Meeting David Tlale Thanks to Elle

I'm ready to die now.
Not even joking.

You know how you read or hear about really amazing competitions in fashion magazines/websites/Twitter and you think to yourself, "Man, how cool would it be if I won?" But then you turn the page or look at one gifs of Dylan O'Brien on Tumblr and forget about it. A week or so later you see you one of the winners and you sigh because you wish you could be one of those people that always win these things.

Well, that is not a reality for me anymore.

The Elle Magazine blog ran a competition recently where a lucky reader and a friend would receive the chance to go to a day of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week (fuh free), get dressed by David Tlale and meet Minnie Dlamini. All that the hopeful inviduals had to do was describe how they would dress Minnie.
And I won. (Here's my entry if you don't believe me.)
Like, me: the girl who's never so much as won an unsalted raisin in a packet of peanuts and raisins.
Obviously the Universe has grown tired of its Pick on Khensani game and granted me such a gift. To quote another cool Khensani (whose blog you should check out), I've "won at life."

I took Josh as my valuable friend and for the first part of the prize we got to go to David Tlale's studio in the Maboneng Precinct (the coolest place in the whole province - I've blogged about the Musuem of African Design that's located there) and have a dress fitting. I know. We're getting dressed by David Tlale - David Tlale whose slayed at every fashion week since ever, David Tlale who killed it at New York Fashion Week this year, David Tlale whose show in 2012 was the first fashion show I'd ever attended.

Unfortunately I showed up forty-minutes late (everything cool in Jo'burg is placed ridiculously far apart and no one in the CBD understands what a green light is) and as soon as I ran into the studio, I was shocked speechless. It was literally the most glamourous, minimalistic thing ever. Sheena, the assistant Elle fashion editor was really nice and accommodating and reduced my nerves right before she went to get David.

Does that man fill a room. He had such a presence to him and I felt like I was presenting a speech for assembly in grade five all over again.

"Hello, I'm David." He said and held out his hand.

I know, I thought but instead I said, "Hi, I'm Khensani. Iamsosorryforbeinglate."

"I could slap you." And in a cloud of soothing, musky cologne he was already onto the next thing.

BEST. MOMENT. OF. MY. LIFE.

After getting to touch the prettiest, well-constructed clothing and fell apart a little inside because I wouldn't be allowed to keep any of it (it was straight off the runway!) (I did, however, reconstruct myself when I realised that I was sample size), we took a walk around the precinct before retiring to Pata Pata for a snack.

The Maboneng Precinct is the best place to be mostly because it's all the amazing feels of being in the city but without the scary folktales of Melville and Parktown where people are "constantly" get hijacked, robbed and who knows what else. There are also really funky restaurants with live performances, local artwork and things like cheese boards. As well as really love independent stores with "so tumblr" items. If I could move there <sighs and looks off into the horizon>.

My crop top and boyfriend jeans are from Cotton On, trainers from Pull and Bear in Istanbul, Mr Price bag, jacket and hat. And of course Josh looked like a sweg trap.

We got a cheeseboard (which we split because we're broke and being in the city makes one want to pretend to be on some fad diet from the 1940s).

I'm preparing a eulogy for my friends to give at my funeral because I AM SO HAPPY I COULD DIE.
Forever,
Khenzo xx
*Watch my Instagram and Twitter for a ridiculous amount of updates about fashion week.

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