It all seems like a dream to Canberra's Jahna Lugnan who will be walking down the runway at New York Fashion Week (NYFW) 2023.
"I am very excited, it's a big opportunity," she says.
The 17-year-old will model designs from Colleen Tighe-Johnson's fashion label Buluuy Mirrii at an NYFW event in early September.
Jahna will the the only Aboriginal model at the Flying Solo show and says the feeling is unreal.
Most recently she walked the ramp at a Supply Nation fashion show attended by a variety of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses. When she stepped out on the runway, she says her confidence peaked and she felt "very slay".
A double scholarship student from Lismore, Jahna spends her days learning dance at Wanniassa's Erindale College.
Although her focus has been in the fine arts, a spotlight in a global fashion event such as NYFW is a massive turning point for the teen. Though it hasn't sunk in yet, Jahna feels her life is about to change.
"I don't know what's going to happen after New York Fashion Week," she says.
"It's going to open up a whole bunch of new avenues."
The international exposure and meeting First Nations models from other countries is something she is really looking forward to.
Proud mum Kathleen Bolt was excited about her daughter depicting their community on such a platform.
"She's learnt so much from family and connections back home. She is a representation of our mob, the Bundjalung nation and the Gumbaynggirr nation," Ms Bolt said.
"It's going to be highlighted to a lot of people ... that it is possible for something like this to happen in their own life. We're hoping this will spark an interest in kids or encourage them."
"Jahna is super-confident, talented, and she has that 'wow' factor," Gomeroi fashion designer Ms Tighe-Johnson says.
She has named Jahna as a brand ambassador for the Buluuy Mirrii label, which closed Australia's glamorous Melbourne Fashion Week last year.
This means big things are in store. Jahna is soon scheduled to accompany Ms Tighe-Johnson to fashion weeks in Milan, Paris and London, gracing the runway in her creations.
Ms Tighe-Johnson said she was passionate about providing opportunities to a "new breed" of talented and educated young First Nations people. The Tamworth-based creative is one of 25 independent designers invited to showcase their collections at NYFW's Flying Solo.
"Dreams can come true," she says.
"This is bigger than my label, it's about our ancestral stories that have been passed down, storytelling on high-grade textiles and fabrics, and showing to the world the the positive side of our cultural heritage."
While the designer applied for multiple grants she was unable to secure funding for her NYFW team (all volunteers) to travel. So to get Jahna and the rest of the squad to New York, a GoFundMe page has been set up to manage costs.
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