Here is the fall/winter 2011 ad for Louis Vuitton. Although the bag and gloves are fabulous, I'm more concerned with the woman in the ad. Oh excuse me, I mean young lady. This is 16 year old Nyasha Matonhodze. The young model has only been in the game for about a year and she has blown up! Could you imagine being the face of Louis Vuitton at 16? Yeah, me either.
This Zimbabwean model caught my eye while I was surfing through style.com's runway shows. I kept seeing her face and said who is this chick? Turns out she is the next Tyra Banks. I always get excited seeing a black face on the runway. It's so refreshing! People can't get enough of the British-raised princess. Oh and her hobbies are listening to gospel music and dancing. Love it! Hopefully this young lady will have a long and prosperous career. I'm delighted her mum let her model! *in my British accent*
The other morning I was texting a young male friend of mine and we started to talk about a young lady he met. He goes on to talk about how cool she was but she wasn't his usual type. I ask him to explain himself and one of his reason was her complexion. She was dark skin. I was having an excellent morning so I really didn't want to discuss why her skin complexion was making him hesitate pursuing her. So I made light of the conversation and texted "would you hesitate to be my friend? I'm dark skin? lol". His response "But you look good for a dark skin girl"...........WHAT?! I preceded to tell him to "shut up and have a blessed day". At the time, I honestly didn't know what else to say. I was livid! I don't know why I got so upset so fast. I've heard this plenty of times but the older I get, the more insulted I become when I hear this statement.
Would you tell a white women, "you look good for a blonde hair girl"? Or "You look good for a fair skin girl". Hey, lets take it a step farther. "You look good for a tall girl"or "You look good for a slim chick"......NO. It's all wrong. So why do black men think it is ok to say "you look good for a dark skin girl"? Because in my mind, what you are really saying is "most dark skin girls look like mud buckets but you aight". BOY BYE!
When I first sat down to write this post, I was going to go on a rant about how sad it is for some black men to not appreciate dark skin women. Now I want to take it a step farther and ask why. Why do dark skin women sit on the far end of the beauty spectrum? Why do black men think of us as the ugly ducklings of black women? I think 90% of anyone's bias toward dark skin women stem from the ole plantation. The darker you are the more appalling you are. This mindset has been around since our people were in chains. It irks me that SOME black men still carry the mindset of their ancestor's masters.
I'm here to tell my dark sisters that you are beautiful! Carry yourselves as such. Let me say that again, carry yourselves as such! God makes no mistakes. You are wonderfully, and beautifully made! Don't let any ignorant man or woman tell you anything different! Even though this post is geared toward dark skin women, its for all persons. Embrace who you are and the world will have to follow suit.
Listen to Bruno!
This fall/winter the Dark Girls documentary will be released. This examines how African American women view themselves and why.
Ok Ohio. It's Hot. Summer heat in Ohio could be a form of torture because the HUMIDITY makes it unbearable. Well for me anyways. This week will be toasty but try to enjoy it people! Every works their behinds off in the spring to get that perfect summer physique. This is the time to celebrate your hard work. Go to the pool in that swim suit that took you forever to find. Wear that cute shorts romper or sundress that you've been saving. Embrace the heat!
HOLD UP! I'm not telling anyone to walk around naked! I know the heat brings out the ratchetness in people. Keep your clothes on! Only wear your swim suit to THE POOLl! Wear a dress that fits. I'm not trying to be funny but no one wants to see your goodies. Stay classy people. But enjoy the heat! Don't forget your water bottle and sunscreen. (Skin cancer is real. Lather up!)
Here are some of my favorite swim suits from this year's resort collections.
