# Skinniest woman you're attracted to? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042 "2011-01-01T12:08:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/1 "2011-01-01T12:08:30Z")
The recent death of [Isabella Caro](http://img.timeinc.net/time/2008/time_100_walkup/isabelle_caro.jpg)–a professional model anorexic to a grotesque extreme–makes me wonder if any magazine readers are genuinely attracted to women that thin. Ad directors are selling clothes, not body images, and clothes look best in a wire hanger apparently. I don’t want to make light of Miss Caro’s tragic life and death, I just wonder who wants their products associated with such obvious illness. I’m attracted to a pretty broad variety of physical types; Kiera Knightley and Polly Jean Harvey are about as thin as I find beautiful, and I sure wish they’d both eat a sandwich. How about the rest of you? Where do you draw the line on the thin end? ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/2 "2011-01-01T12:15:33Z")
I can’t really draw a line anywhere as attraction for me involves too much in the way of personality. I definitely have a preference for softer figures though and visible hip-bones need to be made up for by a smashing personality. Edit: I could never have been attracted to Isabella Caro though as she was a freckle faced ranga. (Seriously that is a sad photo; how do people get like that?) ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/3 "2011-01-01T12:25:11Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > (Seriously that is a sad photo; how do people get like that?) Imagine the person handing you a paycheck repeatedly saying “Lose ten pounds or you’re out the door.” ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/4 "2011-01-01T12:25:22Z")
While I find Keira Knightely attractive, I’d say that once a girl gets to that point I find it unattractive. It’s like I feel Keira is attractive (in certain pictures) _in spite_ of her weight rather than because of it. I’m attracted to average weight, with a tad more slender than average being most attractive for me. But once you get to that level I’d rather you be overweight. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/5 "2011-01-01T12:34:11Z")
Based on a picture from 2009, Keira Knightly looks good to me. I like women who have an athletic build. Once it goes from athletic to malnourished, that’s where I draw the line. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/6 "2011-01-01T12:35:07Z")
Yeah, I’d definitely draw the line at Keira, an attraction that is for me, on examination, solely based on her facial beauty. However, if you have a look at [this selection of pics](http://wallpaperbuzz.blogspot.com/2010/11/keira-knightley.html), the ones that show her torso reveal a slender _but toned_ body. She looks very healthy despite being so thin. That said, from a personal aesthetical point of view, I maintain that she would benefit from the consumption of several large pies over a prolonged period. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/7 "2011-01-01T12:38:31Z")
[Pic.](http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Entertainment/images-2/keira-knightley-beach-bathing-suit.jpg) You’re right, she does look athletic. But I still think her body looks incredibly unattractive in that picture. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/8 "2011-01-01T12:43:25Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > However, if you have a look at [this selection of pics](http://wallpaperbuzz.blogspot.com/2010/11/keira-knightley.html), the ones that show her torso reveal a slender _but toned_ body. She looks very healthy despite being so thin. The last picture of the bunch (once you get past the repeats) looks to be fan fiction, If Keira Had Tits. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/9 "2011-01-01T12:52:33Z")
To answer the OP, I guess I would say “most models I see in real life” - meaning: when I see photos of, say, Victoria’s Secret models, they look luscious and curvy and ::sigh::. But when I have seen the same women in real life, they typically look coltish and knock-kneed. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/10 "2011-01-01T13:00:51Z")
The weirdest thing about all this body image stuff is that women apparently have no idea what men find attractive. Years ago an Aussie magazine, _New Woman_, ran an article about men’s and women’s feelings about body shapes. They showed both men and women groups of photos of naked women, from the neck down, and asked them which looked best and which the opposite would think looked best. The men generally picked women a size or two up from the women as the best looking and correctly picked that the women would choose the skinnier women. The women genuinely, but incorrectly, thought that the men would be attracted to the skinny shapes that they preferred. The picture of Keira Knightley is pretty typical. I’m sure lots of women would think she looks great but if you couldn’t see her face most blokes wouldn’t look at her twice at the beach. She could be any 14 year old girl. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/11 "2011-01-01T13:13:27Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > The weirdest thing about all this body image stuff is that women apparently have no idea what men find attractive. The counterpoint to this has been said to me by several women, including my ex wife: “We don’t care what men find attractive, we’re doing this to look good to other women.” I.e. in a competitive manner, not a homosexual one. There may be a point to that, since women who dress/shape themselves solely based on what men find attractive tend to be labelled as “slutty”. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/12 "2011-01-01T14:21:03Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > The counterpoint to this has been said to me by several women, including my ex wife: “We don’t care what men find attractive, we’re doing this to look good to other women.” I.e. in a competitive manner, not a homosexual one. I think \*\*don’t ask’s \*\*point is that women erroneously believe men find the same things attractive. Yes, they may to some degree change their appearance out of competition, but their perception of the body shapes men like versus what men ACTUALLY like is, in a remarkable number of cases, wrong. And of course your ex was being a little defensive; of course they care what men think. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/13 "2011-01-01T15:05:03Z")
Poor Keira. I agree that her shape isn’t attractive to me, but she does, by all accounts, eat a healthy diet. And she wouldn’t have that nice muscle definition if she was malnourished. She’s just genetically blessed/cursed with a metabolism I’d kill for, while at the same time wouldn’t want the body from! (But who am I kidding - I’d prefer it to the one I have now, if for no other reason than she’s probably healthier than I am and can do things with her body I never will with mine! But also because, internet sniping aside, there are more social and economic benefits in our society accorded to overly thin people than overly fat people.) I definitely prefer endomorphs to meso or ectos, even when thin. [Amanda Righetti](http://www.phombo.com/celebrities-entertainment/amanda-righetti/142523/popular/) and [Morena Baccarin](http://www.contactmusic.com/photos.nsf/main/morena_baccarin_5355298) are about as skinny as I find alluring. There are thinner women that I think still have _beauty_, including Keira, but for “attracted to” with a sexual connotation, I like a bit more smoosh. ---
**Author:** ![JohnsonB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cdc98d/32.png) [@JohnsonB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnsonB)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/14 "2011-01-01T16:01:13Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I definitely prefer endomorphs to meso or ectos, even when thin. [Amanda Righetti](http://www.phombo.com/celebrities-entertainment/amanda-righetti/142523/popular/) and [Morena Baccarin](http://www.contactmusic.com/photos.nsf/main/morena_baccarin_5355298) are about as skinny as I find alluring. There are thinner women that I think still have _beauty_, including Keira, but for “attracted to” with a sexual connotation, I like a bit more smoosh. But Amanda Righetti isn’t really skinny… She looks sorta skinny in that FHM pic you posted, but hey, we all know those have little to do with reality. In The Mentalist, she has a pretty strong, athletic physique - if she’s as thin as you find women attractive: there wouldn’t be many celebs left. [http://img827.imageshack.us/i/normal118still007.jpg/](http://img827.imageshack.us/i/normal118still007.jpg/) [http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/3956/normal118still009.jpg](http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/3956/normal118still009.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/15 "2011-01-01T16:07:11Z")
I think the point I would make is that there is more than one standard of beauty and attractiveness-I thought that her bikini pic was way hot, but of course YMMV (which is my point). In particular, as [we’ve discussed](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=381525&highlight=boobs) [here before](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=411921&highlight=breasts), not all guys like huge boobs. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/16 "2011-01-01T16:20:19Z")
> [@JohnsonB](#): > > But Amanda Righetti isn’t really skinny… > She looks sorta skinny in that FHM pic you posted, but hey, we all know those have little to do with reality. In The Mentalist, she has a pretty strong, athletic physique - if she’s as thin as you find women attractive: there wouldn’t be many celebs left. > > [http://img827.imageshack.us/i/normal118still007.jpg/](http://img827.imageshack.us/i/normal118still007.jpg/) [http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/3956/normal118still009.jpg](http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/3956/normal118still009.jpg) I know. And yes, you’re right, I don’t find many celebs attractive because of this. I hate skinny bashing as much as I hate fat bashing, but it’s just not pretty _to me_ when I can see ribs and sternum when someone is standing at ease. It might make the clothes pretty, but I don’t find the body in them pretty. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2011, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/17 "2011-01-02T00:05:35Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > [Pic.](http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Entertainment/images-2/keira-knightley-beach-bathing-suit.jpg) > > You’re right, she does look athletic. > > But I still think her body looks incredibly unattractive in that picture. I think the athleticism doesn’t help. She seems to not have that much subcutaneous fat, and so her muscles look more harsh. If she were to gain a little bit of weight, her muscles would soften out. Of course, if she lost them, I think she’d look anorexic–lack of subcutaneous fat without muscle is the classic anorexic look, and is what I find more unappealing than the actual thick or thinness of the body. If you have the frame to support it, you can be as skinny as you want. If I can see the inner framework, you’ve went too far. Heck, I used to know a girl who was so skinny I could wrap my (admittedly large) hands around her waist, and have only maybe 3 inches left. She did not look anorexic in the slightest. She’s just tiny. ---
**Author:** ![wonderlust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonderlust/32/7237_2.png) [@wonderlust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonderlust)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2011, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/18 "2011-01-02T00:20:04Z")
The actress who plays Dexter’s sister is super-thin, but athletic. I can’t stop staring at her [freakish](http://fresnobeehive.com/archives/assets_c/2009/01/293.hall.carpenter.lc.010909-15612.html) figure. She just about disappears when she turns sideways. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/19 "2011-01-02T00:34:42Z")
We’ve just started watching _Burn Notice_ and every time Gabrielle Anwar shows up in anything more revealing than a burqa my boyfriend and I both go “YEEEERRRRGH, who the fuck put that in front of a camera?” We theorize that LA people honestly think that looks good and really don’t get that what makes you look younger and less terrifying when you’re trying to hold onto your youth with all ten fingernails is a little bit of subcutaneous fat. She turned around once and her spine looked like a parasitic worm wriggling around under her skin. (Let’s not even discuss her lips and her Botox. To be fair, no foreheads move at all on that show.) ETA - to answer the question, the line is on the other side of Gabrielle Anwar, for sure! ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2011, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042/20 "2011-01-02T01:25:42Z")
> [@wonderlust](#): > > The actress who plays Dexter’s sister is super-thin, but athletic. I can’t stop staring at her [freakish](http://www.google.ca/images?hl=en&q=%22Jennifer%20carpenter%22&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1280&bih=653) figure. She just about disappears when she turns sideways. Came in to mention her. [Jennifer Carpenter](http://www.google.ca/images?hl=en&q=%22Jennifer%20carpenter%22&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1280&bih=653) somehow manages to still be attractive in spite of being weirdly thin enough to recall one of her namesakes. I keep wondering if I’d still find her hot if I saw her naked. Whenever she’s onscreen in _Dexter_ I am generally preoccupied with trying to visualize her naked. So it goes. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/skinniest-woman-youre-attracted-to/566042.md?page=2)