Written by Kyuri Bae
Bambi Ercan, 18, is now single after a short situationship that lasted around seven weeks with someone she met at college. She explores emotional clarity, self-trust, and reclaiming her sense of style after the relationship ended.
“If I had to describe my outfit in one word, it would be: BITCHIN’.”
“Our relationship was somewhere between good friends and something more, and that was what made the ending particularly upsetting. We both knew it had to end, but we were also very good friends. We tried to stay friends, yet there was always that lingering flirty vibe there. That’s when I decided to cut it off and move on, especially as he kept trying to wiggle his way back into my life.
After cutting things off, the strongest emotion I felt was relief. Honestly, I felt so happy because he caused me a lot of problems, like overthinking and making everything more complicated than it ever needed to be.
Looking back, I realise that my style was overshadowed a lot when with him. I started to think I was ‘weird’ for wearing unusual hats or strange clothing that I personally felt was cool and unique. Subconsciously, I began to question myself.
He never directly made me feel self-conscious, as I actually kept a lot of my fashion expression away from him. I think it was more of a psychological thing at the time, and I would never limit myself like that now.
The outfit I am wearing is a black bra top, a baggy white shirt, Calvin Klein underwear layered with men’s boxer shorts, and blue baggy jeans. This outfit was expressive and unique to me, and it represents letting go of a situation and a person. A mix of comfort, confidence, and freedom. Before, I dressed basic and played it safe; now I can finally express myself and wear whatever I want, for me, unapologetically.
After the break-up, I began expressing myself in a completely different light, which was extremely freeing. As I became more engaged with fashion as an art form and as a means of self-expression, I felt an overall sense of freedom and learned to love and appreciate myself much more.
One idea I always come back to is that you can pull anything off if you believe in it and have a reason for it, and that reason can simply be that it looks cool and you genuinely love it.”