Is This the Trashiest Beauty Pageant?

When I think of beauty pageants, I think of frozen smiles, flawless gowns, and not a hair out of place. I don't think of contestants strutting the runway in a shredded garbage bag or thousands of bottle caps, but that's exactly what happened during the recent Miss England pageant. All the hopefuls competed in an eco-friendly round where they took to the catwalk in homemade outfits made entirely from recycled materials. Even more shocking? This round replaced the usual swimsuit competition in an effort to fight the fluffy image of beauty contests.

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So what kind of recycled getups did the girls cobble together? One made a bottle cap dress, another used newspaper and magazine ads, and another made a gown out of feathers and fake flowers. The green element is a refreshing change of pace, making things lighthearted and not so serious, but still drawing attention to an important worldwide issue. With Miss USA recently winning for her forward-thinking transgender comments, and now the Miss England competition doing away with the swimsuit portion for an eco-friendly round, it seems like beauty pageants are at least making an effort to be more progressive.

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Who took the eco-friendly crown? The results will be announced tonight and the winner will be entered in the Miss World contest, to be held later this year.

So what do you think? Does an eco-friendly competition make beauty pageants more progressive? And who had your favorite recycled gown? Discuss in the comments section below.

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