Mélange Travel & Lifestyle Magazine October 2019 | Page 28

Cover Story
Photo Credit: St. Lucia Tourist Board
Rhyan
invites
everyone
to visit her
beloved
Saint Lucia
Rhyan Chastanet
Saint Lucian Debutante
Catching sight of 16-year-old
Rhyan Chastanet, one may
immediately think, “there
goes the model, Claudia
Schiffer.” Full of poise, she
unconsciously fills a room
with a presence that is difficult
to ignore. Descending from
two of the oldest families
on the beautiful Caribbean
island of St. Lucia: DuBoulay
and Chastanet, growing up,
Rhyan was an oftentimes quiet
child. As the years progressed,
the reserved young girl was
encouraged by her parents to
step out of her comfort zone.
Consequently, she travelled to
Paris this summer where she
Rhyan Chastanet in Paris
Photographer: Emilio Poblete
participated in a program run
by the distinguished French
Fashion Consultant, Actor and
Best Top Model Judge, Vincent
McDoom.
For two weeks, Rhyan learned
how to be comfortable with
herself, standing at 6’ 1”.
Naturally beautiful, she was
encouraged to discover her
sense of style; project an
aura of self-assurance; wear
different styles of clothes with
poise. . . . Under the tutelage
of Vincent and his team,
Rhyan received a pseudo
introduction into the world
of Parisian fashion. Shopping
trips to fashion stores to seek
out fun, age-appropriate
clothing, lessons in good
nutrition, hair styling and
make-up tutorials; lessons
on the difference between
walking naturally down the
street as opposed to walking
down a runway; attendance
at Parisian fashion shows . . .
these were all part of the two-
week experience. At the end,
a metamorphosis resulted.
Rhyan blossomed into an
elegant young lady, whose
poise and presence were
indelibly captured by the lens
of French photographer, Emilio
Poblete.