My Beauty Pageant journey was an unexpected one but something that has proven to be amazing, and it's teaching me a lot. I feel like there's a lot of misconceptions about beauty pageants, even I thought a lot of these before I experienced the pageant industry first hand. So here's an inside look into what beauty pageants are really like...
The Girls
The first thing that I was worried about getting into pageants was how the girls were going to be, as all you see on the TV shows & Movies is how bitchy it can be and how competitive it is, but I couldn't have been more wrong. I've met some of the most lovely girls I've ever met through pageants, and the majority are super supportive of each other. Don't get me wrong, you do get a few who are definitely not there to make friends and just want that crown, but actually those girls don't tend to get very far. A lot of being a pageant girl involves being a good role model, and it's really nice to be able to support each other instead of stepping on each other to get to the top. As the saying goes.. "real Queens fix each other's crowns".
The Expenses
It can be expensive competing in pageants, but on the flip side you can also do it on a budget. Nobody tells you that you have to spend a certain amount on outfits, you could get an evening dress from a bridal/prom shop or you could get one from PLT. It's all about how much you want to spend. I personally have put a chunk of money towards evening dresses but that's because I know I can sell them on afterwards (although it will break my heart to part with my gorgeous Gino Cerutti red number), whereas for Miss North Yorkshire I didn't spend more than £30 on my fashion wear and outfit of choice outfits combined as I wore a lot of what I already had.
Charity Work
A huge part of being a pageant girl is raising money for charity, which was one of the main reasons I got into this in the first place. Raising money for charity is hard work and it can be really stressful trying to get tickets sold, raffle prizes, venues etc for events, but when you see the total raised at the end of the night it's always worth it. I'm coming up to an overall raised total of £1000 at the moment but I am hoping to raise at least that amount for Supermodel England coming up in November, so hopefully that total will rise up even further. The charity I am currently raising money for is a local baby hospice called Zoe's Place and it feels amazing to know that you are making a difference and raising money for such an important cause.
'It's Easy'
On the outside it can just look like we get dressed up all pretty and walk across a stage, but it's so much more than that. Obviously in the lead up your efforts in charity fundraising go towards your final score so that hard work is already there, but it's also finding outfits that represent you, having the confidence to walk and pose on a catwalk in front of an audience, cameras and a panel of judges, and it's also having the self belief in yourself. If there's one thing that I can say about beauty pageants it's that they really helped my confidence and taught me to love myself a bit more. I'm the type of person where I always put myself down and tell myself I'm not good enough, but pageants have made me realise that I am good enough and I can do whatever I put my mind to.
I'm so glad I started doing pageants and I'm still not ready for my journey to end, so hopefully Supermodel England can bring me even more opportunities than past pageants already have.
Has this post changed your mind on the pageant industry? Or was there something in this post that you didn't realise was part of it? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Lucy x
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