BONANG'S WOOLWORTHS LINGERIE LINE IN STORES TODAY

In case you are still unaware... Your girl B* has a new lingerie line which she designed in collaboration with Woolworths and it is in stores today. This is yet another stunning achievement from one of the country's brightest stars following closely on her deal to be the face of Revlon in South Africa, the first ever outside of the US. Says Queen B: "Anyone that knows me understands that I love looking good, and that process for me begins with picking the right lingerie. Walking into the partnership, I knew I wanted to put my heart and soul into the collection. I had very specific ideas I wanted to explore and a clear direction. I am truly grateful to Woolworths for granting me the freedom to tap into my creativity and the guidance throughout the process."
Well, I don't have boobies, hips or ass, but if you do, you'd best get down to your nearest Woolies and get yourself into one of her creations. For the guys out there; this comes just in time for you to surprise your loved one with new lingerie for Valentine's Day. If your girlfriend thinks you are obsessed with Bonang for doing so, well, maybe that's because you are. Maybe you can calm her down by saying; "Baby, you look even better than Queen B in this." ;)
PICTURES: SUPPLIED

LUPITA NYONG'O: REAL DEAL OR WESTERN OBSESSION WITH "AFRICAN BEAUTY"

I have nothing against the success of an African model like Alek Wek but, without discounting that she is a hard worker and very smart woman (I've interviewed her, I know this for a fact), I can't shake the idea that some of her success is due to a romanticised and very Western ideal of what should look African. It should be dark, really dark. I could go as far as calling this the Tin-Tin syndrome. As disturbing a thought as this is we cannot sit and blindly believe that all is well with the fashion and entertainment industries (or life in general for that matter) when it comes to the issue of race and the  portrayal of beauty. Try being me- light skinned- and dare try to be a model. Good luck to you finding work. Your look would not be deemed African enough. Typing this out is highly discomforting but this is the reality of a world that has been through centuries of racial segregation as a direct result of which the victims (read: black people) are still trying to finding their own definition of beauty that is not prescribed by the very romanticisation perpetuated by Western media. 

This is why I worry about the current obsession with Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong'o who, I must say, is not only gorgeous and super stylish but also supremely talented. I had the opportunity to watch "12 Years A Slave" the other day and I was blown away by her performance in this Golden Globe winning film about slavery. Co-incidentally she plays a character who is the subject of the vile rape of black slaves by disgusting, horny slave masters. It is my hope that her career as an actress prospers, that she isn't a flavour of the month just because she is the latest dark skinned beauty. That, in other words, she isn't simply a subject of awe and curiosity a la Saartjie Baartman just because she is a dark skinned beauty from the "dark continent". It would be such a shame. I was so impressed with her performance that I thought even Jennifer Lawrence will have to sit her ass down as this Kenyan beauty walks up to that Golden Globes stage to accept her accolade for her role in the movie. In my books; she most definitely IS the real deal!

IMAGES: Dazed Digital 

CHOOSE HAPPINESS

I’ve been thinking about what my first blog post for 2014 should be and, while there’s plenty pictures to post from the holidays, for some reason I just haven’t got round to even transferring all the images from my camera to my computer. I guess work just took over and I’ve been delaying the things that make me happy as a result. Blogging is one of these things but more often than not, there’s very little time in our busy lives to dedicate to the things we truly care about. I’ve decided that 2014 is going to be that year where I put me first. The plan, which I can happily report is in motion as we speak, is to start dedicating more time to the things that make me smile and less time to the things that piss me off and make me feel like I’m delaying my own dreams and aspirations in favour of keeping those around me feeling happy and secure. It's a slow process but one that will surely bring me great reward in the long run. I'm confident it will. So, yes… While this post is overly delayed, I just wanted to put this out there. Maybe you, too, should think about making this your “ME” year. Discard your fears, take the plunge. Choose happiness.

PICTURES: (Blogger's own) Me in Zimbabwe, just about to board the train for the Jameson Victoria Falls Festival party that took place in the middle of a nature/game reserve. Such fun! I will be posting pictures from that trip soon. (Gotta edit... Duh!!!)

BTW. I do not know the gentleman in the hat. He was just a jolly dude who photo bombed me. Not that I mind. Happy people is what we're all about!