Chrissy Teigen

"I had an armpit sucked out, which was one of the best things," Teigen told Refinery29 in May 2017. "It's a big secret, but I don't care. It was nine years ago or so. And I had two inches to my armpit. Now it's back though, so now I've gotta pay for [liposuction] again. It was so easy. It made me feel better in dresses, I felt more confident. It was the dumbest, stupidest thing I've ever done. The dumbest, but I like it, whatever. I have no regrets, honestly."

In 2019, Teigen also announced via an Instagram post that she would be removing her breast implants. "They’ve been great to me for many years but I’m just over it. I’d like to be able to zip a dress in my size, lay on my belly with pure comfort! No biggie!" she explained. "So don’t worry about me! All good. I’ll still have boobs, they’ll just be pure fat. Which is all a tit is in the first place. A dumb, miraculous bag of fat."

Teigen was raised in Delta, Utah.[6] Her mother is Thai and her father is of Norwegian descent.[7] Her surname is pronounced /ˈtaɪɡən/ by the family, although she later came to prefer the "wrong" pronunciation of /ˈtiːɡən/.[4] Teigen's father worked as an electrician and the family moved often. After living in Hawaii, Idaho and Washington, the family eventually settled in Huntington Beach, California when Teigen was a teenager.[8][9] Teigen attended Snohomish High School in Washington state where she was a cheerleader.[10] She was discovered by a photographer while working in a surf shop.[8][11]

She is represented worldwide by IMG Models in New York.[1][2] She became an IGN Babe in 2004 and a substitute model on Deal or No Deal for 2006–2007. In July 2007, she appeared on the cover of Maxim's calendar. Her campaigns include Gillette Venus, Olay, Nike, Skullcandy headphones, Gap Factory, XOXO, UGG Australia, Rock and Republic, Billabong, Beach Bunny Swimwear (for whom she was also a fashion week correspondent), and Nine West Fashion Targets Breast Cancer. She has also served as a recurring guest host and contributor on E!, TMZ, MTV, FUSE/MSG, and Extra with Mario Lopez, and has appeared on America's Next Top Model and Watch What Happens Live. In spring 2013, she was host of the reality competition show, Model Employee on VH1.[12]

Teigen appeared in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 2010, and was named "Rookie of the Year".[13] Her friend and fellow model Brooklyn Decker had introduced her to the people at Sports Illustrated to cast her.[14] She was also a part of the 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issues. In 2014, she appeared on the 50th anniversary cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue with Nina Agdal and Lily Aldridge.[15][16]

In addition to Sports Illustrated, Teigen has appeared on the cover of Ocean Drive magazine, Cosmopolitan, and in editorials for Italian Vogue, Esquire, Glamour, Galore and Cosmopolitan.[17]

Other side projects include designing a capsule collection with swimwear designer DiNeila Brazil (which debuted at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim in Miami in the summer of 2011) and appearing as a featured character in the 2011 Electronic Arts video game Need For Speed: The Run.[18]

When not working in the world of fashion modeling, Teigen is a cook and writer. She was also featured on an additional Cooking Channel special in February 2013, titled Chrissy Teigen's Hungry, detailing her wedding menu tasting with then-fiancé John Legend.[19] Teigen recently filmed a Cooking Channel special titled Cookies and Cocktails.[20]

In 2012, Teigen was named Spike TV's "Our New Girlfriend." In 2013, Teigen appeared in her husband John Legend's music video for the song "All Of Me", which was inspired by their relationship.[21] In April 2014, Teigen appeared on an Inside Amy Schumer sketch playing a fictionalized version of herself as a relationship counselor.[22] Teigen appears as a judge on the new MTV2 cooking show Snack-Off. In January 2015, Teigen appeared as a guest star on The Mindy Project as the girlfriend of the man to whom Mindy lost her virginity. In April 2015, Teigen became a co-host on Spike, later Paramount Network's Lip Sync Battle alongside LL Cool J.[23] Teigen co-hosted the Billboard Music Awards with Ludacris.[24] From September 2015 until June 2016, she was the food stylist on Tyra Banks's lifestyle talk show FABLife.[25]

On February 23, 2016, Teigen published Cravings: Recipes for All of the Food You Want to Eat, edited by Francis Lam, which was a New York Times bestseller[26] and the second-best selling cookbook of the year, according to Publishers Weekly.[27] On October 11, 2017, Teigen released a clothing line, in collaboration with Revolve.[28]

On September 18, 2018, Teigen released her second book, titled Cravings: Hungry For More, also known as Cravings 2.[29] Simultaneously, Teigen released a line of cookware named Cravings by Chrissy Teigen through Target.[30]

In February 2019, Teigen was announced as a judge for NBC's upcoming comedy competition series Bring the Funny.[31] On November 4, Teigen launched her own cooking website, Cravings by Chrissy Teigen. The website, which features new recipes, cookware suggestions, travelling anecdotes, and entertaining tips, brings together facets of Teigen's professional and personal life.[32]

Teigen is currently starring in Chrissy's Court, a Judge Judy-style courtroom reality series that debuted in April 2020 on Quibi. Teigen also serves as executive producer for the series.[33]