About a month ago, I received an early morning phone call as I was groggily checking my email and waking up. It took me a good minute to comprehend what was going on, but once I did I promptly jumped out of bed and did a little happy dance: Harper's Bazaar had selected me as the 20s finalist in their Fabulous at Every Age contest! After a bit of last minute scrambling (and coming back from London a few days prior), off I went to New York, where I experienced two days of things more amazing than I could have ever imagined. From meeting the amazing editors of a magazine I've been reading for years to getting styled by the talented Roxane Danset (in a Dolce & Gabbana dress and Fendi heels, no less), from being dolled up by the Estée Lauder and Aveda teams to being chauffered to the Hearst Tower for a luncheon with the beautiful Brooke Shields, it goes without saying that I was pinching myself for the entire duration of this trip.

The grand prize winner was 50s finalist Teruko Burrell, who is just about the most radiant woman I've ever come across. And the greatest reward to come from this experience? The inspiration that I received from every single person that I met. Because I was the youngest of the group, there were so many great qualities in each finalist that I looked up to. These women, though very different, each had a strong sense of self and glowed in their own way. I also developed a new sense of determination to bring back to Vancouver thanks to the kind, innovative, driven, and genuine Bazaar editors.

The entire experience was nothing less than an absolute dream and whenever I think back to last week, I am still shocked that they chose me. Thank you, Harper's Bazaar for celebrating diversity, unconventional standards of beauty, and "female empowerment at every age".

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All photos thanks to Kristen Somody Whalen 
Click here for more images of the styling process &event!