One of Winnie Harlow’s earliest sources of confidence comes right from her own family tree.
“My grandmother is such a fiery Jamaican Leo, just like me, and she has always been confident,” Harlow, 30, exclusively told Us Weekly after the reveal of her wax figure on Wednesday, June 25, at Madame Tussauds in New York.
“From watching her paint her red nail polish, to doing her makeup, to choosing her hair looks, the adventurous takes she takes on fashion, whether it’s leopard print pants or a fuzzy top. I’ve always been able to see that confidence,” Harlow said.
The fashion model and entrepreneur rose to fame after appearing on season 21 of America’s Next Top Model in 2014. Though she didn’t win, she placed sixth overall, and has since established a successful modeling career and SPF skincare company, Cay Skin. Harlow, who was diagnosed with vitiligo at four years old, has been outspoken about the rare autoimmune condition that attacks the melanocyte cells, which produce melanin.
Harlow is the first person with vitiligo to receive a wax figure and the model noted it was very important to her that the reveal occur on World Vitiligo Day. Harlow’s confidence, and legacy, is now forever cemented in wax form.
“I’ve gotten so much support and so much love from the vitiligo community on how much I’ve uplifted them by just being me and how much it allows them to just be themselves,” Harlow told Us.“ I thought it was imperative for me to launch it on World Vitiligo Day, to not just celebrate me, and the things I’ve done and all this, but also them and how much they’ve supported me and how much that uplifts me as well.”
The wax figure reveal was more than one year in the making as Harlow spent hours working alongside the Madame Tussauds team to make sure the figure accurately depicted her. Harlow’s wax figure, which is striking her “red carpet signature” pose, donnes a dazzling golden look from a previous red carpet appearance.
“Madame Tussauds is a master at their craft, so I didn’t need to be too hands on, but they definitely were really adamant about making sure that I was really happy with the end result,” Harlow told Us. “This is something that showcases me and my work in my life over time, and it will be here forever.”
Harlow wasn’t hesitant to make edits regarding the wax figure’s appearance and they were encouraged by the Madame Tussauds team.
“I typically wear my Cay Skin lip in the shade Coral, and it was looking a little bit more like Bad Girl Berry,” Harlow joked to Us. “When they showed me, and I made those edits, it was really just little tweaks. But all in all, they really did hit the nail on the head.”
There are other important things happening in Harlow’s personal life, too. In February, the model and NBA player Kyle Kuzma announced their engagement after nearly five years of dating. They couple have been “enjoying being engaged” and taking things slow, Harlow said.
“So many people ask me about the engagement and when the wedding is and you know what? I don’t want to rush anything,” Harlow told Us. “I want to do everything perfect and the way I want to do it. So whatever time that takes, whatever things that take, I just want to relish in this moment.”
