Pageant mum spends thousands on fake tan and hair extensions for her four-year-old daughter but denies she’s sexualising her
Enrika Milne, 26, from Kent has enters daughter Arielle into beauty pageants saying that it makes her happy
A MUM who splashes out thousands of pounds of fake tan, nails and hair extensions for her four-year-old beauty queen daughter has hit back at accusations that she is “sexualising” her.
Enrika Milne, 26, from the Isle of Sheppey, Kent, spends two to three hours preparing her daughter Arielle with make-up for pageants.
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Since she started competing in April 2016, the pint-sized beauty queen has taken home more than a dozen crowns.
She has wowed audiences with her adorable costumes, including a cowgirl, gummy bear and Disney villain Maleficent.
But Enrika, who spends up to £350 preparing Arielle for a single pageant, has been forced to defend herself against people who condemn her for “sexualising” her daughter.
She said: “I would be upset if she stopped doing them now, as they’ve been great for her confidence and have taught her all about charity work. In a lot of pageants, contestants raise money for charity too.
"We [the pageant community] do get misjudged, but I want Arielle to do what makes her happy.
“Pageants have been amazing for her confidence. A lot of kids her age struggle with self-esteem, but she doesn’t. If she’s already this confident at just four, she’ll go on to great things.
“I want her to be Miss England one day, and I think having that focus will keep her on track and stop her going astray, drinking and smoking, in her teenage years.”
Enrika, who runs a tanning and beauty business and is married to company director Wayne, 35, got the pageant bug after watching Toddlers and Tiaras on TV.
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The American reality show charts the highs and lows of child beauty queens as they battle it out to win prestigious titles.
As Arielle was too young at the time, Enrika waited a few years before scouring Facebook for pageants in her local area.
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Then, in April 2016, the tot took to the stage for the first time and, despite some initial nerves, loved every second.
Now, Enrika and Arielle have travelled all over the country competing – with Wayne driving them from pageant to pageant, and even helping his daughter get ready, by assisting with her hair and tan.
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Using her skills as a beautician, Enrika does Arielle’s makeup herself, applying eyeshadow, glitter, false lashes and lipstick.
The youngster also wears £100 hairpieces and has special acrylic nails applied by her mum.
Enrika added: "Day to day, she wears hair extensions and gel nails, which I do for her every week.
“She doesn’t wear makeup every day, but she can apply it herself. She’s getting really good, she can do her own mascara.
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“She’s not keen on the false lashes, but she wears them for competitions.”
With the cost of Arielle’s makeup, bespoke costumes – which can run up to £300 a time – travel and hotel stays when competing in pageants far from home, Enrika estimates she’s splurged thousands on the hobby.
She added: “It’s worth every penny, when you see how confident Arielle is. She’s amazing for her age, she even makes little video blogs about her life where she’ll chat away.
“I see pageants as an investment in the future. They are expensive but you need to be unique to impress the judges.”
Enrika said she and Wayne love being involved in the pageant scene, as it also enables them to enjoy quality family time.
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She explained: “We can sometimes be away for three weekends a month, so I love the fact Wayne comes too.
“It’s quite rare to see dads in pageant audiences. Everyone loves him, he’s so funny and he really helps out. He’s very supportive. He even learnt how to apply Arielle’s tan through watching me.”
Earlier this year, we told you about the mum who spent £25,000 turning her kids into beauty pageant stars and then became one herself and now plans to open a pageant school.
We also revealed the baby beauty queen who won her first crown before she could WALK.
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