Former Toddlers & Tiaras star lifts the lid on the wild realities of child beauty pageants, revealing her mother spent more than $70,000 to make her famous – only for her to RETIRE at six
- TLC alum Eden Wood claimed more than 300 titles during her pageant career
- The young star, from Arkansas, shot to fame on the show before retiring age six
- Despite the immense cost, the now 18-year-old recently hinted at a comeback
Toddlers & Tiaras star Eden Wood claimed more than 300 titles during her time as a child beauty queen – but her enviable success came at a cost.
The young star, from Arkansas, began competing when she was just a baby and took the pageant world by storm.
She shot to even dizzier heights of fame at just four years old when she was featured on the controversial TLC reality series in 2009 before officially retiring at age six.
And, although mom Mickie forked out more than $70,000 during Eden’s pageant career, the now 18-year-old seems undeterred after she recently hinted at a comeback.
Toddlers & Tiaras star Eden Wood claimed more than 300 titles during her time as a child beauty queen – but her enviable success came at a cost
The young star, from Arkansas, now 18-year-old (pictured) recently hinted at a comeback to the pageant world
Eden was first thrust in front of a camera at just six months old before becoming one of the main faces on Toddlers & Tiaras – which followed girls competing in child beauty pageants.
Mom Mickie previously discussed the lengths she went to in order to prepare her daughter for the stage – which included spray tans, outfits and make-up.
Speaking on an episode of the show shared on YouTube by TLC, which recently resurfaced, she estimated that she had shelled out: ‘Probably around $65,000 or $70,000.’
Similarly, Heather Ryan, who acted as manager for the mother-daughter duo, added: ‘Mickie doesn’t penny pinch when it comes to pageant stuff.
‘Now she’s spent enough on wardrobe and pictures to pretty much feed every child in Botswana.’
The revelation caused quite a stir among viewers as they flooded the comments to criticize Mickie for the indulgent spending.
One wrote: ‘To think all of that money could have been put into a collage fund! It would cover any school!’
Another said: ‘Did she take out loans to get $70,000?!?!? Goddamn.’
Mom Mickie (pictured together in 2012) is said to have forked out more than $70,000 during Eden’s glittering pageant career
The revelation caused quite a stir among viewers as they flooded with the comments with criticize for the indulgent spending
And a third simply added: ‘Money well wasted!!!’
Mickie announced in 2011 that Eden would no longer be competing in pageants so she could instead focus on forging a career in Hollywood.
She told ABC News at the time: ‘Why not see if we can’t have a Hollywood contract, a reality show, a spot on a Disney program? It’s the American dream. It’s her destiny.’
Eden has had a small selection of TV and film credits to her name since her retirement – and has also since made appearances as a runway fashion model.
But it seems that she is now considering dipping her toe back into the pageant water as she sets her sights on the Miss America title.
After sharing a recent reel to her TikTok account, where she has garnered more than 52,000 followers, one of her fans commented: ‘So are you gonna compete for Miss America?’
And Eden teased her return to the pageant scene, as she replied: ‘I hope so.’
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