Former Toddlers & Tiaras star lifts up the wild realities of childhood beauty pageants and reveals her mom spent over $70,000 to make her famous – just for her to RETIREMENT at six
- TLC alum Eden Wood claimed more than 300 titles during her pageant career
- The young star, from Arkansas, rose to fame on the show before retiring at the age of six
- Despite the huge 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 price.
The young star, from Arkansas, started competing when she was just a baby and took the pageant world by storm.
She shot to even more dizzying heights of fame at just four years old when she appeared on the controversial TLC reality series in 2009 before officially retiring at the age of six.
And even though mom Mickie spent more than $70,000 during Eden’s pageant career, the now 18-year-old seems undeterred after recently hinting at a comeback.
Toddlers & Tiaras star Eden Wood claimed more than 300 titles during her time as a kids’ beauty queen — but her enviable success came at a price
The young Arkansas star, now 18 years old (pictured), recently hinted at a comeback in the election world
Eden was first thrust in front of a camera when he was just six months old, before becoming one of the main faces on Toddlers & Tiaras – which followed girls competing in children’s beauty pageants.
Mom Mickie previously discussed how far she went to prepare her daughter for the stage — including spray tanning, outfits and makeup.
Speaking of an episode of the show shared on YouTube by TLC that recently resurfaced, she estimated she paid, “Probably about $65,000 or $70,000.”
Similarly, Heather Ryan, who acted as manager of the mother-daughter duo, added, “Mickie doesn’t give a damn when it comes to election stuff.
“Now she’s spent enough on clothes and photographs to feed just about every child in Botswana.”
The reveal caused quite a stir among viewers as they flooded the comments to criticize Mickie for indulgent spending.
One of them wrote, “To think all that money could have been put into a collage fund!” It would cover every school!’
Another said, “Did she take out loans to get $70,000?!?!? Goddamnit.’
Mother Mickie (pictured together in 2012) is said to have earned more than $70,000 during Eden’s glittering pageant career
The reveal caused quite a stir among viewers as they were inundated with comments criticizing the indulgent spending
And a third simply added: ‘Money well thrown away!!!’
Mickie announced in 2011 that Eden would no longer participate in pageants so she could instead focus on forging a career in Hollywood.
She told ABC News at the time, “Why don’t we see if we can’t get a Hollywood contract, a reality show, a spot on a Disney show? 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 appeared as a runway model ever since.
But it seems she’s now considering sticking her toe back in the pageant waters as she sets her sights on the Miss America title.
After sharing a recent video on her TikTok account, where she has amassed more than 52,000 followers, one of her fans commented, “So are you going to compete for Miss America?”
And Eden teased her return to the election scene, replying: ‘I hope so.’