Ngāpuhi and Tainui descendant Rangi Barnett takes home the title of the first runner-up at this year's Mrs New Zealand pageant, but life for this beauty queen hasn't always been glitz and glam.
More than a 100 people gather at Ellerslie for the Mrs New Zealand pageant. But behind the glamour, is the story of a woman who's overcome adversity to get to where she is today.
Mrs New Zealand contestant Rangi Barnett (Ngāpuhi, Tainui) says, "It's a bit of a touchy subject for me but my father passed away when I was 3-years-old, my mother had a massive heart attack when I was 11 so she's fully disabled."
As Mrs New Zealand first runner-up, the recently engaged mother of four now wears a diamond crown, but once upon a time she didn't even have a roof over her head.
"As I was going through my situation and processing all of that I turned to a lot of bad things, for example, alcohol and things like that and I ended up on the streets for 3 years."
Miss Barnett says the Mrs New Zealand pageant has provided her with a platform to reach out to other women who have been through similar struggles.
"I ended up hapu at the age of 15 so I ended up going home for help because I was on the streets. I raised my 4 babies on my own, it's not easy but I feel blessed to have them in my life and they make me want to do more and give more."
The two Māori contestants embrace their culture as part of the pageant. The second runner-up Mariana Morrision says there is much more to pageants than what meets the eye.
Fellow contestant Mariana Morrison (Te Arawa) says, "The most important thing about these pageants are not only about sashes and tiaras, they also teach women about etiquette, how to be a lady, confidence, self-respect and also about how to empower women. You can start from the bottom and you can get to the top."
Daena Colebrook takes top honours. She will represent NZ at the Mrs Universe pageant in July 2018.