A Carletonville resident who is an international modelling sensation believes other girls can also benefit from modelling.

Cynthia Machava burst onto the international modelling scene after she was one of only eight models worldwide and the only South African to be part of the international fashion magazine Vogue’s Open Casting Class of 2023.

Although at the time, Cynthia was still a learner at Carletonville High School, she had to take a flight with the crew from Paris to Dakar as part of the competition.

Cynthia still stays with her family in Carletonville even though her international modelling career is regularly reaching new heights.

She was recently the model in an advertisement for the French perfume and cosmetics house Lancôme’s new Idole mascara and also appeared on the front page of the Swiss beauty magazine Schön! Cynthia usually stays at home when she is not flying internationally, usually to Paris, for modelling shoots.

“I’m doing great and am really enjoying it. It has been a dream come true,” Cynthia told the Herald this week. According to Cynthia, she has to fly a lot, which is tiring, but she finds it very interesting to meet and mingle with other international models as well as people from other professions in the industry, such as stylists.

“I am learning a lot and hope to continue modelling for as long as I can. Luckily, the modelling industry changed a lot during recent years, and it is still possible for models who are 40 or older to get work,” she says.

Cynthia believes that modelling taught her to believe in her self-worth, something from which other local girls and women can also benefit.

“I am not as tall as the ideal model, but I was able to make it because I believe in myself. You must also have a passion for modelling and want to learn more. Modelling teaches you discipline and how to focus and set goals for yourself, as well as how to work hard to achieve them,” she says.

According to Cynthia, it will benefit other girls to start modelling, as it can help them learn the same values and keep them from doing negative things.

Both Cynthia and her mother, Mrs Thandi Mabe-Machava, cannot stop talking about the importance of parents supporting their children’s goals.

Cynthia says that she would love to get more work in different countries. She, however, still considers the fact that she is doing so much work in Paris as a blessing, as many other models dream of making it big there, something that she has already been able to do.