Abbey Constable celebrates life at 15

Posted on 15 March, 2015

Today is Abbey Constable’s birthday.

Even though she’s just turned 15, Abbey has made a big career decision. She wants—more than anything else in the world—to be a model.

If the past year is anything to go by, there will be no stopping Abbey from making her dream come true. You see, for Abbey, modelling isn’t just about being a pretty face or learning how to pose or glide along a catwalk wearing designer fashion. It’s much more than glam photo shoots and bright lights. It’s about building confidence.

Abbey was born in Westmead in Sydney. Within hours, mum Claire Lacy learned that her darling little angel had stopped breathing—13 times by her second day on earth. Abbey was rushed into intensive care where she stayed for two-and-a-half weeks. Eventually, doctors and specialists broke the bad news—it was unlikely Abbey would live for very long.

“Once she made it back home, we would take shifts watching her through the night while she was sleeping, for fear she would stop breathing and no one would be there to react,” says Claire.

Abbey proved everyone wrong, and although today she’ll be digging into birthday sweets, life hasn’t always been a cake-walk.

Lack of oxygen to the brain has meant epileptic fits, absences from school for illness and medical appointments, short-term memory loss that has interfered with Abbey’s ability to play sports and ‘do normal kid stuff’. Being teased at school and told she was no good by some adults she encountered eroded Abbey’s self-confidence. Her parent’s relationship break-up added to her world of turmoil.

Today Abbey lives with her mum and goes to St Clare’s College, Year 9. Her confidence has gone from being almost non-existent to being highly noticeable to those who know her well.

And it all started, says Claire, with FASHFEST, the largest fashion event on Canberra’s annual social calendar.

“We heard of FASHFEST and Abbey was desperate to go,” says Claire.

“I was trying to order tickets online but was doing something wrong. Out of desperation, I called the media contact number on the FASHFEST website and we were told not to worry. The FASHFEST team said they would take care of it and make sure Abbey’s night was super special.”

When they arrived at FASHFEST, Abbey and Claire were met by the event’s media crew and taken backstage to watch the controlled chaos and extreme excitement that is an inevitable part of such a massive fashion show. They met some fashion designers, including Vicky Kidd-Gallighan from Rockstars and Royalty. And then settled into their seats to enjoy the rest of their FASHFEST experience.

“That night, Abbey decided she wanted to be a model,” says Claire. “And she’s been working hard at it ever since.”

While still 14, Abbey applied for Miss Teen Galaxy Australia, with the ambition of becoming a role model for people who have different medical conditions.

One of her proudest moments was her first photoshoot. Looking back over the final photos, Abbey was thrilled.

“I could see how I had composed myself at the shoot and it made me actually believe in myself,” she says.

Abbey was sponsored by Canberra’s En Vogue Property Management to be part of the pageant. Although it’s not compulsory to raise funds for a charity as a contestant, Abbey decided she would and raised more than $2,700.00 for the Make a Wish Foundation.

Abbey made it through to become a finalist for the ACT, against stiff competition. While waiting for the Miss Teen Galaxy Australia finals to be judged, she took another giant step forward. Abbey applied for the annual model casting for FASHFEST, competing against 300 aspiring applicants, including some from interstate.

Andrea Hutchinson, co-founder of both FASHFEST and Canberra’s HAUS Models, was delighted to see Abbey on the catwalk.

“She’s come such a long way and should be really proud,” says Andrea.

“The competition in 2015 was super tough. The casting was a record-breaker with numbers well up from the 160 the previous year. Abbey is still a bit young for what the designers need, but we’re hoping to see more of her and hope she makes it on to the real catwalk at FASHFEST one year.”

There’s no doubt there were twinges of disappointment when Abbey didn’t get through for FASHFEST 2015, but it’s not going to stop her from pursuing her dream of getting into the industry. She was even at a Sydney talent agent for an interview recently, to gain more invaluable experience.

And she’s already looking forward to 13 May when FASHFEST 2015 hosts opening night at the National Convention Centre (tickets on sale soon).

“She can’t wait and will be there with a grin from ear-to-ear,” says Claire.

Photos by Andrew Campbell and Avon Dissanayake.