A mother who spent more than £10,000 on her four-year-old daughter’s beauty pageant career claims online trolls accuse her of dressing her little one like a ‘cheap prostitute’.
Sammy Bushell, 29, has forked out thousands of pounds on fake tan, fake nails, makeup, wigs and £1,500 gowns for Hallie Mai.
But the proud mother-of-two, who appeared on the Channel 5 series Blinging Up Baby with Hallie Mai in 2014, claims she is targeted every day by trolls for her decision to enter the tot into pageants.
Beauty therapist Sammy claims her social media accounts are bombarded with messages and comments from strangers calling her a bad parent and criticising Hallie Mai’s ‘skimpy’ outfits.
Despite the trolls’ relentless sneers, labelling her daughter ugly and fake, Sammy is determined to stick with pageants for as long as Hallie Mai wants – as the tot ‘loves the limelight’.
Sammy Bushell, 29, is more than willing to splash the cash on little Hallie Mai and has forked out thousands of pounds on fake tan, fake nails, makeup, wigs and £1,500 gowns but says she is constantly subjected to trolls who criticise her decision
Sammy, who appeared on the Channel 5 series Blinging Up Baby with Hallie Mai, pictured, in 2014, claims she is targeted every day by trolls for her decision to enter the tot into pageants
VICTIM OF TROLLS
Sammy of Doncaster, South Yorks, said: ‘I’m so proud of Hallie, she has done so well and it is so nice to hear people speak about how beautiful and talented she is.
‘But there are always people out there who have to have their little digs and criticise.
‘You don’t get it at all from people within the community but it is complete strangers who feel like they have the right to message me and comment on social media like their opinion matters.
‘I have had people tell me I am a bad parent and that I am prostituting my daughter. Someone told me she is a paedo’s paradise in her skimpy outfits.
‘But she’s not, she’s a little girl in a controlled environment and I am always there to keep her safe.
‘When I post photos on social media I get people posting horrendous comments like ‘Do you dress your daughter up like that because she looks like a boy?’. And that was when she was only a baby.
Sammy, showing some of the hurtful messages, said: ‘There are always people out there who have to have their little digs and criticise’
Despite the trolls’ relentless sneers, Sammy is determined to stick with pageants for as long as Hallie Mai wants
These are some of the messages that Sammy receives on social media. She said: ‘At the end of the day, those people’s opinions don’t matter at all. They just have nothing better to do than target a little girl. People are so cruel’
‘Every day there are more comments from people calling Hallie ugly and fake..
‘When it first started it was absolutely heartbreaking. Now I try my best to just ignore them but it’s really difficult.
‘At the end of the day, those people’s opinions don’t matter at all. They just have nothing better to do than target a little girl. People are so cruel.
‘Hallie loves doing pageants and we will keep doing them for as long as she wants to. She has always loved the limelight.
‘Ever since she was a baby she has loved being the centre of attention and people have always commented on how pretty she is so I knew I’d have to get her into modelling or something.
Sammy says that Hallie loves doing pageants and will keep doing them for as long as she wants to. ‘She has always loved the limelight,’ she added
Sammy is pictured with her husband Craig, 26, son Harry, 7, and daughter
Before every show, the tot has a three-hour beauty regime in which her mum applies fake tan, does her nails, does her makeup and fits a pre-styled wig
Beauty therapist Sammy claims her social media accounts are bombarded with messages and comments from strangers calling her a bad parent
In her two-year career, Hallie Mai has come top of her age category 20 times and her mother says she loves the limelight
‘And she’s very outspoken. Some of the trolls tell me I forced her into pageants but you try telling my daughter what to do.
‘She’s her own person with an independent mind. She’s not a robotic child. It can be frustrating when she does something wrong and has a clever comeback but I am proud to be raising a strong little girl.’
Hallie Mai, who lives with her mother Sammy and her seven-year-old brother Harry Bushell, started entering glitz pageants at the age of two.
THE EXTENSIVE PRE-BEAUTY PAGEANT BEAUTY REGIME
Before every show, the tot has a three-hour beauty regime in which her mum applies fake tan, does her nails, does her makeup and fits a pre-styled wig.
In her two-year career, Hallie Mai has come top of her age category 20 times, brought home more than 50 crowns and won more than 60 sashes.
Sammy, who is pregnant, says she hopes it’s a boy as she doesn’t have the money or the space to cater for another set of gowns and crowns
The little girl has come top of the crop in several pageants and has built up a blingy collection of crowns
The tot’s hobby is far from cheap with mum Sammy spending more than £5,000 a year on Hallie Mai’s pageant dresses, wigs and makeup.
But Hallie Mai’s lavish lifestyle and flamboyant outfits started long before she joined the pageant community with her Sammy dressing her daughter up in big, flouncy dresses since she was born.
Sammy admits she has always been ‘obsessed’ with old-fashioned dresses and was over the moon when she found out she was pregnant with a little girl she could get glammed up.
LONG-STANDING PAGEANT OBSESSION
But now three months pregnant with her third little one, Sammy says she hopes it’s a boy as she doesn’t have the money or the space to cater for another set of gowns and crowns.
Sammy said: ‘When I found out I was pregnant with Hallie Mai I was so happy, I was over the moon. I booked extra scans just because I wanted to know for sure she was a girl.
‘Ever since I was a teenager I have been obsessed with big, old-fashioned dresses so I couldn’t wait to start dressing her up and I have been from day one. Even in hospital she had a flower in her hair.
Sammy admits she has always been ‘obsessed’ with old-fashioned dresses and loves to dress her little one up
Halli Mai is pictured with her brother Harry in their school photograph
Sammy said: ‘As proud as I am of Hallie and as happy as I am to see her doing so well, pageants aren’t all glitz and glamour’
‘When she started getting older and I realised how much she loved the limelight I started thinking about pageants because I used to love Toddlers & Tiaras but I never realised we had the same glitz pageants over here.
‘As soon as I found out about them, I got Hallie signed up. They’re so much fun for her. She has made so many friends and she is so good on stage.
‘Her room is filled with crowns and sashes, it’s like a shrine. And her wardrobe is overflowing with all her dresses.
‘As proud as I am of Hallie and as happy as I am to see her doing so well, pageants aren’t all glitz and glamour. They are stressful and they are expensive.
‘When I found out I was pregnant again one of my first thoughts was ‘I hope it’s a boy’. Doing pageants with two girls would kill me.’
The proud mother is more than happy to splash £10,000 on her daughter’s attire
The proud mum-of-two appeared on the Channel 5 series Blinging Up Baby with Hallie Mai in 2015
Speaking about her bedroom, Sammy said: ‘Her room is filled with crowns and sashes, it’s like a shrine. And her wardrobe is overflowing with all her dresses’