Fashion house Soviet has given Miss South Africa the opportunity to make her mark with her own denim range as part of the most coveted goodie bag.
Thursday was D-Day to reveal what reigning queen Tamaryn Green has been working on, and showcase it on the ramp.
An intimate gathering of friends and family was treated to the big fashion range reveal.
The MC was the first Soviet SA ambassador, singer and actor NaakMusiq at its headquarters in Midrand, north of Joburg.
Among the things Green is working on, alongside her #breakthestigma campaign, is laying the groundwork for her shot at the sought-after Miss Universe title in November. The Sunday Independent caught up with her on the sidelines of the denim launch on her preparations for the pageant.
Tamaryn Green was showcasing her own style and brand of denim at Soviet in Midrand. Matthews Baloyi ANA African News Agency (ANA)
How are you feeling about the upcoming pageant?
I am very excited. I leave for Thailand at the end of November. They haven’t given an exact date but we normally spend three weeks for the competition.
My preparations include physical training, mental training and public appearances, like this one.
Public speaking and interacting with people have a lot to do with being Miss Universe.
One also needs to keep up with general knowledge, know about the world, and style. Looking at all these requirements, I am well on my way.
What will you take with you going into the competition abroad?
The music and the dancing. I believe South Africans love dancing and really love their music. We are all so different and have different music tastes, but all that brings us together.
I will also have my headphones with me so whenever I feel homesick or feel the pressure, I will play that one song to pick me up.
How important is the Miss Universe pageant to you?
It is very important. I have been given this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent my country, where I will meet so many different contestants from different places.
I want to show them what South Africa is all about. I will need to do my best because people are looking at me to do my best.
What do you advocate for?
I recently started my campaign #breakthestigma to help end tuberculosis (TB). I am a TB survivor, but through that campaign I want to encourage everyone who is dealing with their own stigmas to stand up and not let those get to them. We all face some kind of stigma.
Just being a woman, there are stigmas attached to that, whatever race you are you find its own stigma. Stigmas are not necessarily in the much bigger issues only but can be found in the smallest of things. That is what I want to advocate for.
And as for young women, I want them to be comfortable in their own skins. We need to stop comparing ourselves because we are all different.
I also want to break the misconception of thinking that Miss SA and Miss Universe are all about looking a certain way or being a certain way.
I want to use this platform to help people break free from stigmas.
Describe your fashion sense
Before this, I was always a simple girl. I never dressed up, only occasionally. I was a student and that was my life. But now, entering into this world, I got to find a style that suits me. My stylist decided to keep me just as I am.
Often they glam people up, change their hair, add bling, etc. But with me, my stylist decided to keep me simple, elegant and modern.
What have the past four months of being Miss SA been like?
I can’t even describe it. The past four months have been good crazy; there have been a lot of ups and a lot of downs.
I had to do a lot of growing up in just four months, amid the fast-paced world that I now exist in. I have seen a lot and have done a lot.
Things like this denim range, who would have thought that I would ever have my own denim range. It has been a great journey thus far.
Win or lose, I will be proud either way. That’s how I went through the Miss South Africa journey. I knew why I wanted to do the pageant.
I knew I would still achieve all my goals even if I didn’t win the competition, but this platform has been a blessing for me to achieve those at a larger scale, and I am grateful.
Going into Miss Universe, my focus is exactly like it was, not worrying about what other people are saying and telling me what to do.
I will do me, understanding why I am doing this.