As a Dive who is into personal styling, style image and ID, is beauty focused and such.
I hope this doesn’t sound inappropriate to say, as someone who prefers to not touch the subject. But I wanted to comment my 2 cents on it.
Liz’s visual appreciation and her third and major rising popularity era is not due to her getting “suddenly super skinny”.
It might be a small partly reason but the reality is that it is due to her visage. It has always been since literally Day 1. Always always always, her face, mostly with light hair and her being “German” meme - Elizabeth Helga Müller (I personally prefer her in dark hair colours better, just saying).
Liz has unfortunately received some criticism and negative commentaries about her size but she hasn’t “suddenly” shrinked. Everyone who is HALF into IVE knows that it is an “old story” and that she has been getting gradually and slowly skinnier for years now. By “old story” I don’t mean that it was “unimportant” but that she was already kinda skinnier by 1 year and a half after the criticism and she stopped getting it before their second year. It didn’t happen in 2 months.
I also need to say this: 6 months ago she was already almost the same as now, maybe same size but a few centimetres difference. She’s undoubtedly skinnier but it’s not a shocking difference. It’s visually imperceptible to the naked eye unless you compare pictures.
Her Fancam got super popular because for a while now they have found her perfect makeup style and mastered it. Her makeup, hair and outfit were another level of perfection and she was simply incredibly eye catching, standing out. But not in the usual “unusual pop of colour(usually diyed hair) catches the attention” like her average light hair or many K-pop idols and groups but in a “it all fits her perfectly and she’s actually owning the fit”.
People clicked the video because her visage complimented by her makeup and hair, and the top of her outfit had an effect. She’s mostly zoomed on the upper side of her body.
If you know the first 2 things about aesthetics, is that “Face is RULE”, like it or hate it. It doesn’t need to be extraordinary but unless the body is “”seriously chopped””, face is more important. It needs to at least be “reasonably average”. I have seen many people “winning regardless” because of their visage. There is even a discussion about how some very obese (not just fat, I am actually visibly obese) ladies hide under their faces to justify their bad eating habits. They get off because their face is attractive enough for them to still be considered somewhat beautiful, receive at least a bit of pretty privilege and compliments. They like to prove others that they are desired regardless. Another example is also obese ladies hiding behind their bodies’ proportions, usually extra large bust and derrière, nobody wants to admit that they have cake because of excess estrogen, often caused by bad fast food diet. Many big people have come out admitting that unfortunately not everyone of them is “lucky” and some even said that they felt deceived by thinking that they would have looked like said plus size models.
Yes, people see your figure, but their eyes follow your face first, your size is the second thing they might process but your actual body takes time to be noticed unless you dress a bit “exposed”. Many K-pop groups have similar size range, but some are skinnier or bigger than others. Even in IVE, even back then, Liz wasn’t ever that big to legitimately look out of space. And she is one of those who “won” with her face card. Straight from debut, even in the middle of the arguments against the unfair criticism, every single time she’s viral, it’s because of her face. For reference, she went viral also just a couple of months ago doing solo promotions, viral outside the fandom and even the generation (like also among older people who don’t listen much to modern idol pop).
Speaking of her face, it actually has caught the attention of some Dives the possibility that she has not just shed weight but maybe in the past year or so, got more cosmetic or plastic surgeries. I am not very experienced or familiar in those, and I find people who know all the details about it just to criticise those who get it to be disgusting secret bullies in the name of “ethics” and “telling the truth”, but I think that she might have shielsed/shaved a tiny bit her visage. Making her look slightly skinnier than what she already was. Giving a more dramatic appearance. Maybe, just maybe, if she were let’s say occasionally puffy in the face, this would have been her most non puffy moment, and she might have made that permanent. Or of course, probably not facial shaving, but a cosmetic procedure that kinda tightened it or such. Dives have been commenting on her probably doing cosmetic procedures in 2025 after various appearances and looks on photoshoots that seemed too drastic to be makeup. Various guessed lip fillers and slightly something on her nose, accentuating her features, but I think at some point it was too drastic or styled too much with makeup and eventually dissolved/removed it. She has been accused of possibly copying Wonyoung’s looks for months. That is why Dives were happy that her facecam got viral also outside the fanbase, so it would push back that claim or solidify her personal style ID that organically fits her best (not a copy of someone else’s with different features).
Forgive the terms that might be harsh for some. I am talking in dramatisations.
And most importantly, she is a better dancer now. Some people do not want to admit it because now every compliment gets accused to “supporting her possible unhealth” and we get accused of being blind to her before now. No! I literally made a post about her dancing style months ago. I am a bit unsure if I posted it or kept it in the drafts but she used to basically dance “small”, now she makes bigger movements and has more openness and slightly more energy. She wasn’t “bad” but she’s literally amazing these past few months and this comeback. Recognise it.
This is why I have been saying that I really dislike people outside the fanbase. Maybe I already made a post about it years ago on that topic. Non Dives make absurd exaggerated claims and project their reality from outside the club onto us and “what has been going on”. “Liz shed off weight too fast”, I get that you are concerted considering the circumstances but be for real, it has been consistently slow and gradual for YEARS. “Now everyone is giving her attention, she was invisible before” She was skipped before but not unappreciated and invisible by the average Dive, she got viral multiple times over the past 2 years even outside the fandom; this is admittedly her major era. They pull up stuff out of their arses likes “Main singer but has very few lines, Wonyoung has the most lines” meanwhile she’s the one with the most lines in Ive’s discography and often among the top 3 in their main songs; Wonyoung is often the third with the most lines and it’s often the catchy ones + others, which might have made some people confused because they see her often; also, Liz is not hidden when she sings, I have noticed for 3 years now that she, like most main singers but she in particular, is highlighted during her singing parts and in her case has her own mini choreography, which I love (but I a also criticised that she didn’t “give” her parts).
That being said, are you even HALF into IVE? This is not just about Liz, there have been many claims over the years. IVE is actually one of the most well balanced group in opportunities, showcase and appreciation by their fandom, I clocked that super early, in the middle of the “Wonyoung and friends accusations” in their first year. Even back then I was surprised by how much the others were given just by a single scroll on their instagram. Liz herself was in an ad once a week (so were Leeseo, Gaeul and Rei) and for example Gaul was being sponsored by Prada/Miu Miu (?) right next to Wonyoung (but Wony was an official nominated sponsor, Gaeul was wearing sponsored looks, which is often done either as a short gig or to test the waters and see if there can be an actual partnership) bet you didn’t even notice that. I clocked it all as a yet non-Dive. We can tell that you come from outside the club. Put some respect on Ive’s names and don’t comment without at least do a small check web surf. Don’t act like IVE was asleep for 4 years or like just because Wonyoung and Yujin are by far the most popular outside the fandom, that the others aren’t successful and well set. People outside the club have been acting really weird in this situation as well. Making everyone uncomfortable and triggering people, I hope it isn’t affecting her as well. They only know about what gets on the news, about the “controversies”, they seriously are years behind still thinking that Liz was still the size of about 5 years ago and still getting shamed for it.
If anything unpleasant is going on, if her current state isn’t what’s best for her, I wish her well. I do not desire to open a conversation about that subject, I think people should mind their business or at least be respectful in their commentary. Most comments seem unnecessary and by triggered individuals or people who have an issue with everything: I see many using the situation to accuse Dives, Starship or K-pop as a whole. Like to “prove a point”. Many people thrive on controversies and conspiracies. It is also wrong to nitpick every change in visuals.
I just wanted to share my perspective objectively and kinda what the “secret” was to that look/glowup if you are into personal or interpersonal aesthetics.
