Khloe Kardashian opens up about being considered less ‘pretty,’ ‘cute’ than Kim and Kourtney

Today, everyone has a favorite Kardashian: Some people are ride-or-die Kim fans, while others are obsessed with Khloe, still more call Kourtney their number one — and let’s not even get started on Kendall and Kylie.

But ten years ago, when “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” first hit the airwaves, there were only two names people cared about: Kim and Kourtney. And for youngest sister Khloe, being on the wrong side of preferential treatment led to some regrettable decisions.

“Brands would prefer to align themselves with Kim or Kourtney, which I was totally fine with because I was still along for the ride. But it’s also a very sad thing to realize that most brands are interested only in pretty, cute, in-shape girls,” Khloe writes in a personal essay for Glamour. “There were things I did back then that made me think, Why am I doing this? I once did a deal with a tampon company, and I was like, ‘Why am I so thirsty?’ But I was young, and you feel pressure; you see your sisters getting deals and you’re like, ‘Should I be doing something? Is a pad commercial all I can get? Well, OK then.'”

As fans certainly know, Khloe has completely reinvented herself since the show premiered in 2007. Now perhaps in even better shape than her sisters — the star often Snapchats her blisteringly-intense workouts on — the ‘KUWTK’ cameras have certainly documented her emotional and physical transformation.

But while there are benefits to having cameras following you around “six days a week, 12 to 18 hours a day, every single day,” there are certainly drawbacks.

“Things like Kim’s robbery or Caitlyn’s transition? That’s the kind of stuff we wish we had never filmed. We aren’t ever like, ‘Oooh! Let’s do this for season nine.’ This is our life, and these are the things that happen,” Khloe writes. “And it’s funny—when we decide not to shoot things, people feel slighted. But when we film too much, they’re like, ‘Oh, you never should have filmed that.'”

The show used to rely heavily on scripted plotlines — “Our show, at first, was like a very modern-day Brady Bunch—a little gimmicky and with a takeaway each episode” — but producers soon realized that there was little need for direction.

“When it comes to our drama, we are a large, blended family,” Khloe points out. “If you put a microscope over any family for 10 years, you’re bound to find cracks in the foundation. That’s just the name of the game, and we’re strong enough to endure it.”