Fashion

Black is _.

One peek in my closet and you’ll notice that I have a lot of black. For whatever reason, my eye always gets drawn to the black clothing in a store — it looks more luxe, somehow. Even when I’m shopping at more affordable stores like Forever 21, black can successfully mask the quality of material, making even a $10 dress look designer.

That said, this look is not from Forever 21. It’s actually almost equal parts Zara and ALDO, plus or minus (okay, plus) a piece from Aritzia and literally the only designer bag I own.

Also full disclosure — I have not edited myself in any of these photos. While I amplified some of the colours and tweaked a bit of the contrast, my skin texture, body, and shape is all me. While I’d be lying if I said I never photoshopped a photo of myself (I tend to smooth my skin on Instagram), leaving these images raw is a reminder to myself that I don’t need to be perfect. I am who I am, and that’s pretty bold — kind of like black.

All image credit goes to the beautiful Shamayne Zindoga.