Jesinta Franklin admits to getting ‘boob job’ at 18 to win Miss Universe Australia, skincare secrets

Aussie model and entrepeneur Jesinta Franklin has opened up on her career success as a teenager, revealing the life-altering surgery she underwent to win Miss Universe Australia in 2010 and how the experience shaped her entire life.

In a tell-all with Bec Judd and Jess Roberts’ Vain-ish Podcast, Jesinta, 34, admitted she “got a boob job” as a teenager in the hopes of winning the national competition following stern advice.

“I got pulled aside in the final rounds of the State levels and they were like, ‘Look, you have the ability to go the whole way. You are our number one pick. We think you could go great overseas but you have no boobs’,” the 34-year-old said.

“I was 18 at the time. I ended up having my boobs done. I don’t regret having it done because I went on to win the competition and placed very well overseas.

“I have an amazing life, have had an amazing career and I do credit winning the competition to that because it just opened so many doors for me.”

The Gold Coast-raised personality added that due to the regular maintenance required, “now all I want is just my small little perky boobs that I had”.

Jesinta said the modelling world has evolved since the end of the “Kate Moss era” that she was a product of, citing a “lack of diversity” and one-dimensional beauty standards ruling the industry.

As a mother to Tallulah, 6, Rocky, 5, and five-month-old Bam, Jesinta feels that her idea of beauty and wellness has also shifted over time.

“The most important thing to me right now is the health and wellness of my baby, so pushing aside my own vanity to be a mum.

“As a woman, you go through waves and phases in your life, so I’d just say to be kind to yourself in whatever phase you’re in.

“That’s been hard for me mentally lately, is not feeling like myself, and being OK with that.”

Admitting that it could be difficult to retain self-confidence upon opening Instagram and seeing a wave of models and influencers flaunting their figures, she added: “It’s a fresh hell to be in this Ozempic age when you’re post-partum, so I’m giving myself grace. My mindset has changed a lot.”

Jesinta’s youngest child, son Bam, was born late in 2025. However, he wasn’t entirely planned.

Just when the mother had recaptured a level of fitness and health reminiscent of her earlier years, plus a morning routine, she learnt that a third child was on the way.

“I feel like you give up so much of yourself when you have a baby. And this cruel thing … I felt like I was just getting back to myself before accidentally falling pregnant again,” Jesinta admitted.

Now, instead of pouring all her energy into physical activity to regain confidence, it’s skin care she focuses on.

So impressed with the results of her go-to elixir, the model convinced her husband to follow suit.

“I remember Bud was injured once with soft tissue stuff and his sore knees,” she said.

“We had this bone broth larder in Sydney, and they literally served bone broth in like takeaway coffee cups. So instead of getting like a morning coffee, you drive by and get a bone broth.

“We were on the way to the club and I said to him, ‘Just try it. I know it might be a bit woo-woo. I know you think I’m crazy’.

“But within a week, honestly, he noticed such a difference and his skin was glowing.

“He’s like, ‘Look at my skin. It looks amazing!’ So it definitely does work. But it can’t be the powdered stuff!”

Judd, a mother of four and husband to dual Brownlow medallist Chris Judd teased: “If Buddy did it, Juddy will do it.”

Champions of natural food sources and health eating, Jesinta and Buddy are co-owners of Honey for Life, which produces “premium medicinal honey” sourced from WA bees.

It was born from a desire to feed their kids with more natural, convenient and nourishing snacks.

The couple moved into a $4.6 million rural property on the Gold Coast’s Guanaba estate late in 2025, departing Sydney to raise their young family in a quieter environment.