THE PREMIER ISSUE
AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION volume 1 summer 2020 AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION EDITORS IN CHIEF Eloisa De Farias AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION EDITORS IN CHIEF Julia Smith AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION CREATIVE DIRECTOR Ileana Hinchcliff AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Lauren Dillow AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION MANAGING EDITOR Juliana Hennig AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION SENIOR WRITING EDITOR Taina Millsap AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTIONSTYLE AFFECTION AFFECTION DIRECTOR Rachel Sato AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION VIDEO DIRECTOR Juljia Garunkstis AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION AFFECTION
Since coming home in March we have found ourselves paddling out on a shared surfboard at our favorite bay to watch the sunset. This daily routine helped us to break away from a digitally consuming lifestyle that seemed to prevade our lives. The routine goes something like this: We lock our phones inside of the car, hide our keys under the fifth bush located six feet from said car (please don’t tell!), from there we throw the single surfboard into the ocean and lose ourselves in a rhythmic pattern of partnered paddling, we then reach our favorite spot amongst the boats. As we watched the sun kiss the ocean and the sky turn a myriad of yellows, oranges, and pinks, it became the perfect time to talk about affection magazine and the ocean became our favorite meeting room. Affection Magazine has many parallels to its place of birth, The Big Island of Hawai’i. As a result of growing up on an island you take a few things for granted: familiar faces, a tight knit community, and a melting pot of people. We chose to take these things we found to be key and use them to fuel the intent of the magazine and create our own body of people that mirror the values that this island holds. This is translated through the small team that carried and molded the first issue of Affection. By the end of the magazine you may become familiar with some of the names in the credits, they repeat themselves because we believe that no one has a singular passion. Everyone on our team has their own title, but flexibility and the ability to work through a variety of different mediums has become an integral part of what made Affection Magazine what you see now. In a time of turmoil and a rapidly changing social sphere we chose to highlight topics and individuals that are wrongfully underrepresented. We hope to bring loads of affection to those who may feel unseen or unheard and rightfully devote a platform to such individuals. We also hope to bring a sense of joy, disorder, peacefulness, humor and all that is human with all that we have created. With Affection, Eloisa and Julia.
AFFECTION GOES BEYOND SIMPLE TERMS OF ENDERMENT AND EXPRESSED FONDNESS. IT IS THE INTRINSIC R E L AT I O N S H I P BETWEEN OUTSIDE INDIVISUALS AND T H E S E L F, UNFOLDING FROM THE INSIDE O U T. VOLUME 1 BY AFFECTION MAGAZINE
AFFE G BE SIMPL OF EN AND E FON IT INT R E L AT BET OU INDIVIS THE UNF FROM T O
VOLU AFF MA
ECTION GOES YOND LE TERMS NDERMENT XPRESSED NDNESS. IS THE TRINSIC TIONSHIP TWEEN UTSIDE SUALS AND E S E L F, FOLDING THE INSIDE O U T.
UME 1 BY FECTION AGAZINE
AFFECTION GOES BEYOND SIMPLE TERMS OF ENDERMENT AND EXPRESSED FONDNESS. IT IS THE INTRINSIC R E L AT I O N S H I P BETWEEN OUTSIDE INDIVISUALS AND T H E S E L F, UNFOLDING FROM THE INSIDE O U T. VOLUME 1 BY AFFECTION MAGAZINE
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INTRO 私をはなして
FA S H I O N
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FASHION’S POTENTIAL TURNING POIN
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LAUREN’S CORNER: DEPOPULAR
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WE ARE FROM THE FUTURE SEX AND STATIC
CURRENTS 36
VOGUE : STRIKING NEW POSES
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GENERATIONAL FASHION: A BLACK
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SUBMERGED
GIRLS IN WHITE DRESSES
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WELLBEING 58
TEA TIME WITH RACHEL FAY
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STAY AT HOME SELF CARE GUIDE
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OUROBOROS STAY AT HOME PROM
THE REVIEW 84
THE POLITICAN: A DRAMA SO DRAMATIC IT’S NOT
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VINYL IS BACK, BABY
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DREAMLAND
9 8 SHRUNKEN TREASURES 1 0 4 DYLAN’S LAWGUN: THE RISE TO FAME ON ONLYFANS
K WOMAN’S TALE
OUTRO 1 1 0 COUNTDOWN
1 2 0 FROGS KISSING
1 2 2 WHAT DO U HOLD AFFECTION 4
私をはなして Directed By Julia Smith Assisted By Ileana Hinchcliff
Modeled By Ann Lowe Photographed By Julia Smith
FASHION’S POTENTIAL TURNING POINT Written By Olivia Cigliano
Art By Lily Cho
As the pandemic forces the world to shift to a new normal, the fashion industry is being pushed to innovate past outdated means of production and return to its core principles of genuine and thoughtful artistry, storytelling, and celebration.
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he pocket of history we find ourselves in surely raises a lot of challenges, and fashion is adapting and evolving through it. Fashion is an artifact of history that reflects the unique qualities of its time and what it imagines for the future. It’s fully present and faces the moment in conversation. Indeed, Mode, the french word for “fashion,” derives from the Roman word modo, meaning “just this moment,” and from modo also came modernus, “of that time.” Life as we know it, at least fashion-wise, is changing and many are meeting a new normal. Some of the mega names in the industry, such as Gucci, Saint Laurent, Michael Kors, Off-White, and Giorgio Armani decided to ditch the traditional fashion calendar and reimagine how we celebrate design. The Rewiring Fashion proposal, announced
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mid-May, is a call to evolve. It was created by “a whole patchwork of faces from all over the world,” to hash out a “game plan for the future,” and garnered over two thousand signatures from designers, retailers, and industry insiders. The framework confronts the outmoded fashion calendar, saying shows are too far ahead of product deliveries and natural seasons, which causes customers to lose interest and gives time to fast fashion copycats. Facilitated by The Business of Fashion via Zoom conversations, Rewiring Fashion imagines a coed fashion week that takes place in “January/February and June to enable longer full-price sell-through periods, minimize travel requirements and de-gender fashion week.” Gender-fluid clothing is emerging as fashion’s next frontier and can inspire a richer perspective in design that we haven’t seen before- isn’t that the point of fashion anyway? Also, reduced travel is a good step
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for the industry, given its sustainability problem, as it’s in the top three most environmentally damaging industries on the planet, next to fuel and animal agriculture. The trend cycle encourages waste, as people discard garments that are “so last season,” where 85% of all textiles fill landfills each year, and mass-production encourages mass-consumption. #rewiringfashion also envisions the fashion weeks to align with “collection deliveries and real-world seasons” and appropriately sync buying and showing seasons “so shows take place just before weather-appropriate collections hit stores,” as well as a reduce constant discounting. In short, it’s a shift towards slow fashion - the antithesis of fast fashion - which is a movement of designing, creating, and purchasing clothing in
respect to human, environmental, and animal rights. It’s done with slower production schedules, fair wages, low transportation emissions, and as little waste as possible. In the collective’s lone Instagram post it reads they are, “working together to help the industry we love slow down, recconnect with its purpose, and align with a new set of principles.” It’s time to make ethics trendy! For fashion shows, “rewiring” means that there are “no rules,” whether in format or expected pattern of presentation. This is important because it removes outdated restraints on innovation. The ability to create thoughtfully and freely will enrichen the craft and market. Storytellers can be more authentic and organically inspired, and able to inspire fashion-lovers that much more.
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The fashion show is indeed already being flipped on its head, as the pandemic has forced designers to rethink how they show their next collections. Restrictions on international travel and crowd sizes, along with a challenged global economy and the closing of factories is posing a real challenge. But there are two truths of fashion that still hold: 1. Collections must be seen by consumers and clients for them to sell, 2. Fashion people are not ones to compromise on the fantasy of fashion presentation. In July, the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode hosted the first-ever virtual couture fashion week for couture shows, followed by Spring 2021 menswear collections. Pre-fall womenswear also showed digitally. Victor &
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Rolf released a whimsical video presentation; Chanel unveiled their collection in a scrolling lookbook with a matching Apple Music playlist (psst! FENTY dropped some playlists too); Dior presented a surrealist-inspired 15-minute short film. LOEWE even packed their SS21 men’s collection in an archive box- “show-in-a-box” - as a “sensorial” and interactive experience, including paper mannequins, textile samples, and design sketches, and an accompanying agenda of digital content. The breakout star of the virtual runway show has been Hanifa, designed by Anifa Mvuemba. In the vertical video that circulated online, an invisible, 3D, body-inclusive model named Imani stomps in Mvuemba’s second Pink Label Congo collection, amazingly demonstrating how the garments move on a woman’s figure.
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are set to be in-person again, with digital support. As for New York and London, that’s yet to be determined. However, the British Fashion Council’s Chief Executive Caroline Rush shared her hopes for digital shows and the future of the industry which will “put storytelling at its heart.” “The other side of this crisis, we hope will be about sustainability, creativity, and product that you value, respect, cherish. By creating a cultural fashion week platform, we are adapting digital innovation to best fit our needs today and something to build on as a global showcase for the future...We hope that as well as personal perspectives on this difficult time, there will be inspiration in bucketloads.” Pyer Moss’ Kerby Jean-Raymond plans to kick off New York Fashion Week, whether digital or physical, with a drive-in premiere for the brand’s documentary called American, Also. It’s a behind-thescenes look of their September 2019 show and will screen multiple cities following the NYC premiere. It’s a clever approach to social distancing, complete with novel charm and American nostalgia, and refocuses attention to the creative process that leads to great work. “This film aims to show the love and care our entire company puts into every single moment we create,” Jean-Raymond told Vogue, “and will show that we appreciate fashion as an art form and communication tool that we’ve used to embolden a community around us.” Trust me: press play and feel your jaw drop. This is an ideal taste of fashion’s future, where young designers (especially BIPOC designers) can cut through the noise by innovating digitally and representing a larger and eager demographic. A new wealth of creativity is being accessed, because of the pandemic, that seems to push industry leaders past limits that are set in the “old normal”. There’s now so much opportunity to share an immersive and far more interesting story with consumers at home. Looking forward, September Milan and Paris shows
The fashion industry is being pushed to return to its core values: fashion as an art form, a celebration of the human experience, a means of storytelling, an attainable and tangible fantasy. This movement is also democratizing the “front row”, something that was once an exclusive experience, but is now publicly available online. If this metamorphosis of sorts continues through the next decade, our roaring twenties will promise a richer vision of invention that doesn’t compromise on ethics and human connection. The pivot to digital platforms is the only way to keep the industry afloat, but it may result in a cultural shift for the better.
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WE ARE FROM THE FUTURE Directed By Julia Smith Modeled By Thibaut Dabrowski Ruby Dodge Kiyono Mcdonald
Styled By Rachel Sato Ileana Hinchcliff Eloisa De Farias Makeup By Elena De Farias Photographed By Julia Smith
styled and writted by Lauren Dillow
DEPOPULAR
What pops and what flops when it comes to the world’s trendiest thrifting app
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ince its official launch in 2011, the mobile thrifting platform, Depop, has jumped to the forefront of vintage goods hunting. Now I’ll admit that I’ve bought an embarrassing amount of shit from this app. If you see me and wonder where I got something I’m wearing, you can probably guess where I found it. But as much as I waste countless hours and dollars per day browsing the app for things I don’t need, I could give you a few reasons why you should be wary of this platform. Since it’s amassed such a cult entrepreneurial user base, things have gotten weird, and we need to have a serious chat about it.
How not to Depop Thrifting in general has become trendy as a quick way to find cheap or vintage clothing, as well as a sustainable alternative to fast fashion. More and more young people are denouncing the latter, and while that’s a super important issue to tackle, it’s necessary to recognize the many ways that people have begun to abuse Depop and the culture of thrifting as a whole.
items in pretty appalling ways. Every single Coach handbag I’ve seen selling for hundreds on Depop can be found for $15 or less at any local thrift store. Before I let you in on some thrift savvy secrets, we have to take a moment to recognize that this “trend” has only just become one among privileged, wealthier demographics of young people. Thrift stores are first and foremost resources for people who have no other option than to shop secondhand, not wholesale stock for your Depop shop. Purchasing from these stores in such a manner depletes resources and drives prices higher, further limiting their accessibility. Additionally, thrifting doesn’t always necessarily equal sustainability. If you’re buying thrifted goods in massive quantities, you’re not reducing your waste. Less still is more. Thrift consciously, bitches.
Not only are there classism concerns, but lately there’s also been this bizarre phenomenon of Depop shops selling Brandy Melville clothing for, like, hundreds of dollars. We’re talking Brandy from just a few years ago. Last year’s Brandy. Actually, it doesn’t even matter how old your Brandy is. None of it is worth more than $30 Many of the shops that you’ll find on the platform (ever) and it’s certainly not old enough to be considered that are selling “vintage” pieces are getting their vintage. If you’re one of these girls, listen, I respect stock in large quantities from local chain thrift stores a hustle, but please stop selling your ratty John Galt like Goodwill. Let me just say that it is absolutely tank tops (that were probably manufactured for a few unacceptable to take resources from low income cents) for anything more than $10. Don’t even get me communities just to upcharge for a profit online. fucking started on the people selling that plastic And yes, people are inflating the prices on these Lana del Rey cocaine rosary for literal hundreds.
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Now that I’ve got that off my chest, how should we be using Depop, exactly? Depop is heavily saturated with content that you don’t want to see, such as fake designer and posts tagged with irrelevant buzzwords just for exposure. You might also see some gems on the featured homepage, but I often find that the promoted items have already been sold (or are, in my opinion, overpriced.) The best successes I’ve had have come from either searching for an exact item I’ve got in mind, a specific brand and the type of item I’m interested in (for example: Anna Sui t-shirt) or typing in something incredibly simple, like a color or style. Sometimes searching very vaguely can lead to the coolest finds.
Some intentional finds: • MISBHV Turtleneck: I’ve been drooling over this since I saw it in a Tik Tok, and I found it for a much lower price than it retails for. I’m happy. • Fiorucci top: I found this for a decently lower price, which I think was because it’s in a kid’s size. The info on it was in Italian, which I definitely didn’t bother translating, so it was a lucky guess. • Pink silk blouse: I literally just searched for a pink silk blouse and found the perfect alternative to Rosie Assoulin’s Peek-a-Boo Blouse, a designer piece that retails for the low price of I could never afford that.
Hidden gems: • While I was on the hunt for some lower priced La Perla lingerie, I ended up finding the cutest vintage La Perla sweater. • I was searching for really tiny bags, and while I successfully found many of those, I also found a very normal sized, green satin MARC (Jacobs?) bag, with the most amazing gold detailing. left: misbhv black & white active turtleneck, $125, ssense.com
right: rosie assoulin peek-a-boo silk blouse, $837, farfetch.com
I don’t often go to Depop to find something on purpose, unless it’s something specific like the limited edition Vogue Paris x Jacquemus t-shirt I just copped. If I were to look for, say, gingham trousers, I can almost guarantee I’d find something entirely else that’s just as cool, but not the gingham trousers I saw in my mind. On Depop, it’s either precise or random, but spending enough hours on the lookout leads to incredibly pleasant surprises.
SEX & STATIC Directed By Eloisa De Farias Modeled By Kehau Tavares
Photography By Julia Smith Styled By Rachel Sato
VOGUE: STRIKING NEW POSES Written By Madison Goldberg
Art By Julia Smith
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ogue magazine has been an iconic staple in the fashion world since 1892. For more than a century it has been the image of high class and elegance, “a dignified authentic journal of society, fashion, and the ceremonial side of life,” as stated in an article from their 125th anniversary on theiR website. Since then, Vogue’s iconography has taken on its own life in popular culture, when Madonna’s 1990 smash hit “Vogue” popularized a dance move involving “striking a pose.” And the concept of “voguing” which initially began in New York City in the 1980s—and was started by LGBTQ people of color.
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AFFECTION MAGAZINE • CURRENTS
But this widely respected publication, associated with success, wealth, and beauty, didn’t feature a person of color on the cover until Beverly Johnson in 1974, 85 years after it was founded. Madonna’s song and dance moves that were based upon the high-fashion image associated with the magazine were taken from a dance movement that began in the House Ball scene in Harlem, New York, by LGBT and Latinx dancers Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza and Luis Xtravaganza. Clearly, Vogue and the high fashion industry, in general, have associated style and class with whiteness, going so far as to utilize trends started in BIPOC (Black, Indigenous People of Color) communities for their own benefit. Already lacking diversity, the publication has come under recent scrutiny in recent years for cultural a appropriation. In February 2017, model Karlie
Kloss, who is white, posed in Japanese geisha makeup and dress. Soon after, Gigi Hadid posed in a hijab, though she does not practice Islam. And in October of 2018, the magazine published an image of Kendall Jenner with an afro. There are plenty of models of color to hire, so why use white models to essentially play the role of other races and ethnicities? Some of this lack of awareness stems from the lack of diversity among photographers at the publication. Only two years ago, in 2018, Tyler Mitchell became the first black photographer to photograph a Vogue cover with his portrait of Beyonce. The lack of diversity among the photography staff is nothing new. For decades the film and photography industry has been dominated by white men. A lack of diversity among the creators of these covers leads to repeated mistakes and lapses in judgment regarding cultural appropriation.
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Now, enter Salma Noor. It’s 2020, we are quarantined due to a global pandemic, amid a national outcry for police and civil rights reform following several incidents of police brutality like Breonna Taylor and George Floyd’s cases. Naturally, a specific social media platform has become a source of both information and expression for Generation Z—Tik Tok. Noor then took to the app to create the “Vogue challenge” in which other app users photograph themselves and photoshop Vogue’s infamous logo on top of their own shots. This is a way to showcase BIPOC models and photographers, providing them with a platform aimed to level the playing field as they aim to be viewed as equals to white fashion industry leaders. Soon enough, the trend went viral—with Tik Tok users from many different backgrounds using their newfound time in quarantine to complete the “challenge.” Soon, the trend surpassed its original goal of highlighting
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BIPOC creators, with several white users, including James Charles, jumping on the trend. Because of this, to white audiences, the trend became just that—a trend. This phenomenon can be seen in other social media demonstrations as well, most recently in the black-and-white selfie challenge on Instagram, which was intended to represent the need for reform to protect women from gender-based violence in Turkey. Instead, it was quickly whitewashed for the sake of internet clout. But this isn’t just a hashtag. This is something far greater. It is a challenge asking the fashion industry to do better. To diversify its designers, photographers, and models, but to also actively play a role in forging a wider acceptance of beauty. Evidently, many of the creative directors and photographers have promoted Euro-centric beauty standards for more than a century—and the cultural appropriation goes to show that they essentially
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believe that “ethnic” traits are only tolerable if adorned by white models as if they were costumes. Ryan Midwinter, a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City, said that “the community is miles ahead of the suburban community I grew up in, it’s hard to ignore the shortcomings FIT still needs to overcome and remedy. The student body is a diverse mix of races, genders, and presentation make FIT a unique place to attend. While diversity consulting does exist to some degree it obviously needs to play a bigger role in the school as the institution made headlines with a large scandal this past year.” The scandal to which Midwinter is referring happened back in February, in which FIT student Junkai Huang was rushing to complete a look for his first fashion show, and wound up asking a Black model to walk the
runway in a pair of plastic oversized monkey ears and lips, features classically associated with racist caricatures of Black people. Luckily, this incident led to the suspension of two administrators involved. By incorporating sensitivity training at an institutional level, perhaps these issues of cultural appropriation can hopefully be minimized, and eventually stopped altogether. It is time that we stop appropriating other cultures and calling it a “trend,” while perpetuating a lack of representation. It’s 2020, and the world is never going to be the same as it was before the most recent demonstrations for civil rights reform. It’s time to level the playing field in fashion and beyond, and strike new poses.
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SUBMERGED Directed By Ileana Hinchcliff Assisted By Eloisa De Farias Julia Smith Modeled By Helena Mistumura Photographed By Ileana Hinchcliff Styled By Ileana Hinchcliff
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Generational Fashion: A Black Woman’s Tale Written by Mickey Pope
Photos by Mickey Pope
From a young age, black children are told that to express themselves through style is dangerous and uncharted territory.
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olored hairstyles, long acrylic nails, and big hoop earrings are considered ghetto, unprofessional, and tacky. The constant policing of style within the black community to produce the fear of ridicule and judgment. My mother, however, never let that fear consume her.
Her long black locs and golden hoops always left eightyear-old me speechless. In her cropped graphic tees and bell-bottom jeans, she carried herself with the confidence that could only be found in runway models. She slathered on bright purple lipstick before going out to any party while I sat on the toilet, feet kicking back and forth, and listened to her rant and rave about her bangles being the best part of her outfit.
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She taught me how to pose like her in pictures “stick your hips out with your hands on them and give me a smize,” how to dress “at least one thing should match, come on,” and how to have confidence in myself even when I felt like fashion was too out of reach for me.
remarkably special to receive it from the same person who stressed the importance of individualism in fashion to me from a young age. Having my mother as my biggest fan throughout my style evolution meant more to me than she would ever know.
She was fierce, and, to me, she was the pillar of fashion.
Despite my newfound love for fashion and what it meant to me, I still could not help but be fearful of what other people thought of me. At my predominantly white college, I feared that I was expressing myself too loudly. I feared that people wouldn’t take me seriously if my wigs were specific colors, if my earrings were too big, or if my pants were too baggy.
As I got older, I tried to emulate my mother by expanding my wardrobe. I bought myself earrings in gold and silver, skinny denim jeans, and multi-colored t-shirts. I wore dark purple lipstick and steadily got into makeup. I slouched less in class to make my presence known just as she did. Some weeks I would give up. None of the clothes I wore felt like me. Whenever I had my picture taken, I would still shy away from the camera and clutch the sleeves of my shirt in an attempt to cover-up. I would compare myself to the girls in my high school class, wishing that I looked as good as they did in similar clothing. Only in college did I find my sense of style. I began to wear clothes that were a bit out of my comfort zone. Slowly, I started taking more pictures of myself and posting them on social media for others to see, as my mother did. The entire concept felt so foreign, but I was growing to love it. I was starting to appear more natural, or comfortable in my own skin. My mother would call me, excitement oozing through her words, any time I posted a picture of a new outfit. Each phone call would leave a permanent smile on my face, as her praise meant the world to me. It was
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Even when it was not vocalized, I often felt policed. I spent years searching for an outlet of expression just to feel cornered by what was considered socially acceptable for black women. I started to wonder if my mother ever had the same issue. How did she manage to express herself so beautifully without the fear of not being taken seriously? Did she ever feel the need to change herself for the sake of other people’s comfortability? However, I knew if I asked her, her response would be, “Why should I have to?” My mother was able to affirm and express who she was, and I was able to learn from her and grow as an individual. My mother never allowed the weight of what people expected from her to be her responsibility, and I still have the desire to adopt that part of her—to foster a stronger love for myself. Because of my mother, I am working toward liberation through fashion.
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GIRLS IN WHITE DRESSES Directed By Julia Smith Modeled By Eloisa De Farias Elena De Farias Emanuela De Farias
Photographed By Julia Smith Styled By Eloisa De Farias
Tea Time With Rachel Fay: Tik Tok Celebrity, Arts and Crafts Connoisseur, and Queer Icon Written by Eloisa De Farias
Photos by Rachel Fay
Amidst the madness of the pandemic I was reminded of what it’s like to sit down, have a cup of tea, and chat with someone.
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brewed up some chamomile tea and joined Rachel Fay with her can of milk tea in hand over zoom. We got to talk about Tik Tok, Ms. Frizzle, boundaries in the wake of ‘fame,’ queerness, and arts and crafts, all in one sitting. The first thing to know about fan-favorite Rachel Fay is that her Tik Tok follower count is larger than the entire population of the town I live in, her account @faythegay currently has 701.9k followers.
Rachel began small, joining Tik Tok as a way to support her friend by liking her videos but since quarantine, she quickly gained traction practically overnight due to her impeccable Ms. Frizzle impersonations, climbing from 60k followers to 200k in a day. “Anytime I posted anything Ms. Frizzle related my follower count would go up and every time I didn’t want to do it for a few days [my followers] would riot and go
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crazy,” she says. “It came about because so many people were commenting that I look, sound, and dress like her. So when I went full out I realized people actually listen to me when I dress like a teacher from the 90s and I thought, you know what, I can use this as an educational tool.” Although Rachel’s red hair, fun earrings, and funky patterned attire allude to the beloved school teacher, the Ms. Frizzle alter ego is just one of many things she explores on her platform. Her page is full of comical lightness and vibrant colors, but still
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maintains serious undertones. It’s a way for her to educate and inform people about various topics and issues that often aren’t touched upon in mainstream media. As a queer creator, Rachel is able to draw on her personal experiences as well as informational tools regarding the LGBTQ+ community that are useful to those who frequently watch her videos, creating a safe space for queer people. Rachel also met her girlfriend through Tik Tok and has been documenting their relationship, from online dating to their first time meeting in person, providing her viewers with the much needed queer normalization that most of us
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didn’t grow up seeing. Even though we love to see it, Rachel grounds us all back reminding us that there is a certain reality behind being queer that isn’t as romantic as seen on TikTok, “In my DMs people will go absolutly crazy, especially young kids, [but] I understand, I am a creator who is gay and who is more accessible because of TikTok,” she says. “But people are asking very personal questions about my life and about what they should be doing with their life, how they should come out to their parents what they should do in this situation, the truth is I don’t know, I don’t know their situation, I don’t know who their parents
are and I’m not sure if it’s safe for them to come out.” This brought us to a very important topic for creators, boundaries. Something we all take for granted and something that gets violated way too many times when you have a platform. With more than half a million followers, Rachel is subject to a fair amount of hunting down and invasion. Tik Tok fame can be very different from other kinds of fame, the escalation of attention happening seemingly overnight. As a 19 year old still learning about herself, Rachel is faced with the conflicting
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implication of being a voice for the voiceless, but also just being a human being with a life outside of the app. “I’m not a toy or a prop. I am here entertaining you but I’m not your entertainment, that’s not my sole purpose.” she says. “You have to understand that I am a person. It’s not just me, it happens to creators everyday and it’s kinda hard to reiterate that all the time.” The Tik Tok algorithm is naturally very broad, oftentimes you will find yourself learning about something you never got to learn about and explore in school or at work. Rachel is part of a very important educational algorithm, that of disabled Tik Tok. “In the beginning I didn’t talk about it so much but I have PTSD. I didn’t actually tell my mom about my trauma until this year and this happened many years ago and I got diagnosed last year and I didnt do anything about it and it was extremely debilitating,” she says. “Recently I fainted and I hit my head, got concussed, and it shattered the bones in my inner ear and I became hard of hearing. These are recent diagnoses but also I’ve had them my whole life. It explains everything but I didn’t have a name for it until recently.” Rachel feels as though she is just barely scratching the surface of what it means to be on disabled Tik Tok, but has had increasingly positive feedback from people such as myself who don’t feel as educated as they should be on disabilities. Her service dog Juniper is the most heartwarming soul and teaches us why Rachel needs a service animal in the first place. Rachel makes it possible for others to grow and learn in a fun and unorthodox way. Rachel is infatuated with too many things to count, this is exactly what makes her platform a force to be reckoned with. Aside from Tik Tok, Miss
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Rachel is a young entrepreneur, and a master of the arts and crafts world if you may. From traditional art, to knitting, to earrings, she has found a way to express herself in a way that not only pays the bills and the countless cans of milk teas she consumes but also keeps her heart happy and smiling. Her growing jewelry business has been a hit, whether you want dinosaurs, Care Bears, or mushrooms dangling from your ears, Rachel has got it. Her fame on Tik Tok has made it possible for her art businesses to grow and reach a variety of people who appreciate handmade art. “It’s so important to me to be able to give things to people that I have created and for them to know that ‘oh she made this’ and this is hers and this is mine, it is everybodies,” she says. “Even if its a stupid caricature they would frame and put it up in their house it is my art, whether its stupid or not, its framed and put into hundreds of peoples homes all over the world. So knowing that my earrings have been shipped all over the place, it’s like I am everywhere.” So I asked Rachel, what now? What does the future look like? Rachel loves what she does on Tik Tok, but plans to become a household name someday by voice acting and being in cartoons for kids. “I want to be a positive role model who you can look up to like I am now on tik tok but more real and more tangible like a disney princess who’s hard of hearing or disabled” she says. “Like a comedic relief character who’s the main character.” Rachel called her goals ambitious, but they are far from unattainable and she is closer to achieving them everyday.
AFFECTION MAGAZINE • WELLBEING
OUROBOROS Directed By Julia Smith Assisted By Eloisa De Farias Ileana Hinchcliff
OUROBOROS Modeled By Lily Cho Photographed By Julia Smith
A STAY AT HOME SELF-CARE GUIDE By Audrey Jaber
Art By Julia Smith
With COVID-19 filling our lives with unwanted uncertainty and stress, self-care tends to be both much needed and under-prioritized.
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elf-care can come in many forms but at the base of it, it is an activity that one does purposefully in order to take care of their mental, emotional, and physical health. This could mean eating a healthy diet, working out, or even treating yourself to a facial or a spa day. Though it may seem unnecessary to take care of your skin when, at this point in time, it is usually hidden behind a mask, this is an example of a form of self-care that helps more than just your physical appearance. Aside from preventing pimples and treating split ends, a day
of pampering can have a ton of benefits regarding your mental health. It is a great way to allow yourself to relax and forget about any outside stressors. Focusing on your skincare routine, for example, can give you a sense of control in a time where you may not have much. Even if you don’t know what the world will look like in six months, your skincare routine is something you are able to control and focus on. While quarantine and budgetary limits may be preventing you from actually going to the spa, here are a few easy steps that you can take in order to treat yourself to a makeshift spa day from the comfort of your own home.
1. Set the atmosphere
2. Use a hair mask
A calming environment in itself can help you to relax and get some peace of mind by temporarily forgetting about any worries and anxiety. Try lighting some candles or using essential oils. Lavender is a great scent to promote relaxation.
While enjoying your bath, you can use a hair mask to treat your hair and make it healthier. If you don’t already have a hair mask at home, here is a simple, two-ingredient mask, that works for all hair types.
Take a bath and relax your muscles. Not only can a bath reduce any muscle pain and tightness, but it is also proven to calm the nervous system by reducing levels of stress and anxiety in the body.
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Simple Rejuvinating Yogurt and Honey Hair Mask Directions:
Ingredients:
Mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Apply to hair and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. Rinse well.
2 tablespoons Plain Yogurt 1 tablespoon Honey
The protein in the yogurt will strengthen your hair, while the lactic acid will cleanse your scalp and promote hair growth. The honey will moisturize your hair, making it smooth and shiny. 3. Focus on your skin The highlight of many spa days is a facial. At home, you should start this process by cleansing your face. You can use whatever cleanser that you have at home and can take this one step further by steaming your face. Steaming your face opens your pores, hydrates your skin, and increases circulation. And the best part is that it can easily be done in your own kitchen. Start by boiling around five cups of water over your stove. Once it boils, take it off the heat and move it to somewhere comfortable. Sit down and drape your towel over your head and the pot. Hold your face about six inches away from the water for five to ten minutes, raising your head or lifting the towel to cool off if needed. After thoroughly cleansing and steaming your face, all that is left is a facemask. Once again, if you don’t have a facemask lying around at home you can easily make one with ingredients that are already in your kitchen.
Antibacterial Moisturizing Natural Face-mask Directions:
Ingredients:
Mix ingredients in a small bowl. Apply to your face and leave on for five to ten minutes. Then rinse completely and moisturize.
2 tablespoons Honey 1 teaspoon Lemon juice ½ teaspoon Ground Turmeric
Not only will honey moisturize your skin, but it also has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. Lemon juice is high in Vitamin C, which helps to reduce skin damage and promote skin elasticity. The turmeric in the mask will treat acne, as well as, any dark spots or dark circles.
These easy steps will allow you to treat yourself without leaving your house or spending big bucks. Self-care is important, especially given the uncertain world that we are living in right now. Just make sure that you give yourself the time to relax, unwind, and take care of your mental, emotional, and physical health.
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WILL YOU GO WITH ME? Directed By Juliana Hennig
Modeled By Dorrel Kamau Photographed By Julia Smith Helena Brewbaker Teddy Rubenstein Assisted By Eloisa De Farias Styled By Racel Sato Ileana Hinchcliff Isaiah Broderson Juliana Hennig
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a tribute to the lost memories of 2020.
THE POLITICIAN: A RAW REVIEW Written By Gabriela Portugal
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Art By Jujia Garunkstis
hate dramas. Dramas can be so corny, unbelievable, and ridiculous, especially if not done properly. Now, imagine a drama that is about politics–– an equally messy and unpleasant facet in our world. In my opinion, mixing drama and politics is like mixing warm vodka and Bud Light; it’s something no one should ever do unless you want a night of misery and despair.
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However, I’m really pleased to say that I’m wrong. Netflix’s original series, The Politician is bold, upbeat, and eye-opening at the same time. The Politician is about Payton Hobart, portrayed by Ben Platt, and his rise as a progressive and powerful player in the game of politics. Hobart definitely fits the obsessive and ruthless stereotype of a
AFFECTION MAGAZINE • THE REVIEW
politician, but he is much more dimensional than that. Season one starts in a juvenile environment juxtaposed with the mature issues and dramatic plot, which at first I thought would come off as too dramatic. Hobart and his team were running a campaign for Saint Sebastian’s student body President, which is normal. However, while running his campaign Hobart, his cohort, and his enemies all faced a slew of struggles including relationships, sexuality, mental illness, death, corruption, equality, ethics, and simply growing up. Likewise, in season two, Hobart is a young man, fresh out of college campaigning to become the next New York State Senator. In addition to setting higher goals in his political career, Hobart strives to be a young, authentic politician who genuinely cares for the issues he fights for while still dealing with the typical drama conflicts. One facet of The Politician that helps it to be a non-cheesy political drama is probably the one part of the show that should make it cheesy: the characters are so young! Although, it is important to note that not every character is young; the protagonists of the show are just very young. As I mentioned earlier, the juvenile atmosphere with the very intense political motives just seemed a bit too much. Are teenagers just expected to deal with so many personal and political matters while trying to be successful all at once? Oh wait, they are.
each actor, even each outfit is so bold. Much like the world we live in now –– or at least in my world –– there is so much youth, energy, and diversity around. The make-up of the show is reflective of that reality. Besides, the vibrancy and multi-dimensional feeling of The Politician makes the political issues in it feel real –– and that’s probably because they are. During the two seasons of The Politician, there are numerous political issues addressed, all of which are very relevant to politics in real life. Hobart’s campaign in season two encompasses quite a few issues. The main issues include climate change, efficient public transportation, minority enfranchisement, minority representation, financial equality, and social equality. All of these issues are big topics in the realm of US politics today. It is so inspiring and amazing to see these issues talked about on a tv show, especially such an upbeat and fun show. As someone who is very passionate about politics, I cannot stress enough the importance of dialogue. I really admire that The Politician is aware of this importance and takes the time to actually stress these very issues. Simply acknowledging and discussing tough topics is the first step to creating real, political change.
Young people, especially current young people have gone through so many traumatic events in their lifetime- and I would know because I am a young person. Yes, we grew up in a world with technology and modern conveniences. But we also grew up in a world full of hate, distrust, corruption, oppression, depression, plus all of the personal traumas. So, even though Hobart and his friends’ personal issues seemed unrealistic at first if you take a step back and really observe what type of stuff young people really deal with, it doesn’t seem so crazy after all. The other real key to making this political drama as good as it is is by embracing the boldness that comes with the drama and politics. Each character, each political issue, each conflict,
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DREAMLAND Directed By Julia Smith Assisted By Ileana Hinchcliff Juliana Hennig Eloisa De Farias Modeled By Naia Kipling Ila Henry Photographed By Julia Smith Styled By Rachel Sato
“Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!”
V I N Y L I S BAC K , BA B Y ! By Rodin Batcheller
Art By Juljia Garunkstis
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t’s summer and I can’t go outside. COVID-19 has ruined my summer plans along with everyone else’s. Hanging out with my mom, watching Netflix, and playing solitaire got old pretty quickly, so I decided to dive into my dad’s massive collection of vinyl records. I made it a point to sit down and listen to a few albums every week on my turntable; a mix of some classics from the 1970s and the few I’ve bought over the past couple years. I know that the preferred medium of listening to music today is online streaming, and with brick and mortar record stores working on limited hours, it’s difficult to find ways to explore what I like to call ‘tangible music.’ Not to mention, it’s a little more expensive buying a turntable and a sound system along with the albums themselves compared to a couple of dollars per month. Nevertheless, vinyl records are coming back and have been on the rebound for years now.
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CDs are on the way out, that’s just common knowledge. Vinyl was set to outsell CDs this year before the pandemic hit. The Recording Industry Association of America’s (RIAA) 2018 mid-year report suggested that CD sales were declining three times as fast as vinyl sales were growing. Despite the rebirth of vinyl, streaming still dominates the music industry as records only accounted for four percent of total revenues in 2019. In contrast, paid subscriptions to streaming services made up 62 percent of industry revenue. The fact remains that we’re in the 20th century and streaming music is a lot easier and a lot cheaper. Until it’s possible to hook up a turntable to a car stereo, streaming is just going to be a more practical way for the majority of people to listen to their music. I know I can’t walk down the street listening to my favorite albums on vinyl, but there’s nothing like sitting back and letting my favorite sounds wash over me. This is a real hipster-y thing to say, but there’s nothing like the warm sound of a needle feeding music into a pair of speakers with that slight crackle and pop sound only a vinyl record can provide. Trust me, it’s better than any Bluetooth speaker out there. The difference between streaming a song and listening to it on vinyl is huge. It’s not even close.
holds a special place in my heart. I’ve since discovered my own taste in music over the years and have grown accustomed to just streaming all of my music through Spotify. So, it’s been a great walk down memory lane by dropping the needle-like my dad used to on his old albums. I’ve come to appreciate the warmness and slight crackle the sound of a vinyl record provides. There’s just something about holding an album in your hands and putting it down on a turntable that makes me feel like I’m a part of the music-making process. That’s something I don’t get from hitting ‘play’ on Spotify. The connection between the listener and the music is something sacred and part of that connection is lost listening to music through streaming platforms. Is it convenient? Yes. Does it make listening to music that much more special? Well, I guess that’s up to the individual; but to this listener would take a turntable and some speakers over a laptop and headphones any day of the week. It’s difficult to tell when this crisis will end, but in the meantime, I’m going to take advantage of this time I have with my turntable and drop the needle on some of my favorite albums. Vinyl is back, baby. I can’t recommend this hobby enough. Happy listening and rock on.
My advice is to save up and invest in a turntable, some speakers and pick out some artists to listen to on vinyl. And the fact that record stores are indisposed at the moment shouldn’t hold anyone back from getting their hands on some “tangible music”. There are many ways to purchase albums online. Yes, Amazon is one, but websites like Discogs and Music Direct are the equivalents of Uber Eats and Doordash, but, you know, for music. There are also vinyl subscriptions like Vinyl Me, Please, and Vnyl, where one can sign up, input their acquired tastes and have records sent to them monthly to expand their music taste and record collection. I’ve been listening to a lot of classic rock lately. My dad’s collection is full of rock music from the 60s and 70s. Everything from The Beach Boys to Led Zeppelin to Frank Zappa. I grew up listening to all of my dad’s music, so every song on almost every album I listen
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SHRUNKEN TREASURES Directed By Eloisa De Farias
Photographed By Julia Smith
Modeled By Ileana Hinchcliff Rachel Sato
Styled By Rachel Sato
Dylan’s Lawgun: The rise to fame on Onlyfans Written by Taina Millsap
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uring a time where social media influencers are gaining fame overnight, new celebrities pop up daily. Recently I got to sit down over zoom with one of them, New Zealand native Dylan Lawgun, to discuss all things OnlyFans. The platform has grown immensely ever since it launched in 2016, providing a safe space for regular people to grow a following and profit off of posting content. The platform is often used by sex workers who want a safe space to post content to
Photos by Dylan Lawgun consumers who will pay for their service. Lawgun says that what is posted on the platform can vary and that there are no real rules to what you can and can’t post. With a current following of over 400,000 on OnlyFans and 12,500 on Instagram, Lawgun’s fan base is growing rapidly. Ever since January his business has grown and has allowed him a lot of freedom and joy due to the money and friends he has made through OnlyFans.
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When did you first start gaining a social media following and what do you think made you gain such popularity? I started an OnlyFans September of 2019, but it never got many followers and then I started on Twitter becoming friends with more and more people who were in a quite large popular group. I think because of that they were able to support me and boost my posts and my OnlyFans. It started gaining subscribers quite rapidly and then I had a couple of my posts that were linked to my OnlyFans that went viral, and I gained like 20,000 subscribers overnight.
Regarding OnlyFans, what is it exactly that you do on the platform and how does it work? A lot of people will use it as their job because it is a really great source of income if you know how to use it and how to monetize yourself. Honestly there’s no rules to what you can and can’t post. If you wanna post pictures of your dog or if you wanna post hardcore videos you can too, it’s basically catering to an audience and then knowing your audience. For me I mostly post nudes and lingerie pictures and I think my audience is pretty happy with that. I‘ll post pictures or sometimes like a short clip.
Do you feel empowered by expressing yourself on the internet while profiting and having full control over the content being distributed and who sees it? It’s made me able to move out of my house and it’s something that I’m comfortable with using and I can do pretty well. I’ve made friends through doing it and I definitely feel like the people around me and my subscribers support me in it so when I use it I feel empowered.
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What are your goals for the future and your career? OnlyFans isn’t something I want to do for the longest time because I don’t want to be stuck as just being an internet persona or someone who isn’t entirely real to the people on the internet. But it is something that I enjoy doing and that I would like to grow my following base on. I just don’t wanna be stuck doing it forever because I feel like there’s more I can give to the world outside of it.
Going along with being an internet persona do you feel like you put on a show or a character when you’re online? I don’t think I have a different personality but I feel like the way that some people can sexualize others on the internet, and I know that I’m a sex worker, but they tend to see us as not real or just there for their gratification or something and I don’t want to be just that to everyone. I find it easy to brush off though because I have so many people that don’t see me that way or see me in a completely different light, as a caring pure hearted individual.
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Do you feel comfortable talking about pronouns and your journey towards feeling comfortable with your own identity? When I was like 16 I cut off all my hair and I looked like a little boy for a year and people would accidentally call me he/him but I never minded it. Growing up I always had a lot of anxiety about the way that I looked and especially going through puberty, it didn’t feel right or normal to me. I think I started referring to myself as they/them or he/him like switching it up a little bit as early as 2016, so when I was 17 years old. It was more of a casual thing, like it didn’t mean much to me but the more that people started using they/them and he/him it made me happy to hear it and it felt so comfortable and right. I never push people into using my preferred pronouns because my pronouns aren’t like the biggest thing and I don’t want it to be like the defining factor for me. But if people ask I’ll always tell them he/him because that’s what’s most comfortable and people have been really good about it and really accepting. What are some of the things you’re most proud of accomplishing? When the Australian fires happened I used a month’s worth of subscriptions that I got and put it all towards donations, and I thought that was pretty cool that I was able to do that. What are your favorite parts about being an influencer? The money gives me so much freedom. I take a couple pictures and I post them so I really like that I can go about my normal life and grow myself meanwhile as a regular person in the world. What are the downsides that make you question doing OnlyFans as your career forever? The only downside is I’m always scared that my parents will find out, but I think that’s pretty normal. What are other things you’re passionate about that you would like to implement into your career in the future? I only have one goal honestly and I’ve only recently decided on it, I wanna own a little shop that sells coffee.
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COUNTDOWN Directed By Julia Smith Assisted By Ileana Hinchcliff Juliana Hennig Eloisa De Farias Modeled By Aiko Watanabe Shannon Arrelano Jeneral Lim Photographed By Julia Smith Styled By Rachel Sato
Art By Elena De Farias
ilee’s strange garage • pete the rabbit and olivia’s pool• the many talented writers juliana’s cake baking skills •rain • boobs betta fish • thrift stores • beach goats • eyelash art • myself • harry styles • my camera • tatto brigadero•1303•floofs•kindness•self-love• vanilla • sunsets • sports • my cats lingerie •sex• pinkie rings WHAT D christmas•scented lotion romantic comedies HO cousins • jalepenos • buttons AFFECTI lavender • horses • french collected but never read cupcakke • 25 mg sour candies • anime • paris •sunrises at the beach • starbucks double shot little bit salty for 4.92 • quarintine • house #51 chicken and forks • imessage • subway surfers belts • tiny bags • low rise jeans • nike zooms • c dumper dive finds • skateboards • masks • c comfy blankets • mountains of pillows • highli
bucky the duck• rachel’s bottomless closet who have decided to share their stories • the sun • aloe vera • sunburns • red hes • the toyota tacoma • deez nuts • joe mama oos • books • rainy mornings • my hometown •mom’scooking•k-pop•poetry•mac&cheese • stuffed olives • dancing •kissing sisters • boba • samba music DO YOU polly pockets • ducks chocolate • seth rogan OLD ION FOR? • rain • 2014 • film photos perfume • the books i’ve australia • pink • vintage fashion s hilton’s stop being poor shirt • the green line t with ice but with the cold foam on top that’s a 1 • my garage • painter’s cloth • tik tok • jello s • collages • essential oils • ibuprofen • ugly cowboy culture • chamomile tea • 3.50 kids meal clear lip gloss • warm summers • electric fans ighters • google photos • cherries • affection.
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