I’ve always heard that girls tell each other “if you’ve got it, flaunt it, girl”.

Personally, I don’t have a problem with that, because I’ve believed for a while now that we shouldn’t be afraid to celebrate the things that make us beautiful.

But don’t get me wrong, though, I’m not saying that just because a girl has curves, she should focus on “celebrating” that and not even care about anything else that matters in her life. I definitely do think, though, that curves are a form of beauty for girls and that as long as these leggings, minis and shorts show off those curves then they should feel free to go for them.

I’ve realised recently that we only have little control over how people see us and how they, then, treat us. In fact, people always end up thinking, doing and saying what they want about us no matter what we really want from them. So if you avoid dressing up just because you’re scared that the guys on your street will be whistling at you and saying all sorts of things, know that their rude behaviour isn’t your fault and that not all men are like that.

But this, of course, isn’t the end of the story.

I’ve said that you do at least have some control over how people treat you. That control is when you remind yourself that your real reason for wearing these clothes is because you feel comfortable in them and like how they make you look – not because you want attention.

I must say, though, that I still felt like this wasn’t the end of the story, and that I needed to go and get the opinions of some girls on the streets of Philippi and see how they feel about all of this. The answers weren’t disappointing. I can still remember two of them very clearly.

“Yho,I like these leggings and shorts. Yho, hayi sho, I say thank you to the one who designed these things.”

But another girl I spoke to wasn’t in the same mood when I asked for her opinion.

“I’m so tired of these guys whistling at me at the rank. I gave one of them the middle finger the other day. I mean, do I seriously look like I go around dressing to impress some fools at the taxi rank? I wish I could hit them over their heads with a stick until they get that I wear my minis and my shorts, because I like them and they keep me nicely chilled.”

So the one thing I had to accept after speaking to these girls was that the most important opinion when talking about girls’ clothing, are the girls themselves. That’s what it’s about. It’s not about what guys think – even though some guys might definitely have something worth listening to. Girls are the ones who have to decide everyday what’s good for them to wear and what’s not. They are the ones who have to decide whether or not wearing a certain outfit makes them feel comfortable in their own skins.

Having said all the above, I now wonder, then, what it is that you girls out there really think.

#ChatBack: So tell me how you feel about wearing leggings, minis and shorts.

Why do you wear what you wear? Do you dress to attract the opposite species or is it for your own comfort?

And gents, are you attracted to girls who dress in a certain way or do you just whistle coz you can?

Drop a comment for me on Facebook also. Let’s hear what you think.