I guess my mom raised me right. She was very celebratory of her body. I never heard her once say, "I feel fat." Back when I was modeling, the first time I went to Italy I was having cappuccinos every day, and I gained 15 pounds. And I felt gorgeous! I would take my clothes off in front of the mirror and be like, "Oh, I look like a woman." And I felt beautiful, and I never tried to lose it, 'cause I loved it.

I'm just looking for material that excites me more than any specific genre. It just needs to be good.

I thought, well, you might see curves there, but that's just a bone - so even if I lose weight that's not going to change anything. That's how I look. That's my shape. Do the math.

I auditioned for so many things - cops, lawyers, doctors and things but they were like, "She just seems too sweet. I don't see that hard side of her."

I'm not quite at the point where I feel the need to wear disguises in public.

In the beginning, it was odd to have so much attention brought to my body type. I thought, "Uh-oh, brace yourself." But everyone has been so positive. During the first season, a woman came up to me at dinner and said, "I just want to thank you - watching you has made me proud of my body." I thought, What an amazing thing for someone to say! To make anyone feel good about themselves makes me feel good.

I met a lot of young girls modelling and they were like, 'Oh, I'm running around town and people are taking my picture', while I was saving receipts and learning how to be self-employed.