Auckland woman Juanita Hernandez's love for sewing and vintage fashion has translated into appearances at 29 - and counting - pageants.
Auckland woman Juanita Hernandez's love for sewing and vintage fashion has translated into appearances at 29 - and counting - pageants.
A vintage pinup queen is heading to her 30th and final pageant due to health struggles.
Auckland-based Juanita Hernandez celebrates diversity and individuality in pageants, emphasising “vintage style, not vintage values”.
An autoimmune disease has not stopped her achieving numerous titles in budget-friendly gowns.
Juanita Hernandez (better known on stage as Miss Sweet Jean) made her vintage catwalk debut in 2020. Next month, the 37-year-old heads to Queensland for her 30th and final pageant. Hernandez, who lives with lupus and palmar plantar pustular psoriasis, is retiring from the main stage to focus on herhealth. She spoke to Kim Knight about her pinup journey ahead of an appearance at the Coolangatta nostalgia festival Cooly Rocks On:
“People think that since we dress in this style, we want to be living in the 1950s. No. Women’s rights, being able to have a bank account, your own credit card ... we say ‘vintage style, not vintage values’.
“Vintage pageants aren’t a beauty contest. We celebrate diversity and individuality. We want everyone looking different, doing their own thing on stage and showing who they are as a person.
“We have gothabilly, rockabilly, classic, the more modern pinup. I’d call myself a modern pinup.
“I used to go to the Ōrewa Rodders Beach Festival and have a look at the cars and see all the different girls and all the pretty dresses. In 2019, I was watching the pageant and thought ‘oh, that looks really fun, I want to give it a go – and I can make everything to keep the costs down’.
“My first outfit was a lilac dress, with a fitted bodice and a three-quarter circle skirt. I painted my shoes to match. I made some little baby pink gloves, and a cute little half-hat I self-drafted, just winging it. At an op shop, I found a bed sheet covered in baby pink flowers. I cut them out and used them to decorate my hat, and then re-covered an umbrella with the same floral fabric. I had zero expectations, I was just really excited to give it a go. I was really surprised to come third.
Juanita Hernandez in the formal gown she sewed for 2022's Cooly Rocks On nostalgia festival.
“I grew up in Coatesville going to Dairy Flat Primary School, then Orewa College, before heading to Auckland University. I did a science degree. Physics. Generally, you don’t stay in New Zealand or you transfer into teaching. I did early childhood for a couple of years, but then my health tanked.
“I developed severe palmar plantar pustular psoriasis. It’s very nasty. We think mine is genetic. I had it all over my hands and fingers – like pussy scabs. You bend a finger and the skin tears apart. It’s not pretty and it’s not fun.
“It started on my right hand, on my index finger, while I was going through early childhood training. I actually taught myself to write with my left hand; I’m unnaturally ambidextrous. Then it came up on my left hand as well.
“The nerves in both my hands are pretty much completely fried. I don’t have feeling in them which can make life interesting. I’ll put a needle through my finger while sewing and won’t notice until there is blood. I’ve done that a number of times.
Auckland-based pinup star Juanita Hernandez is preparing to appear at her 30th and final pageant.
“I grew up not worrying about what other people thought of me or worrying about beauty standards. When it got really nasty looking, I’d keep my hands covered, but I had to keep them covered anyway, so ... I wore white cotton gloves with creams underneath.
“Phototherapy is a super common and really effective way to treat psoriasis – it’s like UV light getting blasted down on to your skin. I was doing that three times a week at Greenlane Medical Centre.
“My hair started falling out. My GP was like ‘oh, that’s not good’ and pretty much tested for everything. That’s how they discovered I had lupus. And the thing with lupus is you’re not meant to be exposed to UV light.
“It’s an autoimmune disease ... you get muscle weakness, really bad joint pain, it can start attacking organs. You get something called a butterfly rash, across your cheeks and down your nose. I’m really lucky mine is not permanent, but when I’m really struggling, it comes up.
“I did undergo a type of chemotherapy, but not the type for treating cancer. It’s not as harsh, I suppose ... my friends call it ‘baby chemo’. I don’t work, because of my health. At least one day a week, I’m in bed, I’m asleep, I’m not getting up for anything.
“While undergoing treatments, I decided I wanted to have fun in a simple way, so I started wearing vintage-style clothing. I’d always liked the ‘fit and flair’ style, the almost princess vibe.
“I have a pair of track pants and if I’m feeling very rough and have to do something like go to the supermarket, I’ll wear them. But as a general rule of thumb, I’m going to be in a dress. I feel put together.
Juanita Hernandez has made all of her own outfits for the 29-and-counting vintage pinup events she has appeared at.
“I was in Spotlight and I saw a couple of vintage patterns, and thought I’d give them a go. Sewing came somewhat naturally to me as I’d watched my mother. Mum was a couture sewer, making custom and bespoke dresses and outfits for people. I’d sit under the machine and occasionally push on the pedal. Now that I’m older, I realise how annoying that would be!
“I have to be extremely careful not to push myself too hard. I have to always consider my health first. But I absolutely love doing pageants ... I came up with my pinup name, Miss Sweet Jean, to honour my granny.
“The first title I won was Miss Rockabilly NZ 2020 at Rebel Round Up using a slightly different name – Miss Not-So-Sweet Jean – to be a little bit more spicy.
“I have achieved some huge milestones. Winning Miss PinUp New Zealand 2021 at the Very Vintage Day Out, Miss Deluxe 2020 and 2024, Most Outstanding Outfits at Autofest in both 2023 and 2024, the Junkyard Fashion Show Winner 2025 at Beach Hop, Miss Personality at Vintage Fest 2022, Miss Kumeu 2021, Miss Takapuna Rocks 2020 ...
Auckland woman Juanita Hernandez in Queensland for 2022's Cooly Rocks On - the nostalgia festival she's returning to next month.
“I love showing you can do pageants on an extremely tight budget – I sew on a machine I bought 15 years ago for $100, all my fabrics are generally brought from the clearance sections and I often find great bits to use at op shops, especially beads, vintage patterns and sheets.
“If I can find a hideous beaded necklace and make something beautiful with it, I’m going to do that. I’ll buy the op shop shoes that often have only been worn a few times, clean them up, and then customise them – change the heel, put fluffy dice on them, paint them green ...
“One dress I made was watermelon themed ... I hand cut little hearts out of felt for the pips. Another favourite would be the formal gown I wore for Miss Pinup New Zealand. It was from a pattern that I picked up from an op shop many years ago. When I looked at it, I was ‘oh, that’s my future wedding dress’. In the lead-up to the pageant, I had to change my plans. I was like, ‘you know what? I’m just going to use this and I can find myself a new future wedding dress!’ I embedded lights through the back, and I had lights in my hair and up my gloves.
“It was definitely a moment wearing that. My foot tangled in the petticoat, right as I went out on stage. I was crab-walking under my dress, but they couldn’t tell. At the last Cooly Rocks [I went in 2022], as I was getting zipped into my formal gown, the zip broke ... something always goes wrong. There’s always something that goes wrong and it’s how you handle it that’s important and, you know, you keep going.
Pinup star Juanita Hernandez at 2022's Cooly Rocks On nostalgia festival.
“I never wanted to be defined by my health struggles, they are part of who I am but they aren’t all of me. Would I have taken this path without them? I don’t know. Probably? Maybe? I don’t know if I’d have as much enthusiasm and commitment. I have made some really, really amazing friends through it.
“Cooly Rocks On will be my 30th pageant. And my final pageant. I have been struggling with my health, so I made the decision that even though I really enjoy it, I need to step back. I’m competing in the rockabilly section, because my first title was a rockabilly one. It feels nice to go out with that same style.
“I’m going to have a bit more leg than normal, more fitted dresses, my corset is a bit tighter and I’m popping my hip a bit more. I’ve made some outfits I’ve always wanted to make ... mid-century modern, space-agey ...
“In 2018, I became a co-founder, and am now vice-chair, for the Hibiscus Coast Astronomical Society. There’s one last thing to do on my formal gown. I’ve asked all of the people in the vintage community to draw me little stars and take selfies with them. And then I’m going to transfer the stars into my skirt. So that I can have the community with me for my last time on stage.”
