"The idea was really cool," Chantel said of the contest, which focuses on personality and individual style rather than looks. "It shows that anyone can be a model if you try. You don't have to be this cookie cutter shape. Any girl can do it."

Even though she liked the idea, Chantel's friends still had to convince her to enter. Once she was chosen as a top 50 finalist she realized how badly she wanted to win -- and win she did.

"It just hit me so hard, it was really overwhelming," Chantel said of being chosen as one of six contest winners from across Canada. "It didn't even feel like I won until I was there at the shoot, meeting all these awesome people and having fun."

Chantel said she still talks to the other five winners almost every day. Although she wasn't expecting it, she said the friendships she developed with the other girls was her favourite part of the whole experience.

All six finalists were brought to Toronto in May for a photo shoot for a back-to-school fashion spread featured in the September issue of Cosmo Girl magazine. When asked how it felt to see herself in print, Chantel said it was exciting but she's managed to keep her feet on the ground.

"The whole experience was really uplifting and made me feel a lot better about myself," she said. "My friends were more excited about the magazine than me. They're really boosting me up but I look at it and it doesn't really go to my head because I know it's just a contest."

That level-headedness is one of the reasons Chantel was chosen as a finalist in the first place. Cindy Mielke, director of marketing and advertising for West 49, said Chantel's versatile style and her friendly personality made her stand out from the crowd.

"One thing constant between all the girls, that really stood out loud and clear, was the word comfortable," Ms. Mielke said. "The contest is about being fashionable but also about being fashionable in a way that you feel comfortable with. We wanted girls that were comfortable being themselves."

For behind the scenes photos and more information on West 49's Sooo Not a Model contest, visit www.sooonotamodel.com.