Teenager made up to have won The Gypsy Shrine competition

An eye-catching 19-year-old has taken the first steps towards an ambition to be a model after winning a competition to find the new face of a festival make-up specialist.

Kenya Watson, of Newark, loves experimenting with different make-up styles and has become an expert at face art.

She uses products from The Gypsy Shrine, which specialises in festival make-up with shimmery and sparkling products, and face jewels.

Kenya said she decided to enter after seeing the company had launched the competition, looking for "real girls, real customers and real beauties to be part of a girl gang."

The teenager had to send a photograph of herself wearing the company’s products, along with a caption saying why she should be the face of its Girls Support Girls campaign.

The competition attracted 500 entries, from which The Gypsy Shrine selected its favourite three — one of whom was Kenya.

"I was shocked when they told me," she said.

"It is the first thing I have ever entered, so to find out I had won was amazing."

Kenya was invited to Manchester, where she had her make-up and hair done professionally ahead of a photo-shoot, which involved four different looks.

Kenya said it was a great experience, which she enjoyed.

"It was so much fun and made me feel that modelling was something that I would love to do in the future," she said.

Her aim now is to set up a portfolio and hopefully be signed up by an agency.

She said it was a tough industry to break into, but felt she had the right positive mindset.

Kenya also enjoys helping other people with their make-up and would like to do that professionally in the future.

She has worked at Gannets bistro, Newark, for five years, where she is part of the front-of-house team.

"I thoroughly enjoy it, but it is not something that I want to do for ever," she said.