18 year old Mia-Rose Lewis from Newport, was crowned Miss Teen Galaxy Wales at the UK Galaxy Pageants 10th anniversary! Get to know Mia-Rose by reading her interview below!
What made you want to enter the UK Galaxy pageants?
I have been participating in pageants close to 5 years, but my dream to become a Galaxy Queen began in 2015 when Rebecca Moffatt was crowned Miss Teen Galaxy Wales, I watched the queens journey that year and knew that one day that’s where I wanted to be. I went to watch the 2016 finals when Rebecca handed over to Leah Andrews and decided from there I would make it my mission to one day become a Galaxy queen, and that’s what I did. I worked extremely hard in the lead up to the 2017 finals and the hard worked paid off when I placed first runner up and a year on I’ve won my dream title, it’s simple – DONT GIVE UP.
What did you do to prepare for the final?
Having proudly placed runner up in the 2017 finals I asked for advice, worked on my not so strong points and thought about what I really wanted from the system. I realised that from my first time competing in galaxy to this year when I won, I had grown so much as a person and realised that it is absolutely key to only be but yourself. In the lead up to the final I utilised my title to my upmost best ability made 98 appearances travelling from one end of the country to the other, I raised over £600 for the Christie by holding my own fun charity events as well as a sponsored abseil down the old Trafford bell tower. I also worked super hard to get into a confident shape by eating healthy and regularly going to the gym.
What is the best thing about being a Galaxy Girl?
It is still so surreal to say that ‘I am a Galaxy girl’ now, it has been a dream of mine for so long. The best thing has to be the bonds with the most incredible women I have been so fortunate to make already. My 9 sister queens and I have already grown so close within the past few weeks, our group chat is going off 24/7 …Holly really struggles to keep up with all of our nattering. We are all looking forward to America so much, and the best thing is we get to have a sleepover that lasts a week!!
Who is your inspiration?
My inspiration is a little different to others but within reason. My inspiration is Coco Chanel because she started in life with so little, had so many pitfalls and despite this she worked her way from a hat maker to one of the greatest fashion designers the world has ever seen to date.
What part of the international galaxy pageants in Orlando are you most excited about?
It would be impossible to choose just one part because it’s Orlando, the experience is just going to be incredible. I would probably say I’m most looking forward to orientation, this is the first real time we meet all of the girls from different countries, I’ve already started to get so many of these girls and they truly are beautiful both inside and out. I cannot wait to absorb everyone’s different cultures and I am very much looking forward to (attempting) BECOME A LATINA for the week, stay tuned to see how my wishful thinking works out.
Tell us your favourite:
Food – It goes without saying my favourite food has to be a typical Sunday roast, every Sunday I sit down with my family to a Sunday roast. We all cross each other throughout the week with work, so when Sunday comes around it means family and quality time to catch up and talk about things we have coming up the following week.
Song – I have two all time favourites and they are both for similar reasons, they are Katy Perry – firework and Christina Aguilera – Beautiful, they are both about empowering women and women knowing their worth; which are topics I am so passionate about expressing to the world.
Beauty/make up product – I try to wear as minimal make up as possible through the week to keep my skin clear; touch wood, I don’t suffer with many spots and put it down to the lack of make-up I use. So I would have to say eyelash extensions are my go to, I try to have them infilled every week so that If I don’t wear products I feel I have something on. Oooh and I must add a recent addiction I have is my mac lip gloss in shade dreamy, it’s sooo pretty!!
Do you have any exciting plans/appearances organised for your year as a Galaxy queen?
I have a very exciting year ahead with lots of events and appearances up my sleeve, which will soon to be revealed – so make sure to keep up to date with my journey by following my social medias: Facebook – Miss Teen Galaxy Wales, Instagram – MissTeenGalaxyWales. My aim is to not only make appearances and attend events from one end of Wales to the other but to travel as much of the UK with my beautiful crown representing the system as possible. I have already been so fortunate to make so many links with people and am very much looking forward to collaborating with them over the next year.
When you aren’t busy being a beauty queen, what do you do in your free time? Do you have any hobbies?
So in between my full-time apprenticeship, appearances all over the UK and planning charity fundraisers, I always make sure to have some down time. For me this consists of an hour in the gym 5 times a week where I plug in my headphones, listen to music and think about different things or catch up on Misha’s Vlogs.
What advice would you give to girls who are thinking about entering the UK Galaxy pageants?
I can hand on heart say that I would never be the individual I am today without pageantry and the Galaxy system. Galaxy has become such a huge part of my life and I wouldn’t change it for the world. The wonderful world of pageantry allows you to freely be your crazy self without having to worry about being judged because we all share common interests that others may not understand. Galaxy is a huge support system, Galaxy is women who empower other women, Galaxy is group of like-minded individuals making a difference every day. The Galaxy system has enabled me to make friends for life, has opened up so many doors for me, has been the biggest confidence boost (that I really needed) and has become something I can’t go a day (a minute) without thinking about. My advice would be DO NOT HESITATE – one thing I regret is not entering one of the Pageant Girl systems sooner than I did and this was because I hesitated. The real question is why think about it, just do it.
Photography – Van Der Meuwe