MEET THE PINT-SIZED PAGEANT PRINCESS
MOST seven-year-old girls dream of becoming princesses.
For Payten Ella Grattan, the dream feels real.
The Currumbin Primary School student was crowned Miss Mini Diamond Australia 2018 at a glittering ceremony in Brisbane earlier this month – giving her an amazing story for ‘show and tell’.
“It was lots of fun to do the show and tell with my new crown and sash, all my school friends wanted to wear it,” she said.
“They were all very proud of me and gave me lots of hugs.”
Competition is fierce at the pageant, with some parents going as far as shipping dresses in from Tiffany’s in New York.
Though Payten’s family didn’t go to those lengths, her dress cost almost $250.
But that was not the best part of the experience for Payten, who also took out the people’s choice and the runway queen awards.
“I really loved doing the meet and greets before the pageant and being able to raise money for my charity,” she said.
“It was really fun to meet and make lots of new friends along the way.
“Being on stage was lots of fun too.”
Miss Diamond Australia Director Morgan Mancini said pageants were becoming more popular.
“It is growing, and we’re trying to grow it and put a positive spin on it,” she said.
National Director of The Australian International Pageant Ferial Youakim said there has been a shift in recent years towards charity and community involvement in the industry.
“For us, it’s about creating role models, not the look, so we focus on a shift towards that,” she said.
Payten’s Mum Danielle said she and husband Clint were amazed by their daughter’s achievements.
“On the national final evening we were just in awe of her, she held herself above her years, she was confident and really did her best,” she said.
“She spoke beautifully, she looked absolutely stunning and to see her believe in herself was such a heart warming moment.
“Payten is a very shy and reserved little girl, she is really caring and sweet-natured which we love about her but we now know she is brave, determined and confident and we couldn’t be prouder.”