Sports Illustrated is full of surprises!
Earlier in the week, the magazine sent the Internet into a frenzy with news that plus-size model Ashley Graham would appear in a bikini for a swimwear ad in the 2015 swimsuit issue. And now they've gone all out — making a plus-size beauty part of its editorial coverage for the first time ever, on sale Feb. 9.
Robyn Lawley is a size 10, hails from Australia, and calls New York home. The 25-year-old blogger-slash-painter-slash-author-slash-DJ, also represented by Wilhemina Models, was the sixth bikini babe to be revealed as part of SI's rookie club so far.
After cover-girl Hannah Davis' moment in the spotlight on the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Feb. 4, Lawley waited patiently for her announcement to be made the next morning. "I just died!!! official SI Rookie coming in next hour!!" she tweeted. In the image, the buxom beauty poses in a orange and snake-print bikini in front of a serene view of snowcapped mountains.
Lawley, who's walked in New York Fashion Week and appeared in Vogue Italia, told Time.com about her long journey to the top. "I never thought that this would happen to me, so this is a milestone," she said. "When I started my career 10 years ago, I had to painfully go to castings and people would look at you and say, 'What the hell are you doing here?'… I want to be there for the regular girls who are my size."
