Kenice Miller, Chef
Knowing you’re a dancer, how would you say movement influences your style?
Regardless of what I’m wearing or where I’m going I always want to be able to move, especially because I’m a dancer and if I’m walking around the street you’re going to see me dancing. So I would say my style derives from comfortability but at the same time being chic and posh. So I could be wearing a jumpsuit with heels and as long as I can dance I’m going to wear it but somedays I also want to wear a jumpsuit with sneakers.
And when you go to work do you feel like you have to conform to the corporate look or can you maintain your individual style? Do you think there’s a way to mix individuality while maintaining a professional look?
I’m a chef, so I’m wearing a chef’s uniform everyday. So I have my high socks, Dickies and a chef jacket, but by wearing jewellery on my ears and face and maybe having a glimmer around my neck, I add a little bit of my own personality to it so [that] I feel like I can be an individual in the midst of uniform.
So do you feel like people can express themselves in small ways at the same time conforming to the way society tells us we have to be?
Absolutely. Even as small as wearing makeup. Like, having a pop-up color in your eye shadow or a pop-up color on your cheek that might be brighter than the normal persons or look individual in your own way because maybe you like the way turquoise and pink go together, whereas other people wouldn’t normally choose those colors.
You have a shaved head. Was that a personal choice and do you feel like it’s liberating? What was the thought process involved in that?
I’ve had long hair my whole life. I cut it short for the first time two and a half years ago. Last year I was going through a major shift in my life and I think that shaving my head was really the kick-start of it. I just woke up one Sunday and I was like, “Today’s the day. I’m going to a barber and I’m shaving it all off”. It was probably thirteen inches long and it really was the most liberating thing I’ve done.
Do you feel like people react to you differently?
Absolutely. People definitely see me as more fearless, as someone they want to seek out and someone they want to speak to, whereas before when I had long hair it was like, “Oh, she has beautiful red hair but she’s just another person.”
IG: @fashun_papi
