Pretoria - South Africans will be breaking a wishbone or knocking on wood, hoping for a treble at the Miss Universe pageant taking place next month in the US.
This time it will be for Natasha Joubert, who has given locals much to hope for after she revealed some of the outfits she will be wearing for the 69th Miss Universe pageant.
Joubert, 23, believes she is fully prepared for Miss Universe, and the stunning dresses reassured her even more. The BCom graduate said her preparations started when she was crowned Miss Universe South Africa last year.
“I have been looking forward to this event from the moment of my crowning, and will carry the Miss Universe South Africa title with pride. I know that I have big shoes to fill following in the footsteps of both Zozi (Tunzi) and Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters,” she said.
Joubert’s national costume has been created by designer-to-the-stars Gert-Johan Coetzee, while Jolandie Fouche of Jolache Couture is responsible for a number of evening gowns for the pageant.
Joubert will be “carrying the children of South Africa” with her when she walks on to the international stage in her national costume, as the fabric wings of her gown have been printed with drawings made by young children from Diepsloot and Randburg.
The artwork tells the story of pre-school children’s personal experiences of lockdown and how the Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted their young lives.
Coetzee, who also designed Nel-Peters’ final dress when she handed over the Miss Universe crown to her successor in 2018, said they wanted to create something special and proudly South African.
“We not only created a garment to show off our skills and for dramatic effect, but it also had to be something truly meaningful and represent a cause close to Natasha’s heart. That’s why we decided to take sketches from local children, to portray how they currently see the state of the world in their own ‘words’,” he said.
They took the children’s sketches, digitised them and printed them on white flowery fabric, and created an angelic silhouette for Joubert, to symbolise overcoming hardship through guidance.
The beauty queen said she was delighted with the result.
“The children were amazing and came up with images that truly reflect the regulations of lockdown; some funny, others poignant and meaningful. A number drew the usual pre-school child’s image of the family – only, the mum, dad and brothers and sisters were drawn far apart to show social distancing,” she said.
Fadziso Matanhike, Maths Clubs facilitator at Diepsloot-based Olico – an organisation that makes maths accessible to township children – said they were proud to be part of the Miss Universe South Africa costume design.
“These drawings represent the difficulties that children have faced during the Covid pandemic. We are very proud that this artwork will be worn by Miss Universe South Africa at the pageant, taking some of South Africa with her,” said Matanhike.
Hendrene Mintcher, principal of Toddies Pre-school and Crèche in Randburg, said the youngsters “put so much feeling into the drawings”.
“They came up with images of greeting each other by knocking elbows, of them wearing masks, of social distancing, and they showed what they’ve learnt about Covid and the precautions necessary to prevent its spread,” said Mintcher.
The pageant takes place on May 16, from 2am to 5am (May 17 SA time). The reigning Miss Universe, Zozibini Tunzi – who was crowned Miss South Africa in August 2019 – will crown her successor at a glittering event at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Tunzi, because of lockdown, is the longest-reigning Miss Universe in history.
Pretoria News