Coco Rocha might have just happily accepted her engagement ring from James Conran–but she’s already finalizing her big wedding day. “I’m getting married in three months,” she told us backstage at Dior. “I can’t believe it actually, but I’m so excited.” And where will the ceremony happen? “We getting married right here in France,” the model told The Daily. “A friend has this beautiful house here so we’ll bring everyone here!” As for the dress? “I know exactly what’s it going to look like and who’s making it, but it hasn’t actually been produced yet. But the time is ticking!”

Source: Fashion Week Daily.

Well – here’s some news to start your week off right! Loveable, sweet, and stunning supermodel Coco Rocha got engaged this weekend to her boyfriend James Conran. During Fashion Week in New York, the lovebirds were seen canoodaling around town and at parties, hanging out together backstage at shows, and giggling and holding hands on the street. She took to the web this morning to share her good news saying, “I don’t think I’ve been so happy as I am now. I can’t wait to start the rest of my life with him.”

The duo are classically in love – they act like best friends, kiss for no good reason, and are generally grinning from ear to ear whenever they are together – we know this first hand since we got a chance to spend time with the couple while Coco was filming Modelinia Fashion Week TV. We are thrilled that she has found the happiness she deserves! Congrats, Coco and James! And we can’t wait to see the dress! We wonder if she will design it herself as part of her new fashion line, Rococo?

Source: Modelinia.

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Photoshoots > Look Books > Diane von Furstenberg S/S 2010

There has been quite the commotion over the recent articles about me in the New York Times and The New York Daily News. As only a few select statements of mine were printed I find it necessary to properly express my point of view, without outside editing.

I’m a 21 year old model, 6 inches taller and 10 sizes smaller than the average American woman. Yet in another parallel universe I’m considered “fat”… This was the subject of major discussion this week and the story that was spun was: “Coco Rocha is too fat for the runway”.

Is that the case? No. I am still used and in demand as a model. In fact I find myself busier than ever. In the past few years I have not gained an extreme amount of weight, only an inch here and there as any young woman coming out of her teenage years would.

But this issue of model’s weight is, and always has been, of concern to me. There are certain moral decisions which seem like no brainers to us. For example, not employing children in sweatshops, and not increasing the addictiveness of cigarettes. When designers, stylists or agents push children to take measures that lead to anorexia or other health problems in order to remain in the business, they are asking the public to ignore their moral conscience in favor of the art.

Surely, we all see how morally wrong it is for an adult to convince an already thin 15 year old that she is actually too fat. It is unforgivable that an adult should demand that the girl unnaturally lose the weight vital to keep her body functioning properly. How can any person justify an aesthetic that reduces a woman or child to an emaciated skeleton? Is it art? Surely fashion’s aesthetic should enhance and beautify the human form, not destroy it.

There is division in the industry in this regard. Although there are those who don’t consider a model’s wellbeing, I have had the honor and privilege to work with some of the greatest designers, editors, stylists, photographers and agents who respect both new and well established models alike. I know there are many others out there who I haven’t worked with who also agree with me on the stance on this issue.

The CFDA has tried so very hard to correct these matters. As of a few days ago at their annual meeting they found everyone in the room in agreement on changing the sample size as well as booking models over the age of 16. It’s great to see how many people’s hearts are in the right place because we must make these changes for the next generation of girls.

As a grown woman I can make decisions for myself. I can decide that I won’t allow myself to be degraded at a casting – marching in my underwear with a group of young girls, poked, prodded and examined like cattle. I’m able to walk away from that treatment because I am established as a model and I’m an adult… but what about the young, struggling and aspiring models?

We need changes. I’d prefer that there would be no girl working under the age of 16, but if that has to be the case then I’d love to see teens escorted by a guardian to castings, shows, and shoots. The CFDA has set codes in place for their members and I’d love to see the entire industry follow. Society legislates a lot of things – no steroid use in sports is one example – its only reasonable that there be rules of conduct to keep the fashion industry healthy.

In the past, models have spoken out on this issue, only to be accused of saying something because their careers were on the brink of extinction. This is not so in my case. I actually first spoke out about this two years ago at the peak of what a model would consider the ideal career and there was a reaction – those who were the worst offenders suddenly asked me to work for them! This was a public relations ploy and I wasn’t prepared to fall for that. I said “No, lets go a few seasons, lets see if you change, then I will work with you”. They didn’t change. I haven’t worked for them.

Of my generation of models I’m exactly where I need to be in my career and I’m grateful to use my position to actively speak out against this with the support of the CFDA and Vogue. My sincere hope is that through our efforts young models will one day be spared the humiliation, the risky weight loss, the depression that comes along with anorexia and the misery of abandonment by an industry ashamed to see them turn into actual women.

There are natural human standards in how we treat one another and how we treat children. There are those who continue to trample on these standards but there are also champions of a better way. I hope that the continued efforts of the CFDA and all those who hold these values in regard will bolster the opinion of those on the opposing side of the industry to ensure a true change for the better.

Coco Rocha

Source: Oh So Coco.