NKB fashionista’s its been a minute since our last Feature Friday post and I am so excited to introduce you all to this brilliant woman.
One of the saddest things that happen in this lifetime is you meet other women for the first time at an event or party and its like you instantly in competition. I am terrible at making friends and sometimes even making conversation with people the first time i meet them which is funny because I am quiet the chatter box.
Meeting Laurina for the first time was different, I felt comfortable and she is the type of woman you’ll be instantly drawn too. She is brutally honest, loving, shy, supportive and she is a FEMINIST. This description doesn’t do her justice but I am sure you are already falling in love with her, lol.
She runs the blog BRIGHTLY BLACK and its all you’ll ever know about fashion. I suggest you heard on over there and book mark it, from howto rock a bomber to dressing up white jeans this lady is got your back like a leather sofa, LOL so corny, I know.
She is so supportive and she is my go to girl when it comes to WordPress issues and anything else, I have found a friend in her and its something I am excited about. Let me stop chatter boxing away and allow you to meet her.
Oh and BTW she is a chatter box too, if you dont believe me, see for yourself. LOL!!!
Q: Tell us a little about yourself, your passions,
Hi, my name is Laurina (you probably already know this already from the intro or something, what am doing? lol). I am a student at NMMU in Port Elizabeth. I really enjoy travelling, new experiences and meeting new people, though contrary to popular belief, I am extremely shy. But thanks to my background in performing arts I know how to cover that up pretty well.
I am passionate about a lot of things in life. But I’d have to say that women’s rights are at the top of the list. And fashion, of course. In an ideal world I can mash my two passions together and create something extremely spectacular, and inspire people. Fashion-forward feminists anyone?
Q: You’re stranded on a desert island and can only bring five things from your closet — what do you grab? Why ?
Lip balm has to be the first thing, though that doesn’t really stay in the closet does it? But I’d pick it anyway. I can’t stand dry lips. I cannot ever seem to do anything productive with dry lips. I definitely know I wouldn’t be able to come up with a master plan to get myself off a desert island without it.
A bomber jacket. I am obsessed with bomber jackets right now. They are so versatile (not that I’ll be at all interested in looking fashionable on a desert island) and oh so warm. I’m guessing my nights out in the open with no shelter will get pretty chili, so I’ll need it for warmth.
Running shoes. In my head I’m picturing a thick, dense, un-kept jungle on this desert island and I know for sure that I would not be able to walk barefoot. In order to prevent cuts on my feet and free movement from being the one thing that prevents me from escaping my predicament I definitely have to grab them.
A jumpsuit. I only have a limit of five things to take here, and jumpsuits are the only thing (other than a dress) that are a single item but a full outfit at the same time. I wouldn’t choose to try and find my way around a desert island in a dress. A jumpsuit would give me the freedom to move around like dresses do, but will also protect my legs from the harsh island terrain while I look for wood and other things to help me out, like pants do.
Tampons. Let me explain. I was watching Bear Grylls on television this one time and he was showing people how best they’d be able to escape a desert-island-situation with items that are usually found on one’s person. Tampons would be ideal to make a fire with because of the cotton, so they have to come along with me no matter what.
So my plan would be to gloss on (like Ms NKB herself always says), run around and collect wood, stay warm, light a fire and signal for help with the smoke. Hopefully there would be a lot of planes passing by my little island cause I sure as heck don’t know how to build a raft with what I chose above.
Q: Do you have any fashion pet peeves?
This is an extremely hard question because I’m all about allowing people to wear whatever feels comfortable and gives them confidence, and not to care what other people think. I’d have to go with I don’t have any, I cannot for the life of me think of any at the moment.
Q: What are the 3 make up or beauty products you absolutely can’t
live without.
As mentioned above, lip balm, always. Hand moisturizer as well, the feeling of dry hands drives me up the mountain! And lastly mascara. There’s just something ghostly and eerie looking about my face when I put make-up on and forget to put mascara on lol.
Q: Give the ladies reading this article fashion and beauty advice (how
to stay true to their style, discover their personal style and still
look good on a budget)
I am all about looking good on a budget. I honestly don’t believe that you should spend thousands on something when you can spend a couple of hundreds and get the same results. There are a couple of things you should always keep in mind:
- try trends out but also try and stay as far away from being a trend chaser as possible. Now while I may do a lot of trend analysis on my blog I also understand that trend-chasing can be an extremely damaging thing, to not only your wallet but also your confidence. Do not get carried away by following trends so much so that you start to lose sense of your own personal style.
- if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. It’s good to look different every time you step out the house but don’t allow that to get to your head either. If a look works for you and makes you feel beautiful and confident then sometimes there really isn’t a need to fix it. My signature “uni look” is black leggings and a t-shirt or blouse. That’s just what it is. It makes me feel comfortable and I don’t even have to think twice. I have a massive collection of the same pair of black leggings that I bought in the same size from the same store. Sometimes I look like I’m wearing the same outfit just in slightly different colours but I don’t mind.
- avoid shopping at expensive stores for wardrobe basics. Things like basic t-shirts and camisole tops are not items that I would recommend anyone splurge on. Save the money for things like jeans, leather jackets, heels, handbags and coats. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
- rearrange your closet often and donate what you don’t wear to the less fortunate. I’ll never forget the first time my mother donated a bunch of my clothes to the less fortunate without giving me a heads up. My mother is the sort of person to go through your closet and look for clothes she bought you a while ago. If she sees that you haven’t worn something or that the tag still hasn’t been removed in months she is definitely going to donate it. And the sad part is sometimes you don’t even notice until after the fact, and she’s told you. Thanks to the fear that was instilled in me when I was younger of having all my clothes given away to someone more appreciative, I now constantly go through my closet (sometimes up to three times a month) and rearrange everything in order to give what I can clearly see I haven’t worn in a while in a pile to give away. I thank my mom for this.
Q: What do you do to stay motivated and happy.
I stay away from thoughts of comparison. For example as much as I love JayZ and Beyonce they are not my #RelationshipGoals. I don’t know what happens behind their closed doors and even if I did, no thank you. Other people’s lives aren’t my #LifeGoals. And I find it quite sad when I see such hashtags floating around everywhere. We all have our own paths to lead, we are all different, and the world would be extremely boring to live in if everyone was like everyone else.
I guess what I am trying to say is that I understand that I am unique. My story is unique, my struggles, my good times, my bad times. I don’t have a perfect life, or blog, or fashion sense, or plan, heck I may have even answered all these questions imperfectly. But I don’t allow that to cloud over everything else good in my life.
What keeps me happy and motivated is knowing that as imperfect as my life may seem at any given moment in time, it’s mine. There is nobody else out there with the same story as me and there are probably a billion more people with struggles harder than mine. I refuse to compare my good or bad days with anyone else. I am content with what I have been blessed with.
Q: How would you describe your sense of style.
I don’t particularly think I have a specific style. I just kind of go with the flow and wear whatever makes me feel happy that day. I love to try new looks and experiment (when I’m not rocking my signature “uni-look” of course). If experimental is a kind of style then that is what I am I guess. Experimental.
You can also find Laurina all over social media (shy social butterfly),
♡ TUMBLR
♡ PINTREST
♡ Snapchat: @itslaurina
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Thank you so much for the feature! You’re beyond awesome! 🙂
Author
You’re welcome babe *kisses*