Fire and Iceland

Fire and Iceland

PLAYMATE

From the heartland to the West Coast to the fjords, December Playmate Allie Leggett is a force of nature

“It’s been like a Cinderella story,” says Allie Leggett. Indeed, her trajectory is the stuff of childhood fairy tales—and Playmate tradition. Born and raised in a small town in the middle of the Bible belt, Allie soon found herself scraping by as a student at Western Kentucky University. At 19, she competed for the title of Miss Kentucky in the hope of earning some scholarship money. We defy any of you to feign surprise when we tell you that she won.

Allie, though, was surprised: “I wasn’t your stereotypical pageant girl.” Perhaps it was her cosmopolitan leanings that distinguished her. In no time, she was scouted by a modeling agency. “I moved out to L.A. two months later, and I’ve been here ever since.”

The move seems natural now, but at the time it was far from a given. “Nobody really leaves a small town,” she says. “All my high school friends have babies and are married. That’s what you do in a small town. I kind of broke the mold. I always had the mind-set that I wanted to leave. Luckily, I had an out, so I took it and ran with it.”

Maybe it’s not surprising that, Southern

roots aside, Allie exudes the Galifornia-girl persona. Sun-streaked blonde hair? Check. Easygoing attitude? Check. Intense love of the ocean? Double check. A tattoo of a wave graces the wrist of her right hand—a clean, sharply curving line symbolizing her bond with the sea. “I’m definitely a beach girl,” she says.

The youngest of five kids, Allie never thought she would be a model, but she thrives on the spontaneity of ajob that requires travel at a moment’s notice. “The best thing about modeling is you never know what’s going to happen next. I just woke up one day and had a message: ‘Hey, do you want to go to Iceland to do this shoot?’ Absolutely incredible, and I never would have had the opportunity if I hadn’t stuck with it and thrown myself out there. Sometimes the best plans are no plans.”

As to what makes Allie feel sexy, her adoptive home once again looms large. “I feel sexy when I’m tan, strong and active—when it’s warm and sunny outside and I can jump in the ocean. There’s something about saltwater on your skin and salty hair.” Spoken like a true California girl.

DATASHEET

AGE: 23 BIRTHPLACE: McCreary County, Kentucky CURRENT CITY: Los Angeles, California

SOUTHERN CHARM

I have definitely worked on my

Kentucky accent, which isn’t al-

ways grammatically correct. After I moved out of Kentucky, I still felt

like a little country bumpkin and

that people didn’t take me seri-

ously. They’d hear a Southern accent and automatically look down on me. Then again, some people

live up to that stereotype.

THE BEST MEDICINE

There’s a lot of power in making a

girl laugh. There’s a saying: If you

can make agirl laugh, you can make

her do anything. I don’t know about

anything...but I stand by that.

THRILL OF THE HUNT

I’m a huge vintage shopper. If,

one day, I could have a shop with

all the little things I’ve collected

along the way, I’d be happy. I’m

not a mainstream-designer type

of girl; I’m not a big material girl.

I like to find something and know

that I actually dug for it.

YOU BETTER WORK

If you work on yourself, success

will come to you. All you can do is

focus on self-growth and figure

out as much as you can on your

own. Good jobs and other good

things will follow.

EAT YOUR HEART OUT

I will splurge on things like food,

fun and travel. I love going out to

dinner, and to events and festi-

vals. It’s all about the experiencetrying new things and exploring

different flavors. I used to be

really picky with food; now I’ll try

just about anything.

MISS INDEPENDENT

You have to put yourself out

there. Take a chance. Go out to

a bar, even if you go by yourself.

Take the risk. It’s usually worth it,

and even if it’s not, you can still

be proud of yourself for doing it.

Sometimes you have to go to the

party alone.

EASY COME, EASY GO

The funny thing about this world

is that people come in and out of

your life. I’ve learned to see the

positives in that and not look at

it as a bad thing. You learn some-

thing from everybody. Even about ex-boyfriends I hate, I think, Well,

he taught me to love somebody

better. You know what I mean?

MY KIND OF MAN

I’m more of an introvert. I like

being with someone who has the

kind of confidence that can’t be

mistaken for entitlement. I like a smart guy who’s handsome, ob-

viously, and tall. That’s not to say short guys don’t have a chance.

They definitely do.