Australian influencer Matilda Baxter, 23, has shocked followers after showing off her midsection following a controversial 'Barbie waist' procedure, revealing in an Instagram clip that her partner could fit his hands right around her waist.
Baxter, who has 62,000 followers on Instagram, posted the video on Thursday wearing the black corset she is required to wear after having her bottom ribs fractured as part of the procedure, which is designed to make the waist appear slimmer. She paired the corset with a bright orange cut-out dress that added to the illusion that she had no waist at all.
"Guys, waist is non-existent. I am a Barbie Doll," Baxter said in the clip as her partner wrapped his hands around her middle.
Followers voice concern
The video drew alarmed responses from a number of her followers. "Urgh no. Women were not made to look that way. Each to their own," one commented.
Another was more pointed in their criticism. "This is incredibly concerning. Wearing a waist trainer on an already extremely thin frame and asking, 'Where's my waist?' glorifies an unhealthy and unrealistic body standard. This isn't positive influence..it's harmful messaging, especially for impressionable young women," they wrote.
A third follower joked, "Sending out a search party for your waist because it's MISSING."
Baxter hits back at critics
The clip came just days after Baxter lashed out at people who had been discussing her changing appearance in group chats, accusing them of comparing her to "a Holocaust survivor with bolt-ons."
"If you have to put me through a group chat to talk s**t about how different I look... then you are the lowest of the low," she said in a lengthy rant. "You are allowed to look completely different from how you looked a year ago, or a week ago, or ten minutes ago."
She argued that the criticism only benefited her financially. "If you're liking, commenting, sharing, putting it in group chats, b***hing, the negativity only brings money towards me," she said, adding that being talked about "makes me money."
Baxter went on to share before-and-after photos of herself, saying she has spent an estimated $50,000 to $100,000 on plastic surgery, and insisted she is happy with her new look. She also filmed herself demonstrating how her surgically altered waist is narrower than her own hands, holding up a new Chanel bag for comparison. "If I'm being talked about in your group chat, clearly I've won the game," she concluded.
A history of surgical procedures
Baxter, who is based in Adelaide and posts under the name Tilds Search, has previously sparked concern with her transformation. Earlier this year she posted a lingerie video showing off her figure, captioned "It looks insane. Not edited. Waist where?" which prompted a wave of worried comments.
"All I am seeing is the bones," one follower wrote at the time, while another said, "Omg I remember when I looked like this. I was so sick." Others urged her to "eat more" and warned that her ribs were "freaking me out," with one commenter suggesting she needed more protein and carbohydrates to stay healthy.
Baxter has been open about the extent of her cosmetic work, which she says has included high-definition liposuction, a boob job, hip surgery and the rib-fracturing 'Barbie waist' procedure. She told the Daily Mail she has spent around $50,000 on her face alone, and that the general upkeep of her look costs between $80,000 and $100,000 a year.
Tanning addiction and counselling
The concern over Baxter's appearance follows her recent admission that she is seeking counselling for what she describes as a dangerous tanning addiction, after her parents and her new partner raised concerns.
Baxter told the Daily Mail she uses a combination of tanning peptides not approved by Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) alongside a home solarium, which she uses at least four times a week in her garage at a cost of $7,000. The TGA has warned that peptides containing melanotan, which are administered by injection, ingestion or nasal spray, can cause "serious health problems," though the devices remain legal for personal use.
"I am not an advocate for (using tanning beds), and I will say that I am an addict. I am seeing a therapist about it," Baxter said, adding that her parents are "concerned" about her use of the sunbeds, which expose users to ultraviolet radiation known to damage skin cells' DNA.
