Michala Brasseur may not be Miss Teen Canada World, but she definitely left the competition having learned something positive.
The Estevan teen finished in 11th place in a field of 76 girls from across the country, though she was a bit disappointed to be just shy of the top 10.
"We model off our swimsuits and we were judged on that. When we were doing our swimsuits, I went up to the runway and we were supposed to do our turn on the runway, then do a figure eight, but I forgot to do my figure eight, so that cost me the top ten."
The competition, which was held in Toronto last month, featured several main competitions, including swimwear, talent and community service. Michala explained that contestants were ranked in each category, as well as in smaller categories like photogenic appeal and people's choice. Points were totalled up at the end of the competition, leading the judges to announce the winners.
"All the girls that (won a smaller competition) were in the top 20 at least."
For the talent portion of the competition, Michala performed a lyrical dance, choreographed by Lori Gay Drewitz Galloway of Estevan. She placed third, competing against girls who performed mainly monologues, songs and dances.
"There was a girl who did River Dancing, like Irish dancing. It was so cool," she said of another competitor's performance.
Michala also excelled in the congeniality portion of the competition, finishing first-runner up. As the girls were in near-constant contact with one another during the 10-day competition, they were monitored and scored by chaperones.
"Everyone was so, so nice, I couldn't believe it. But when the pageant started - it went preliminaries, talent and pageant - but once those started, the girls started getting a little rude. They started making each other cry, it was getting really bad."
Michala pointed out that she quickly learned just to keep her mouth closed and stay out of conflict, something that clearly served her well.
Staying at the hotel with the girls was interesting, since their floor of the hotel was named one of the most haunted places in Canada.
"There were girls that were terrified and running through the hallways screaming."
Michala entered the competition with the platform of raising money for cervical cancer research, a topic that hits close to home. Her maternal grandmother passed away from the disease last year, and Michala hoped to spread awareness about immunization and preventative measures.
Michala said her dress, which was originally owned by the reigning Miss Universe, got her a lot of attention and even brought some of the judges to tears. The dress, which is the only one of its kind, was purchased from Miss Universe, who had decided not to wear it herself.
"It's kind of a funny story, because when we went there, we were looking through this big book of designs. I'm looking through it and I'm like 'Oh my gosh, I love that dress.' So we called (the designer) and he actually doesn't make them anymore, but he had made one, the white one, for Miss Universe but she changed her mind, and she's actually the same size as me, so now I have this new, one-of-a-kind, only-one-in-the-world dress."
During the competition, the girls were introduced to several celebrities, including Robert Pattinson, who was filming in their hotel, the Fairmont Royal York, and offered the girls a brief hello.
"That was so awesome," said Michala. "I couldn't believe it."
The stars of the Canadian series Degrassi who were the MCs for the competition were among the other famous people to which the contestants were introduced.
Michala said she found the food to be the worst part of the competition. The girls were expected to be at breakfast at 6:00 a.m., and that was their only regularly scheduled meal of the day.
"We'd have lunch at, like, 5:00 p.m., which is usually suppertime, and then we'd have supper at 2:00 a.m.," she said, pointing out that she and the other competitors were only getting a couple hours of sleep each night.
"There were a lot of vegetarians there, so it was a lot of organic stuff," she said. "They had these little bags of cookies that tasted like cardboard. That was the only thing they had for us to snack on, so of course I was eating like 20 packs a day of these cardboard cookies."
During the competition, Michala was offered a modelling contract by one of the judges.
"He really liked my walk, and he really liked everything I did, so he talked to the girl that I bought my dress from and she contacted me."
Michala said she was definitely interested in the opportunity, but that modelling would be a lot of work.
"(The Saskatchewan pageant) was called 'Be your own kind of beautiful,' and you didn't really have to worry about your body. But for (Miss Teen Canada World) you did, so I was constantly going to the gym, and I have to keep that up now."
Future pageants may be in store for Michala, who admitted that she enjoys them.
"I can enter this pageant again in two years, so I might possibly do that. But it is a lot of money, a lot of fundraising, a lot of work. It does take a lot of time," she said.
Michala is considering competing in the Top Teen of North America pageant, which allows both boys and girls to compete.
With this year's pageant behind her, Michala said she learned that "You just need to focus. Don't listen to what the other girls are saying, you are there to win, you are there to do your best, and no matter what happens, that's what you're there to do.
"You can't get caught in the little drama that happens with the girls. You have to be quiet, but just go along and not get caught in the drama."
If given the opportunity to do that competition over, Michala said she would done her figure eight during the swimsuit competition.
"And I would stock up on food," she said, laughing.
