Since childhood, our parents have been trying to teach us that beauty comes in different shapes and sizes. Whether we are too tall, too short, or self-conscious about our ears, growing up, many of us wished we look like someone else. Unfortunately, physical appearance has always been an important part of our lives, and probably always will be. These people struggled with their exceptional appearance growing up, but eventually, their unique features are what made them famous.

Coraline Jouhier

Much like with the freckles or the long legs, some of us like ginger hair and others prefer blonde or brunette. Either way, you can’t deny how special Coraline Jouhier’s hair is. She has admitted that growing up, people would giver her trouble (or weird looks, at least) for her red hair combined with her mixed-facial features.

Jouhier once described her look as, “a mix of everything you can see in my house.” Although her extraordinary look and impressive hair could have definitely gotten her a spot in the modeling industry, Coraline Jouhier decided to pursue her passion and became a chef. Today, she owns a vegan cafe in Paris.

Hamad Jaman

Some of us like freckles, and others don’t care for it, but Hamad Jaman decided he wouldn’t let his unique mark – what has become his trademark – be something he’s ashamed of. The modeling industry, if no one else, appreciates people of different shapes and colors, and they provide an opportunity for people like Jaman to shine and embrace their “weirdness.”

Jaman has managed to make a career our of his uniqueness, and today he works for one of the biggest modeling agencies in the country. Instead of trying to cover his freckles with makeup or Photoshop, they use his freckles to make his photo shoot that much more interesting and colorful, and sometimes they even enhance the freckles on Photoshop to make them bolder.

Eye Scar

The person with this unique eye preferred to stay anonymous, but he shared this photo of his eye on Reddit for the world to see (in case you aren’t familiar with Reddit, it’s a platform where you can pretty much find the answer to everything you’ve ever wondered). A scar on the pupil can appear at birth or later in life, and it might occur for a number of reasons.

In this case, the person who shared the photo of his one-of-a-kind eye (it is one of a one kind, since no two set of eyes, nor eye scars, can look the same) said he was born this way. According to this person, the scar doesn’t affect his vision. Nonetheless, he makes sure to visit the eye doctor and check it every few years.

Lotte Zuidema

Lotte Zuidema, a Dutch model, has a striking appearance. What’s even more striking about her looks, aside from her non-questionable beauty, is her resemblance to the Painting by Johannes Vermeer, A Girl with a Pearl Earring. Zuidema embraced her unique look, and it’s what made her leave behind her studies in product design for a career in modeling.

Lotte Zuidema, like every person on this list who’s acknowledged his uniqueness and embraced it, has made a career of her looks. What allowed her to grow in the modeling industry is not merely her looks, but her striking personality, her charisma and her confidence.

Em

Actress and model Em isn’t after fame, and that’s why she’s never revealed her real name. In the entertainment industry, she goes by the name “Em,” and her real name is one of the biggest mysteries in the modeling world. She wants her looks to speak for her.

Much like model Winnie Harlow and Shankar Jalota, Em was born with vitiligo, and she’s embraced her condition, making a career out of it. Much like Jalota and Harlow, Em isn’t just a fashion model, but an ambassador for positive body image; she often shares with her thousands of followers inspirational words.

Ava Clarke

Ava Clarke was born with albinism, a disorder characterized by absence of pigment. Unlike common belief, that albinism only makes people look exceptionally pale, since the absence of pigment affects the skin, hair and eyes, it might affect an individual’s sight. The degree of the disorder varies, and in Ava’s case, she is considered legally blind.

Despite her condition, Ava doesn’t let it affect her spirit. On the contrary; with the help and support of her mother, Ava has become an popular Instagram figure, with close to 100,000 followers. Her mother has encouraged her to share her beauty with the rest of the world, and Ava was even discovered by a modeling agency.

Ilka Brühl

Ilka Brühl was born with ectodermal dysplasia, a rare facial defect. The 27-year old model from Germany has faced many challenges growing up, not only physical, but mostly mental and social. As a kid, it’s hard to acknowledge that you’re different, and embracing your individuality is even harder.

When she was born, she couldn’t breath properly through her nose, and her eyes were tearing involuntarily, and so Ilka had to overcomes difficult surgeries. Her facial defect remained as it was, but she could finally live normally and without pain. After the physical struggle was over, she faced a much harder one: an ongoing emotional struggle. Finally, she has managed to emerge as a confident woman, and is now working as a model with the hope of reminding the world that everyone is beautiful.

Aleece Wilson

Growing up, Aleece Wilson had a dream of becoming a model. However, she never thought this dream might turn into reality, because, according to her, she’d never seen models who look like her. It certainly seems like there’s a certain standard of appearance for models, but the individuals on this list prove this standard can be broken.

However, Wilson has caught the attention of Canada’s Elite Models agency, and it wasn’t long before she made her way to the 2017 NY fashion week – every young model’s peak of aspirations – wearing Alexander Wang. From there, she continued to work with Marc Jacobs, Vogue and other big names in the industry.

Harnaam Kaur

British model Harnaam Kaur was born with a polycystic ovary syndrome, an imbalance of hormones which is manifested in excessive facial and body hair growth. She was diagnosed at the age of 12, after a long time of uneasiness and uncertainty, and her life hasn’t been the same since.

Kaur has struggled with her appearance throughout her childhood and teens, but at one point, she realized she couldn’t change who she was. Now, at 30, Kaur is a model, a life-coach and an anti-bullying activist (she knows a lot about it, unfortunately), and above all, she’s an ambassador for self-care and confidence.

Elisany da Cruz Silva

As you probably guessed from the photos, Elisany da Cruz Silva is the tallest girl in the world. We short people complain about our daily struggles of reaching high shelves or seeing through a crowd, but take it from Elisany – tall people have their struggles as well. the 18-year old is 6.8 feet tall.

As you can see, she is much taller than her father, her boyfriend and everyone around her. Despite the height differences, Elisany was able to find love, and although her partner is more than 1.6 feet shorter than her, they don’t let it stand in their way.

Laura O’Grady

We think that our eyes, mouth and ears need to be a certain size, and if they happen to be too big or too small, we’re considered “different” and “weird.” In fact, this individuality is what makes us special, and those “imperfections” are what make us beautiful. Laura O’Grady realized her small mouth, big eyes and large ears are what makes her unique.

While some people would try to change these features with plastic surgery, O’Grady embraced them and made a successful career out of it. The Irish model has started her way in 2013 and has since worked for the biggest agencies in the fashion world. She’s moved to New York to pursue this career, and she seems to be on the way to success. If you ask Tyra Banks, O’Grady might be everything she’s looking for in her show America’s Next Top Model.

Man with vitiligo on one side of the face

The internet is raving about the man with vitiligo on one half of his face, although his identity remains unknown. While in most cases of vitiligo, patches appear all over the body, this man has only one side of his face affected, almost symmetrically, and it sure makes an incredible thing to look at.

the condition, in his case, affects not only the skin, but his facial hair as well; his right eyebrow and the beard on the right side of his face are also white, unlike the left half. While he chooses to stay anonymous, you can’t help but admire the one-of-a-kind appearance of this man.

Bee Melvnin

It’s not every day you seen someone as captivating as supermodel Bee Mevlnin. For a long time there has been a debate regarding her ethnicity, since light-green eyes, dark skin and freckles aren’t a common combination. Rumors of her ethnicity are still surrounding the model, although she has revealed she’s a proud Gambian.

Melvnin doesn’t look like your average model, but her breathtaking appearance is undeniable. She was even accused at one time to be a white model pretending to be black, clearly a ridiculous accusation, but one thing is sure – her appearance is getting people talking.

Anisocoria

Anisocoria is a rare condition characterized by an unequal size of pupils. You might be familiar with this condition from the legendary singer David Bowie, who’s made this one of his many unique trademarks. Bowie had both heterochromia, meaning his eyes were a different color, and anisocoria, which means his pupils were in unequal size.

Unlike heterochromia, anisocoria is a rather common condition, and in most cases, it doesn’t have any side-effects. In fact, twenty percent oh human society has anisocoria in a minor degree. While it can have different causes, Bowie took pride of his oddity and related it to a teenage injury.

Arina Lubiteleva

Ukrainian model Arina Lubiteleva doesn’t have any medical or physical condition, but what has made her the confident model that she is today are her imperfections. Namely, her quite large ears. If you haven’t noticed that until we said it, now you won’t be able to look away. While some women might be ashamed of having large ears, and would hide them behind their hair, Arina does the opposite.

In every one of her photo shoots and the photos she shares on social media, she makes sure to flaunt her ears, thus encouraging young girls to accept their “deformities.” Some of us have big noses, big eyes or big ears, and it doesn’t make us any less beautiful – that’s the message the model wants to send to the world.

Cat Eye Syndrome

This anonymous kid from Nepal has become famous around the internet for his eyes. Like many other people in the world, he suffers from the Cat Eye Syndrome. Despite its name, the condition varies and can affect other body parts, such as the ears, and not necessarily the eyes. However, it is called “cat eye syndrome” since in many cases of the syndrome, there appears an abnormality in the eye that resembles a cat’s eye.

Some of you are probably familiar with the condition in this form, but in fact, this is the easiest case of the condition. In severe cases, the Cat eye Syndrome can cause medical issues to the heart and kidneys, and in half of the cases, the condition doesn’t affect the eye. The name was just catchy and it stuck.

Swantje Paulina

It took time until German model Swantje Paulina could feel comfortable with her appearance, but when she finally did, she became a model. Today, she has over 600,000 followers on her Instagram page alone, and it’s thanks to her unique freckles covering her face.

Much like Hamad Jamam, today Paulina enhances her freckles on Photoshop to make them bolder, since they give her an extraordinary look – and who wants to like like everybody else?

Khoudia Diop

Fashion model Khoudia Diop is also known by her nickname Melanin Goddess. Diop has come up with this name for herself, after she entered the modeling world, as a way to express pride in her unique condition ans dark skin tone (melanin is the missing pigment that’s responsible for her dark complexion).

The 23-year old was bullied throughout her childhood for being different – for her extraordinarily dark complexion, caused by an excess of melanin – but as she moved to Paris at the age of 15, she was quickly discovered by numerous modeling agents. She was approached and encouraged by many people on the street, and after a year in Paris, Diop has finally moved to New York to embark on her modeling career.

Bera & Tsotne Ivanishvili

Some of you might be familiar with Bera Ivanishvili, a Georgian singer, who is most widely known for his extraordinary appearance. He goes by the stage name Bera, and it’s rather impressive that at 25, he already maintains a successful singing career, despite his condition and despite the comments he used to receive growing up.

Bera is the second of four siblings, and only his younger brother Tsotne and him were born with this condition. Bera didn’t let this condition and his different appearance stop him from achieving his dream, and he’s even started his own record label – Georgian Dream.

Nyadak Thot

Nyadak “Duckie” Thot is a 24-year old model from South Sudan. Toth was raised in Australia, and her nickname Duckie didn’t originate from her modeling career, but earlier, during her childhood; her different appearance wasn’t the only thing her classmates were having a hard time with. They couldn’t pronounce her name right, and so her teachers and classmates came up with the name Duckie.

Duckie hoped she might find success as a model in Australia, but unfortunately, her dark complexion was holding her back. She knew the place where unique appearances are welcomed is the Big Apple, where she eventually signed with New York Modeling Management.

Rain Dove

Rain Dove, a 30-year old model, goes by the pronoun “them,” and they’ve once stated,  they “never really cared about pronouns for their own descriptors.” Born as a female, During his childhood Dove felt ugly and masculine; on the other hand, she wasn’t a man either. She realized she had a privileged no one else does: she could be whatever she wanted.

Today, the model feels comfortable either way. They can take photo shoots either as a man or a woman, although they’ve started their modeling career cast for a men’s underwear campaign. This fluidity allows Dove to be what they want, and provides them with vast opportunities and a one-of-a-kind look.

Madeline Stuart

Madeline Stuart isn’t just a model, but the young woman made history as the first model ever to have down syndrome. It was always her dream to become a model, and with the help and encouragement of her mother, this dream became reality. Madeline was insecure about her look and wanted to lose weight, and in 2015 she lost approximately 40 pounds.

With the support of her mother, she opened an Instagram account which quickly became viral. The 23-year old from Australia is now working as a model and has hundreds of thousands of fans on social media who admire her progress and most of all, her courage to overcome insecurities and social barriers.

Daphne Groeneveld

There is no doubt Daphne Groeneveld has a unique look, not one you see every day, and this unique look is what granted her the title The Best Dutch Model back in 2011 at the Marie Claire Netherlands Fashion Awards, only a year after she began her modeling career.

Groeneveld is one of the most appreciated models at the moment, and it’s all thanks to her unique appearance. Since she started her career ten years ago, she’s worked all over the world with Vogue, Elle, Fendi, Gucci and Dior, to name a few, and currently she is the face of Tom Ford Beauty and the French brand Jean Paul Gaultier Classique Fragrance.

Liza Ostanina

We’ve already seen that the fashion worlds welcomes people who bring something new to the table, and Liza Ostanina is no different. Liza was born and raised in the Ural Mountains of Russia, and she acknowledged from a young age that her look was unique. At the age of fifteen she traveled to Japan, to pursue a career in modeling.

Although she had confidence in her look, Ostanina was dumbfounded when she was first signed with a big modeling agency. Today, she has dozens of followers on social media, and her career as a model continues to grow.

Julia Zimmer

There’s no doubt Julia Zimmer is a beautiful woman, but if you can’t put your finger on the reason why, we’ll tell you what we think: it probably has something do to with her rough and gentle facial features. Zimmer might not be quite as famous as other models on the list, but she deserves the recognition.

The young model is originally from Germany, and today she works as a model in Europe and the states, for Prada, Vivienne Westwood and others. Her unique features create a certain charm about her, and word in the fashion world has it that Zimmer has a bright (and busy) future ahead of her.

Diandra Forrest

Diandra Forrest isn’t the first Afrian-American model with albinism, but she’s arguably the most successful one. Forrest might not be the first African-American model with albinism, but she is the first to be signed with one of the biggest modeling agencies in the country.

The 30-year old actress and model is an inspiration for minority groups of different kinds, and she uses her striking appearance and her success as a model to show the world that people with albinism are just as beautiful.

Julia Gnuse

Elaine Davidson is the most pierced woman in the world, and Julia Gnuse, also rightfully known as The Illustrated Lady, is the most tattooed woman in the world, with 96 percent of her body covered with ink. However, like most people covered with tattoos, Gnuse didn’t do it for the sake of art, but rather for her health.

Julia was diagnosed with a certain type of skin condition that prevents her from seeing direct sunlight. Gnuse had blisters covering her skin as a result of sunlight exposure, and in her 30’s, she started to cover them with tattoos. At one point, she held the Guinness Record for her tattoos. Gnuse passed away in 2016.

Winnie Harlow

Winnie Harlow is perhaps the only person on this list who doesn’t require an introduction. We’re all familiar with her unique look, since it’s one you can’t really forget. Harlow is only 25 years old, and already she’s one of the top models in the country. She started her way in America’s Next Top Model, and after making it to the finals – thanks to her unique look – she was discovered by Vogue, Glamour and other designers.

Tyra Banks, a supermodel and the host of the iconic show America’s Next Top Model, is known for her talent of finding potential models (after all, that’s what her show is all about – finding America’s next top model). She’s the one who discovered the young Canadian model in 2014, through her Instagram account, and allowed the world to see her beauty by casting her to the show.

Danielle Kroon

This isn’t photoshop, as some of you might suspect, but a birth condition called heterochromia; as you can see, this condition can affect humans and animals alike, mostly cats and dogs. Dutch model Danielle Kroon was born with this condition, and while she probably suffered from it as a kid (no one likes being different), she’s now made a living from her extraordinary look.

After all, how many people can say they are both brown-eyed and blue-eyed? Danielle is not ashamed of her exceptional look, on the contrary – her social media accounts have become very popular thanks to her mesmerizing look, and it has also gained her a successful modeling career. However, that’s not all she’s after, and her condition has also inspired Kroon to study medicine.

Mikayla Holmgren

Mikayla Holmgren, a young woman from Minnesota, has made history as the first woman with down syndrome to ever compete in the Miss Minnesota USA Pageant. Not only did the 22-year old bravely went on the stage and participated in every round of the pageant, she won two awards during the competition.

Her look is something that was never before seen on the stage of Miss USA Pageant, but what has won over the hearts of the judges and the crowd was her striking confidence and courage; in the Miss USA Pageant, personality is just as important as physical appearance. Born with down syndrome, Mikayla wanted to have a chance to live a normal life and achieve her dreams, and she did.

Devon Gallagher

Devon Gallagher isn’t an actress or a model, nor is she a spokesperson, but she’s an inspiration to thousands of people nonetheless. As you can see, Gallagher has a prosthetic leg, but she doesn’t let this disability hinder her, and instead makes the most out of if during her travels around the world.

Devon, originally from Philadelphia, is traveling around the world with a prosthetic leg, documenting her trips and adventures both on social media, and on her leg. She uses her leg as a chalkboard to write the name of each new place she visits, and takes unique photos she later shares with her followers on social media.

Sarai Lewis

Sarai Lewis is another model who has propelled her “deformity,” her heterochromia, for a positive cause. Sarai has found her way to the modeling world not only for her sake, but for the purpose of raising awareness to the condition. It seems as if she’s on the right track to achieve this goal, since she has plenty of followers on social media.

Lewis travels the world thanks to her job as a model, and wherever she goes, Sarai inspires her thousands of social media followers. Just looking at the number of followers she has on Instagram and other social media platforms, she can be proud of herself, knowing that people find her beautiful and intriguing.

Simone Thompson

Actress Simone Thompson has a very unique, and bold, trademark, which makes a face that’s quite hard to forget. As if her gap-teeth wasn’t enough to make her special, Simone flaunts her bald head, numerous tattoos and colorful style, to make sure she stands out wherever she goes. Some people who are ashamed of their look try to hide in the crowd, but Simone wants to stand out.

Thompson is only 23 years old and already she’s a successful model and actress. The model was born in Minnesota and raised in Los Angeles, and she’s never been ashamed of her look. She’s worked closely with Kanye West and did campaigns for Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Puma, Vogue and the list goes on and on.

Sophia Hadjipanteli

Mexican artist Frida Kahlo was famous for her art, her inspiring story and her unibrow, but she isn’t the only woman who’s embraced her unique feature. Sophia Hadjipanteli from Cyprus has a unibrow that resembles the famous Frida Kahlo, and she has captured the attention of the fashion world with her bold look and confidence.

With close to 500,000 social media followers, Sophia Hadjipanteli is a trendsetter, and the starter of the ever-growing unibrowmovement, a recent beauty trend on Instagram. In her own way, she’s changed the conventions of the modeling world, like almost every unique model on this list.

Megan and Morgan Boyd

Megan and Morgan Boyd are the twins from Philadelphia who won over the hearts of people all over the world. While people usually find it hard to differentiate between identical twins, with Morgan and Megan it wasn’t a problem, since, while both have captivating eyes, inherited from their mother, Morgan was born with Heterochromia.

It’s easy to understand why the nine-year old twins became internet sensations over night; their unique look originates from their rare combination of blue eyes and dark skin. This combination isn’t impossible, it’s all a matter of genetics, but it is rare nonetheless. Add to that the cuteness of the twins (dubbed on social media M&M) and Morgan’s unique eyes, and you have the material for breaking the internet.

Maeva Marshall

Despite what it looks like, Maeva Marshall wasn’t born with her freckles, and they’re only half the reason why she became famous. The story behind her freckles is what makes Marshall an inspiration to so many people. A few years back, the fashion model suffered a stroke, and during her recovery, she’s suffered from an allergic reaction to her medicine.

This allergic reaction constituted in second-degree burns, that turned to freckles over time. Today, Marshall uses her story of success to raise awareness to the reasons for suffering a stroke at a young age, as well as to encourage positive self-image; she wants to show the world that being different is okay.

Lindsey Wixson

While gapped-teeth and a dimpled-chin isn’t always considered beauty marks, Lindsey Wixson is arguable one of the most promising models in the country at the moment. Born in Wichita, Kansas, Wixson is known for her “bee-stung lips,” as well as for the dimple in her chin and the gap between her teeth, which the 26-year old model inherited from her father.

Wixson has done campaigns for Alexander McQueen, Chanel and the likes, but as a young girl, she’s never dreamed of becoming a model; she wanted to be either a chef or a lawyer. Throughout high school, she was picked on and bullied for her tooth gap. However, it was already at the age of 16 that she was discovered and began her modeling career.

Dru Presta

Although dwarfism isn’t a rare condition, some people still struggle to accept it. Dru Presta was born with a form of dwarfism, and today she is 3.4 feet tall. Despite the challenges, Dru has managed to break the boundaries and and join the fashion industry (they say that models must be tall, but that’s really only true for runway models).

She might be small, but she has a big dream: she wants everybody in the modeling industry to be accepted not despite their individuality, but because of it. As a society, we still have a very strict sense of what’s considered beautiful, and Dru, through the power of social media, is determined to change that. Actor Peter Dinklage did the same with acting – no one could care less about this unusual height, thanks to his memorable performance in GOT.

Refilwe Modiselle

Refilwe Modiselle was born in Soweto, South Africa, and today she’s the pride of the country: she’s made history as she became the first South-African model with albinism. She was also the first albinistic model to walk on a runway show in South Africa.

Modiselle was discovered at the age of 13, to her amazement and that of her classmates, who kept harassing her for her looks. In 2005, she worked for David Tlale in the South Africa Fashion Week and was included in the Oprah Magazine Power List, a peak in her career aspirations.

Yasmine Aisha Khalifa

Model Yasmine Aisha Khalifa has a rare combination we’re all envious of: light-green eyes and dark skin complexion. Thanks to her mesmerizing look, the young model from Stockholm is slowly but surely making her way in the fashion world as one of the world’s most promising models.

We can’t argue over taste, and while some people love curls and others prefer straight hair, it’s hard to argue over Khalifa’s beauty. With close to 50,000 followers on social media, there’s no question Yasmine Aisha Khalifa has a unique appearance.

Sveta Kazelen

Sveta Kazelen isn’t ashamed of her androgynous look, but over the years, she’s embraced it and made a career out of it. The model always keeps her hair short, and unlike other women, she isn’t afraid to flaunt her athletic (what some might call masculine) physique, and social media fans are mesmerized by her look.

But Sveta isn’t just about modeling and embracing your individuality. She also uses her Instagram account as a platform to express her creativity and passion for photography. Sure, she posts photos of herself like any other model, but her Instagram account is full of photos documenting landscapes and nature around her, anywhere she goes.

Kettellen de Jesus

Blue eyes are certainly quite rare to find among dark-skinned people, and the reason why 13-year old Kettelen de Jesus has this mesmerizing blue eye color is her Waardenburg syndrome. This is a genetic condition that affects hair, skin, eyes and hearing.

For Kettellen de Jesus, she didn’t let this condition become a burden. Although it also affects her hearing, Kettellen is quite proud of her unique look, and her breath-taking deep blue eyes, and she’s built a large fan base thanks to her confidence, her positive nature, and her one-of-a-kind look.

Cierra Skye

American model Cierra Skye is often compared to women and models found in Renaissance art thanks to her round face, her thin nose and her long, wavy hair – all features that are often found in Renaissance art. Skye had to overcome different obstacles growing up, but in recent years, she has seen nothing but success in the modeling world.

Her unique appearance has made her very popular in the fashion world, and she’s a favorite of Marc Jacobs. However, Skye has many interests other thank fashion, and in her spare time, she likes to write prose and poetry.

Kelly Mittendorf

At the age of 16, Kelly Mittendorf recieved a call during math class from a fashion agent, telling her she was chosen for a Prada ad. That’s when she left high school and embarked on a successful modeling career. Mittendorf was born and raised in Arizona, and her odd look and gap-tooth came with a social price during her first years of school. However, it all changed with that one phone call.

Despite her success as a model, Kelly has other interest in life than just modeling; she went on the study mass communication and media studies at the University of Arizona and she works as a PR coordinator. She describes herself as an advocate and an ambassador of models’ rights.

Issa Lish

What gives model Issa Lish her unique look is her mixed ethnicity: Lish is half-Mexian and half-Japanese, a rather uncommon combination, and this is probably what makes her appearance so unique. The 25-year old model is characterized by her combination of angular and androgynous facial features.

It wasn’t Lish’s childhood dream to become a model, and in fact, before she was discovered by modeling agents prompting her to join to industry, Lish has studied towards her B.A in arts and wanted to be a sculptor. Her appearance couldn’t be wasted, however, and ultimately she realized her place was in the fashion world.

Natalia Castellar Calvani

Natalia Castellar Calvani has one very bold feature in her appearance: her eyebrows. Calvani has both American and Cuban roots, and she’s proud of her heritage, as well as of her distinctive feature – her eyebrows – that characterize her and make her unique.

While these days women pluck and design their eyebrows to be thin, Cavalani was never ashamed of her thick, black eyebrows. As a kid, she was bullied at school for her appearance, but today she works as a model, signed with the prestigious Next Models, who appreciates her extraordinary, unapologetic look.

Shankar Jalota

Shankar Jalota has the same skin condition as model Winnie Harlow – called vitiligo. While he was ashamed of it throughout his teens, attempting to dress up and hide it as much as he could, as he grew up, he learned to embrace his uniqueness and even enjoy it. He made a career out it if, one that he believes in – Jalota is a spokesperson for positive body image.

Winnie Harlow and Shankar Jalota aren’t just international models, but ambassadors and role models as well. Thanks to them, awareness of vitiligo is growing, and people learn to accept what’s different from them. Biologically, it’s easier for us to like and understand people who look and sound like us, but these models are teaching our society to accept people in all shapes and colors.

Angel Giuffria & Friends

While most amputees lose an arm or a leg in an accident, Angel Giuffria (on the right) has been an amputee since childhood – ever since she can remember – wearing a prosthetic arm. However, at some point during her teens, she was allowed to transition to a bionic arm, which means her range of movement became significantly larger and smoother.

It’s not every day you see someone with a bionic arm or leg, and so Angel took it upon herself to be the voice of this community and become an ambassador for “bionics.” Angel enjoys meeting people at her situation, who share her experiences and can relate with her, and she enjoys bringing them together. Her group’s goal is to provide access to bionic limbs to anyone who needs it.

Elaine Davidson

When you see Elaine Davidson, you immediately know she must have broken some record. The book of Guinness World Records has named her “the most pierced woman in the world.” Davidson got her first piercing, a rather modest one, in 1997. Over two decades have passed since, and she fell in love with the process.

As you can tell from the picture, her piercing isn’t her only unique feature; the Brazilian artist is colorful in every way – her hair, clothes and makeup are just part of what comprises her colorful personality. In 2011, it was reported that Davidson had no less than 6,925 piercings covering her body, but we assume that during the nine years since, she’s probably received a few more.

La Ostergren

Although she didn’t appreciate it as a child, La Ostergren has something most girls would envy: her legs are 40-inch long. Since she was born, her legs were exceptionally long, and she recalls that when her mother gave birth to her, she came out with her legs crooked, since they didn’t have room in her mother’s belly.

Growing up, kids at school would mock her “deformity,” but La soon realized she has nothing to be ashamed of – long legs is half of what you need to become a model. Today, she’s working as a one-of-a-kind model, and her Instagram account has over 240,000 followers, excitedly following her life and the inspiring fitness regime she’s leading.

Alek Wek

Alek Wek, 43, has been a part of the fashion industry since the mid-nineties, and she’s in large part responsible for the change in the perception of beauty in the fashion world. Originally from South Sudan, Wek had to flee her country at an early age with her family, which moved to Europe. She didn’t have an easy childhood, but it was all part of the journey that brought her to where she is today.

Wek always had a passion for fashion, and at the age of 18, she was discovered by a modeling agent. Wek was among the pioneers who managed to break the conventions of beauty in the fashion world and set a new, wider standard for what is considered beautiful. In 2015, the model was listed among BBC’s100 Women.

Linus Jasper

Linus Jasper, or Professional Orange, as he refers to himself on social media, is one of the most popular, and most promising, ginger models at the moment. Jasper is also the older brother of model Swantje Paulina, and although she hasn’t got his ginger hair, they share the notable freckles.

Jasper is proud of his ginger hair and freckles, but aside from modeling, he’s also an artist: he has a passion for tattoos, and more specifically, he enjoys designing tattoos for others. He doesn’t take himself too seriously, which is part of his charm, and at one time, he parodied his model sister’s photo shoots on his Instagram account.