage girls. This US magazine focuses on fashion and celebrities and offers information about the latest entertainment and feature stories on current issues and events.- Description :...

 and spoke about her weight struggle in an article. "I've had a lot of girls come up to me in the mall to say 'Thank you,' and that makes me feel good," Michael said in the February 2009 issue of Teen Vogue
Teen Vogue
Teen Vogue magazine began as a version of Vogue magazine for teenage girls. This US magazine focuses on fashion and celebrities and offers information about the latest entertainment and feature stories on current issues and events.- Description :...

 in regards to her interview on the Today Show about her weight loss. She also said that she was not alone and many other young (and old) models starve themselves and do not have periods.

After her early departure from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 after just one show, she returned strong for spring/summer 2009 Fashion Weeks in New York, London, Milan and Paris. She graced the catwalks of: Lacoste, ADAM, Matthew Williamson
Matthew Williamson
Matthew Williamson is an English fashion designer. His collections often have an Indian influence, perhaps related to the time Williamson spent working in India for the clothing store Monsoon...

, Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for Marc Jacobs, as well as Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, with more than 200 retail stores in 60 countries. He has been the creative director of the French design house Louis Vuitton since 1997...

, Max Azria
Max Azria
Max Azria is a French fashion designer of Tunisian Jewish descent who founded the contemporary women's clothing brand BCBGMAXAZRIA. Azria is also the designer, chairman and CEO of BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP, a global fashion house that encompasses over 20 brands...

, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Doo.Ri, Paul Smith
Paul Smith (fashion designer)
Sir Paul Smith jr, RDI, is an English fashion designer, whose business and reputation is founded upon his menswear. He is both commercially successful and highly respected within the fashion industry....

, Luella, Louise Goldin, Aquascutum, House of Holland, Burberry Prorsum, Iceberg, Fendi
Fendi
Fendi is an Italian high fashion house best known for its "baguette" handbags. It was launched in 1925 as a fur and leather shop in Rome, but today is a multinational luxury goods brand owned by LVMH...

, Bruno Pieters, Christian Dior
Christian Dior
Christian Dior , was a French fashion designer, best known as the founder of one of the world's top fashion houses, also called Christian Dior.-Life:...

, Balenciaga
Balenciaga
Balenciaga is a fashion house founded by Cristóbal Balenciaga, a Basque designer, born in the Basque Country, Spain. He had a reputation as a couturier of uncompromising standards and was referred to as "the master of us all" by Christian Dior. His bubble skirts and odd, feminine, yet ultra-modern...

, Sonia Rykiel
Sonia Rykiel
Sonia Rykiel née Flis is a French fashion designer.Ethnically a Polish-Romanian Jew, Sonia Rykiel was born in Neuilly a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France, the eldest of five daughters of a Polish mother and a Romanian father. At the age of 17, she was employed to dress the window...

, Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel...

, Akris, Celine and John Galliano. In addition to her strong comeback, Ali resigned contract with SportMax and a new fragrance contract with Lanvin
Lanvin
Lanvin may refer to:* Gérard Lanvin , French actor* Jeanne Lanvin , French fashion designer* Lanvin , French fashion house founded by Jeanne Lanvin...

's Jeanne Lanvin. She also became the face of the new Anna Sui
Anna Sui
Anna Sui is an American fashion designer. Her luxury brand retails globally in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Her clothing, fragrance, cosmetic, and accessories lines sell at Anna Sui stores in over 50 countries and are also widely distributed at leading department stores...

's campaign, Lord & Taylor, Gianfranco Ferre and recently, Coach.

In New York, she enjoys shopping at Opening Ceremony, and in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, one of her favorite clothing brands is Luella, because "it's very young and fun."

External links

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