Gaye McDonald - Contributed

Pulse supermodel in-the- making Gaye McDonald continues to rise and rise. Not content with her Vogue, Cosmo, Trace or New York Times magazine editorials or her Benetton, Nordstrom, Deisel, and Mac campaigns, Gaye became the hot new star of the Fashion-week circuit this season, nabbing many of the key collections in New York, London and Paris. She continues to exemplify success as a Caribbean model in the highly exclusive Paris shows.

Gaye, who started her modelling career with a bang in the middle of last year - booked Cosmo on her first day in the international market - did major runway milage for several heavyweight brands in the recently concluded fall/winter fashion season.

Top couturiers which the 18-year-old star represented included Vivienne Westwood (the hot collection of London Fashion Week), Catherine Malandrino, Stella McCartney, Angel Chang, Heatherette, Tracy Reese, Nicole Ramona, Lanvin (always huge in Paris), Diane von Furstenberg, Douglas Hannant, Kai Milla, Top Shop, L'wren Scott, Aquastum and Kissa. Her Vivienne Westwood looks were the subject of a major feature in London's Evening Standard. Regarding her success with Westwood, Gaye emailed, "Oh my Gosh, I am so thrilled - I could go on and on. It has been a great experience for me and one of the happiest days of my life."

Rare success

McDonald is enjoying the rare exhilarating success that comes to the few whom the fashion industry has chosen for superstardom. Already, in December, industry bible Red selected her as one of the top 100 models in the world, definitely a major step to a top 50 ranking on models.com.

A stunning beauty, Gaye is the 2005 winner of Pulse's Caribbean Model Search. At 15, she postponed the start of an international career in order to complete high school, which she did very successfully in 2006. After overcoming visa and scheduling issues, she commenced international modelling last year. While still in Jamaica, she was chosen and shot covers and editorials for Japan's Luire, She Caribbean and Ocean Style magazines.

Now she contemplates the huge possibilities that her quick rise makes possible. Clearly, the sky is the limit for Gaye. Only time will tell if her success will equal or exceed the amazing accomplishment of fellow Pulse model Jaunel McKenzie, rated among the top models of colour in the world, for the last few years.