This is our second Friend Crush, a feature where you, the reader, nominate a girl you know and love and maybe kind of secretly worship? Then you tell us all about her and pass on your crush to the rest of the world like a disease. She could be your best friend or just a girl you see in the school hallway and are in awe of or, like in this case, your actual sister.
TO: [email protected]
FROM: Tinotenda
SUBJECT: Friend CrushMy name is Tinotenda Chizah. I’m 14 years old and I live in Cambridge, in the United Kingdom. I want to nominate my sister, Pamela Chizah, for Friend Crush, because she’s such a lovely sister. She’s always there to talk to me when I need her, and she’s a fashion inspiration to me and my friends. She is seven years older than me, and she encourages my friends and me feel more comfortable in our own skin, and has helped us overcome our fear of shopping in second-hand stores. Now I am not ashamed to go rummaging through thrift shops and pick up a bargain! Fashion is Pam’s greatest love (she has a fashion blog called Pink Bubble Dreams), but she studies pharmacology—which has inspired me to go the professional route and strive to become a lawyer. She is the greatest sister in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD.
ROOKIE: Does Pamela know that you nominated her for Friend Crush?
TINOTENDA [crusher]: She is not aware that I nominated her. I want this to be a surprise for her! Knowing my sister, she’ll be shocked and then (hopefully) she’ll love it!
Were you two always close growing up?
We were, because family is really important to us. We always had a close sisterly bond, but these past few years she’s become more like a best friend. I tell her absolutely everything. I cannot express how great it is to have her for a sister.
What makes her so awesome?
I LOVE LOVE LOVE Pam because she’s like one of the good angels? She goes to university, she cooks delish food, she does my hair all the time, and on top of that she really has the passion for fashion! She always gives our whole family and my friends insight on the trends. She teaches me that it’s OK to look different, dress different, and have your own sense of fashion and rock it!
What is the best advice she’s ever given you?
She tells me not to follow the crowd, to be myself and to express myself. But the best piece of advice she’s given me is to NOT BE AFRAID OF SECOND-HAND SHOPS!
Can you tell us about her blog?
I think what makes Pink Bubble Dreams so great is that it sums up everything Pam is as a person: dedication, love for what she does, and her desire to share her passion with everyone. Her pictures help me get imaginative, taking some ideas from her outfits and adding them to my own personal style.
Does she ever take you shopping?
Whenever she’s home we go shopping together, especially at the charity shop close to where we live. Shopping with Pam is amazing. She always shows me different ways that I can wear a single garment—for example, you can wear a skirt as a dress, or a shirt as a skirt. She has a great eye. Anything she picks up, she finds a way to make it modern. She has taught me that you don’t need a lot of money to be fashionable—sometimes it is about how to use what you already have.
What do you want the world to know about Pam?
She really is the best sister. She is kind and passionate about everything she does. She is always there for me whether I need a laugh or a cry. She has always stuck by my side. She is a forever friend.
On an unrelated note, your eyelashes are AMAZING. Are they real?
Thank you! No, they are false eyelashes. Pam got them for me on eBay.
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ROOKIE: How did you feel when you found out that Tinotenda nominated you for Friend Crush?
PAMELA [crushee]: I was shocked and excited at the same time! I screamed for about 30 minutes.
Have you two always gotten along? Was there ever a time when you really didn’t?
We have always gotten along, but like all sisters there are times we argue over silly things like her using my stuff without asking. But whatever we argue about we find a way to work it out.
Can you tell us a little bit about your blog? Tinotenda’s a big fan, as I’m sure you know.
I started my blog last year because I love fashion and had been reading fashion blogs for years, but I found it annoying that some of the bloggers out there don’t repeat their clothes. With my blog I am trying to tell people that you don’t need to go shopping all the time or have the clothes that are “in fashion” that season; you can reinvent the clothes you already have by wearing them differently. Make your own fashion rules.
Tinotenda actually takes my blog pictures when I’m home, and she gets involved in the editing of the pictures.
She says that you taught her how to buy and wear vintage clothes. How did you get her over her fear of secondhand shops?
She loved the pieces I was bringing home from thrift stores because they were unique, but she didn’t like the fact that the clothes are smelly when you first get them and you have to wash them a couple of times before you wear them. I showed her that the clothes in charity shops are more unusual than the ones on the high street and that she wouldn’t look like everyone else if she were wearing a one-of-a-kind vintage piece.
What do you love most about your little sister?
She has a great sense of humor. She is always cheerful and she’s a great person to talk to. I couldn’t ask for a better sister. ♦
To nominate your own Friend Crush, send your name and a picture of yourself, your FC’s name and email address (and a picture if you’ve got one), and a paragraph or two telling us what makes her so great, to [email protected], and write FRIEND CRUSH in the subject line.