A six-year-old girl is preparing to jet off to Las Vegas to compete in a beauty pageant after winning her first ever professional meet in Morley.
Grace Mthati, who lives with her mum Konstantina Michailova in Lower Wortley, Leeds, was crowned Petite Miss Diamond UK in October after being awarded first place in her age group in what was her debut pageant. The youngster, who goes to Five Lanes Primary School, had taken part in one charity event before the big competition.
Konstantina said they arrived at Morley Town Hall on October 27 with few expectations. "We did not expect much because I had spoken to the other mums in the group and their kids had been trying to win it for two to three years," she said.
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"We did have some lessons with someone who had won the title before, but I just wanted her to get more confidence and more experience." Konstantina, 32, said she only entered Grace into the competition after asking her if it was something she would be interested in. "I asked her if it was something she would like to do as I do not like to force things on my kids," she told Leeds Live.
"She always likes to change her clothes and wear accessories in her hair like a little princess. And she likes to try my shoes on."
After getting the thumbs up from Grace, Konstantina entered her into the Miss Diamond competition. The six-year-old was interviewed as part of the three-stage process, which also saw her go on to win a 'spokesmodel' award.
"She spoke for world peace and equal rights for every kid in the world," said Konstantina. "I am more proud of that than of the 'beauty' part."
Grace grabbed first place in the Petite Miss Diamond UK group and is now gearing up to travel to Las Vegas where she will compete at an international level. Konstantina said the Morley judges "encouraged being as natural as possible."
"I put some lip gloss on her and that was it," she added. "They encouraged me to keep her hair as natural as possible. There was not much makeup going on at all." Despite not knowing what to expect at their first pageant, Konstantina described a "positive atmosphere."
She said: "Being her first time I did not know what to expect. I was thinking some [people] might not be so friendly, but everyone was very respectful."
Konstantina and Grace expect to jet off to Las Vegas in July, although the final details are yet to be confirmed. Asked how she was feeling about the opportunity, Grace said: "I am feeling good. I do enjoy it [competing in pageants]. My mum says 'we are all here to have fun'."
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