Model Jessica Vander Leahy appears on Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop

Jessica Vander Leahy has become one of Australia’s most sought after models and has now received backing from an unlikely Hollywood star.

There were times when Jessica Vander Leahy never thought she would have a career in modelling, let alone thriving well into her 30s.

So the fact Vander Leahy has become one of this country’s most in demand models is not lost on her.

The 33-year-old curve model, who has been a stylist and waited tables before pursuing modelling full-time, has appeared in campaigns for Commonry, Seed, Mimco and H&M.

And yesterday pictures of Vander Leahy turned up on Hollywood actor Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop Instagram page, which has more than 1.6 million followers

Jessica Vander Leahy stars in Bras N Things' limited-edition capsule campaign launch.

Australian model Jessica Vander Leahy appears on Goop’s social media. Source: Instagram.

“I’ve stepped away from the industry multiple times because I couldn’t get work and I didn’t fit the mould of a model,” the Byron Bay based Vander Leahy, who grew up in Papua New Guinea, told Confidential.

“But I’ve seen a huge shift in the past couple of years, where inclusivity and diversity whether it’s got to do with age, or size or culture, have become the focal point and that’s exciting.”

“It’s not just about what you look like, but your voice and what you bring to the table.”

Jessica Vander Leahy in the Bras N Things' limited-edition capsule campaign launch.

Jessica Vander Leahy has caught the eye of Gweneth

Vander Leahy said when it came to the future, she believes it was time Australia had a plus size model that was readily name checked like America’s supermodel Ashley Graham.

“I want the name of a top model who is curvy, older and not a pre-pubescent girl to enter the fashion lexicon,” she said.

Her latest campaign is with Bras N Things and is ironically dubbed “New Sensation.”

“You wouldn’t think prancing around in your knickers would be empowering but it is,” she says of the range. “This is a company that has been putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to diversity inclusion for years.”

Originally published as Model Jessica Vander Leahy appears on Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop