CEDAR Vale woman Kate ‘Miss Kitten Darling’ Mulcahy cuts a striking figure on any day of the week but on Saturday when she came second in the Garterbelts and Gasoline Pinup Contest she felt 10 feet tall.
Ms Mulcahy, 32, came second out of 10 finalists in the prestigious competition on Tamborine Mountain in front of a strong crowd of her family and friends.
Among Ms Mulcahy’s supporters was her 12-year-old daughter Jade Campbell, who was watching her perform for the first time, and her mother Julie Lipp.
Missing from the crowd but well and truly alive in Ms Mulcahy’s heart was one of her biggest fans, her late fiancé Olly van Eck, who she was set to marry on Tamborine Mountain this month.
One of Mr van Eck’s final wishes before he died suddenly in December 2014 was for Ms Mulcahy to try out for the pinup contest for a third time after trying for two years to make the finals.
Ms Mulcahy, who is about to take a break from pinup to spend time with her mother and travel with her daughter, said taking the stage was an emotional experience.
“The camaraderie of the girls (competitors), because they all knew about Olly and they’ve all followed my journey after he passed away, was amazing and all night they were saying to me ‘he’s here with you, he’d be proud of you’,” she said.
“We were all supporting each other and cheering each other on – all the girls did fantastic and they’re all such beautiful souls.”
She said coming second was the icing on the cake.
“I had a huge fan base there to support me and when they announced my name the whole place went nuts – just hearing those cheers just validated how much support I have,” she said.
“Hearing those cheers I just felt 10 feet tall – I felt as tall as Olly who was nearly seven foot.”
