Source: Guardian >> Read full article and comment

They parade in miniature ballgowns, where false eyelashes and can be as young as five… We venture into the world of mini beauty pageants to meet the young princesses and their pushy parents

By Elizabeth Day

Sunday 11 July 2010

Amber is seven years old and loves Miley Cyrus. She sleeps with a poster of the actress above her bed and stores all her most treasured possessions in a glittery purple box emblazoned with the image of Hannah Montana. She also likes watching music videos on YouTube and making up dances to accompany the songs of JLS, her favourite boy-band. But, most of all, Amber likes to collect stones. “This is my red collection,” she says, unzipping her pink rucksack and carefully lifting out a series of rust- coloured stones. She lays them in a line on the carpet and looks at them proudly….Continue Reading