Cheryl Cole, once known only as the cutie, rather plump singer from Girls Aloud, has seen an incredible transformation over recent years, literally turning herself into a human Barbie doll. Her impeccable style, thin but toned little frame and her perfect features have made her a hit with audiences and the media alike (and not only British), but she actually pays a fortune to look this good, the Daily Mail says in a recent piece.

Citing the words of the legendary singer and icon Dolly Parton, Alison Boshoff of the Mail says that “It takes a fortune to look this cheap,” referring to Cole’s most atrocious fashion blunders. She may be a style icon and a trendsetter, but she’s not free of the occasional slip-ups, which, just because they are so few, do not fail to get the attention of the international media (case in point, her latest lamp-like outfit she wore on her birthday). Still, even when she looks at her worst, Cheryl’s overall “maintenance” costs a fortune.

For more precision, a “small fortune” can be the official line that the overall costs (including clothes, makeup and hair stylists, dental care, and fitness and diet) amount to about £100,000 a year. Or, at the same time, it could be the estimated – and perhaps more likely – amount of £250,000, which is a figure more close to reality than we might suspect at first glance, the Mail assures. With an estimated fortune of £9 million (5 of which come from being part of Girls Aloud, and a yearly million for being a judge on the X Factor), and a husband who makes even more money, it’s clear that Cheryl can well afford it.

“She is definitely a style icon, but not a fashion icon. She is someone who most young girls would really like to look like. It’s not about the labels she wears, but about her look. She has a sort of brunette Barbie look about her. She has some terrible fashion moments – that green diamante Melissa Odabash swimsuit she wore the other week was really for a 40-something women who wanted to hide her tummy after having children. And she’s got a weakness for dodgy cowboy hats.” Melanie Rickey, fashion editor-at-large at Grazia magazine, tells the Mail.

Still, no matter what Cheryl puts on or, most importantly, how good or ridiculous it might look on her, the cost for that one look is unbelievably high. To break it down in specific numbers: stylist – £40,000 to blowdry her hair and do her makeup for the X Factor; £9,500 a year on dental care, including teeth whitening and other treatments; fashion advisers / stylists – £45,000 a year for two of the most famous stylists, whom Cheryl reportedly uses only on special occasions; hair extensions – £4,000; fitness – £36,000 on an exercise bike and £14,000 on a personal trainer. Reportedly, Cheryl Cole is not on any of the latest fancy diets, but she avoids carbs altogether.