"My whole family is curvy. I grew up around curvy women and cooking and I never had body image issues," Rae Lynn said. "I love modeling. I feel like that's where I'm supposed to be. Behind the scenes is good to know. But the camera owns me now."

However, that hasn't always been the case. Rae Lynn actually started her college career studying in a field that is less glamorous and lucrative.

"I went to school in Vermont first, where I was studying to be a teacher. I did a semester in London, and I fell in love with fashion when I studied abroad over there. It changed my life," she said.

So Rae Lynn changed her major to fashion merchandising. She is now just six classes away from earning her degree from LIM College, formerly known as the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising, in NYC.

"I bartend like any other model, and I have a studio apartment in Brooklyn," Rae Lynn said. "People tell me I have a laid back style compared to people here. I'm glad I came from Maine and had a small town upbringing because I think that made me who I am today."

Rae Lynn is hoping her look and style will catch the eye of some big designers during the Full Figured Fashion Week scheduled for June 13-16 in New York City.

"I'm not sure who I'll be wearing [yet], but the designers will be at the show, and hopefully they'll like me and sign me for other projects," she explained.

This Mainer is also hoping modeling will eventually open the doors for other opportunities.

"I want to go to different high schools and talk about weight and loving your body. And I want to write a book and inspire women to love themselves, but I have to have a career first," Rae Lynn said. "I can [only] do this until I'm 32. Then your career is over because you go into “mature modeling,” which is usually done with celebrities, which stinks."

For now, Rae Lynn is taking it just one step at a time. Her family plans to join her in the Big Apple this week for her debut on the catwalk.

"I love representing Maine and empowering women to embrace who they are and stay positively curvy," she said.