Shifting PERSPECTIVES

Model and fashion entrepreneur Cyii Cheng has always been one to challenge perceptions. BAZAAR sits down with the courageous talent as she shares her thoughts on bleached eyebrows, breaking barriers, and building her fashion brand, Ghostboy.

- ABDUL AZIZ DRAIM

It takes a singular kind of beauty to pull off bleached brows convincingly. Cyii Cheng, with her otherworldly features and chameleon-like charm, does it effortlessly. The Kuala Lumpurborn model, entrepreneur, and self-proclaimed "DIY designer" is quickly proving that her beauty isn't just skin deep-it's revolutionising the Malaysian fashion scene, one bold move at a time.

Cheng's bleached brows first made an appearance during the Kuala Lumpur Fashion Awards 2024 last November, where her brand Ghostboy clinched the award for Best Emerging Womenswear Designer. It was a look meant to complement the evening's maximalist dress code, but its appeal stayed with her. "It just stuck because I don't like the growing out process," Cheng muses. "It makes me feel very pretty."

NOT YOUR AVERAGE START

But Cyii Cheng wasn't always the confident, commanding presence she is today. "I felt ugly and undesirable before I started modelling," she shares candidly. It wasn't dreams of fame or gracing magazine covers that brought her to the world of modelling; it was her father, who signed her up for classes at 16 with the hope of improving her make-up skills, confidence, ability to walk in heels, and "learn to have better posture," she says. "I still don't."