22-year-old American model, Sophia Hadjipanteli, is best-known for her unusual eyebrows, which she has grown into one, thick unibrow. “I definitely always had some sort of different mindset in terms of the way I dressed or how I wanted to look,” Hadjipanteli said during a recent photo-shoot for Dutch jeans-maker, Hardeman.
Hadjipanteli started the ‘#unibrowmovement’ and has been viciously attacked by trolls on social media. Her posts have attracted thousands of negative comments, like:
“… This weirdo is just trying to be edgy and cool. She’s a reprobate that’s needs put down.”
“You’re so ugly that you scare me.”
“What’s that on her face.”
Some have even posted words like, “Ewwww” and “Ugly!”
The model shared, “I wake up every day to terrible comments,” adding, “But, that really just motivates me more. I love the fact that me being myself unapologetically has allowed me to have control over the naysayers and that sort of control is really priceless.”
Hadjipanteli has also received positive and supportive feedback. “Whenever people ask me about my #unibrowmovement, which is on social media, they say, ‘What inspired it?’ It was inspired by my preferences. I personally really did not want to pluck my eyebrows, because I just really liked the way I looked without doing so – it wasn’t initially me rebelling against anyone.”
The model continued, “Now as I am establishing myself a lot more, and people from around the world are approaching me saying I’ve inspired them, I’m realising that whether I noticed it or not at the time, I was behind a conversation that was super important to be contributing to,” Hadjipanteli said.
She believes social media has an enormous influence on people’s success, including hers. “I’ve seen so many fabulous people online and super-hard-working people finally be signed to agencies, finally start throwing brands, finally work with photographers or artists or musicians that they’ve longed to do so, all because they sent them a message or that they’ve gotten their attention. And people really underestimate the power of being on your phone.”
Hadjipanteli hopes to use her modeling career to further what she calls body-positive and beauty activism, something she hopes social engagement will promote. She also plans to write a book in the future.
