How can good looking children have not particularly good looking parents?

[smyshna]

Genuine question, just curious if anyone else has noticed this.

DH is very conventionally attractive. His two sisters are also very pretty and both modelled when they were younger. DH has been scouted too but wasn’t interested.

His parents are lovely people, but neither is what you’d call conventionally attractive. Even looking at photos of them when they were younger, you wouldn’t say either was particularly good looking.

I know genetics is a lottery but it seems quite remarkable that all three children turned out good looking. They’re all genetically related. Has anyone else come across this?

Was it recently @Fernsarethebestplants?

I dunno, there are some pretty nasty comments about real, named people (e.g. children of celebrities) which could potentially get back to them, in a way that a pissed conversation with your friends wouldn't.

I'm surprised people are saying anything about Cindy's children being underwhelming, I saw the family photo in the recent sad news and thought what a genuinely stunning family the four of them were.

It was like gene jackpot!

I think it's ok when they are famous enough to have a bit of a hide and enough ego to carry them through, but I do agree it goes too far to say negative things about their children, who never stuck themselves in the limelight nor really had the benefit of it.

Interesting - the other thing I know is mouth breathing - it changes the whole face profile to adapt. Not in a good way!

I have known some identical twins look quite dissimilar, which can be influenced as far back as the womb.

No, back in the 90's! When he was young and beautiful. It was in a Russian tea room.

Yes he was incredibly good looking in his youth. I saw some pics on IG recently of him when young and just really beautiful looking.

Pure genetic luck

Plus, IMHO beauty comes from within. Facial features reflect personality and lifestyle: how confident, fun, kind-hearted, awkward, healthy etc someone is. The older a person gets, the more their life shows on their face: times of stress, sleepless nights, loss of confidence.

Also, photos aren’t a good way to gauge. We’ve all got photos where we look fantastic (much better than in real life) and those where we look absolutely awful. Depends on camera angle, light etc. Plus, some people are much more photogenic.

I knew a guy who was mega handsome, think classic renaissance painting level of stunning. Clear honey coloured skin, perfect features, gorgeous hair - people took a second look at him, like literally going speechless.

All of his family were ok looking - not ugly, but no one was very attractive, either. His sister was bland, dad looked brutish and mum was probably nice looking when young but never stunning. He was the only one who looked attractive. He has a son - who looks completely ordinary. I bet some generation down the line will have another stunner, if they are lucky ))

Jude Law in "Talented Mr Ripley" was STUNNING! Like a young Paul Newman or Robert Redford. He didn't age well though.

@Calliopespahe may be but some people are just blessed with lovely skin that you won’t find in any jar!

Unlikely for them to be on MNs on a Friday night though.

I’ve also seen Kate Moss & she is really striking & pretty, you can’t help but look at her

Yes, but what's said on MN does not necessarily stay on MN. Posts sometimes get posted on the MN Facebook page, and the other day I saw a post from Mumsnet which had been lifted and posted on an entirely different page.

In my non scientific observations two not good looking parents can definitely make very good looking children. I’ve seen it many times

My sister was a midwife and has always confirmed this theory .

@RafaFanI can guarantee there will be worse things said to them directly on social media.

I can't believe that me and my husband managed to produce such drop dead gorgeous kids. Like, they're all in their 30s and it's weird.

Oldest: girl - Taller than her dad, got my mums massive blue eyes (I didn't) and her nan's extremely thick hair, but the blonde version.

Middle: boy - His dad's heavy features, his granddad's bright blue eyes, my family's muscle and my grandfather's practically black ringletted locks half way down his back.

Youngest girl - Dinky, athletic, but again with the thick, blonde hair, nan's green eyes and ski jump nose.

My husband is from a Roma background and has stupidly thick lips with an olive complexion, and all the kids have these features. Family photos are me and him looking a bit like peasants and the kids all incredibly beautiful.

Yeah Victoria is incredibly girl next door looking. She's not ugly but definitely far from trad beauty. And she's had so much work done. Michael Sheen also not traditionally handsome. He's a character actor not romantic lead. Well he never used to be.

Ohh my ex-husband is also from a Roma background and clearly has extremely good genes as our daughter is also gorgeous but doesn't even look remotely related to me 😂

Chris Martin, who had never appealed to me, was stood next to me in an airport and he really was physical very attractive. Really tall and handsome. Very different from what I’d perceive him as on tv.

Dont forget you don't just look like your parents. Look at grandparents too. I look like my grandma not my mum. Luckily for me, my grandma was more conventionally pretty than mum!

It’s just the right combination of genes. You can also have two beautiful people make an average or even unattractive person. It’s a mash up.

People always say this about the Beckhans but I actually don't think that the parents are good looking either. Victoria certainly isn't, she is well groomed but that's it. Also, Michael Sheen's daughter just looks like him rather than like her mother. He is not a handsome man. I agree about the Willis kids, though.

Being a supermodel doesn't mean you have to look like AI-generated perfection, though. Kate Moss doesn't have the perfect nose, profile, teeth, or smile. I read once that Kaia's eyes are a smidge close together, which I never noticed before. It's only slight, and with makeup on, it's not noticeable. She's the only nepo-baby model who has a real, proper career in modelling. All the others do one campaign, or maybe two, and maybe one or two runway shows. Kaia is seriously in demand and has been for years, modelling for countless high-fashion clients. I don't know if she'd have been picked up if not for her mum, just because there is so much competition, but I do definitely think she's real supermodel material.

Anyway, she doesn't have to worry, because she's going into acting. She had a bit part in something I saw once, with Rose Byrne, and I thought she was very good. Now she has more parts.