Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., artist Hanna Ellis featured in Vogue magazine

It's not every day you're invited to be in the pages of a famous international fashion magazine.

Hanna Ellis, an artist from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., recently was surprised to be asked to contribute to the U.K. edition of Vogue. 

Ellis — also known as Hanna Sofia on Instagram — is often the subject of her own photography, posing in vintage clothing and accessories.

It was her collaboration with Australian jewlery artist Tessie that caught the eye of Vogue editors. 

It's still "surreal," Ellis said, to know her work will be reaching Vogue readers.

"For somebody who's never had their work published, this is massive for me, and massive for Tessie as well," Ellis said. "Vogue isn't a little publication, so it's some great exposure for the both of us."

But exposure isn't something Ellis is a stranger to. Her Instagram account, with its array of vintage-themed work, has already attracted over 30,000 followers. 

"A lot of my work is  heavily inspired by photography ... any era between the '20s and '80s — anything that would be considered retro antique, that sort of thing."

In the photo featured in British Vogue, Ellis wears a dress she found at Value Village, as well as a belt from her grandmother, likely bought in the 1950s. She also wears a single glove found at a thrift store in the Soo, which highlights the ring Tessie asked her to model.

Her Instagram post noting her British Vogue collaboration prompted hundreds of followers to offer congratulations. 

"Epic!!" wrote one commenter.

"Congratulations, doll! Your self portraiture is exquisite," wrote another.

"I think it's just been something I've been interested in for a really long time," said Ellis about her foray into vintage fashion. "I was always wanting to go to garage sales with my mom, and my grandparents used to take me to garage sales when I was a kid, so I always had sort of a passion for anything old."

Her love of photography was something she inherited from her father, Ellis said. 

"He always had art books and photography, books and cameras and things laying around, so it just sort of was a natural thing." 

The interest in the vintage esthetic — she said "old Hollywood" comes to mind — probably comes from her dissatisfaction with today's fashion trends. 

"It's just a general disdain for leggings and crop tops, to put it bluntly," she said.  

Despite the success of the collaboration, and the influential people in the fashion field who have taken notice, Ellis said she's not feeling any pressure to make modelling a full-time career.

"I will do brand collaborations, but most of the time it's just work that I do for myself," she said. "I'm very selective as to what brands I choose to work with. I'm very passionate about ethical and sustainable fashion, so I honestly turn down more collaborations that I accept.

"Most of them are small businesses or people whose values align with mine. Whether they be vintage-related things or just small, sustainable brands."