Notoriously Dapper. Kelvin Davis

       Introduction

      “Every dream starts with a vision. Every vision begins with a passion. Every passion starts with love.”

      – Notoriously Dapper

      On September 10, 1987, a boy was born in Columbia, South Carolina. Little did he know what life held for him, how blessed he would be, and how much love he would share with the world. That little boy grew up to be me. Hey, for those who don’t know me, I’m Kelvin C. Davis II, the creator and founder of Notoriously Dapper, a body positive men’s style blog. I have always been fascinated with art and fashion – seeing pictures of really well dressed people always intrigued me. I have always felt that pictures say so much more than words. Style can do the same. So naturally, when you add them both together, they evoke an array of feelings, thoughts, and words that come to mind. The story of my 30-year journey to becoming a body positive gentleman will hopefully help you embrace your own journey and find the beauty in the struggle. There have been plenty of books written about etiquette for men; you may ask, what makes mine different? That’s a good question. My perspective is what makes this different. Let’s face it; I’m a young, black, male millennial. Although I have been blessed with parents who are amazing, loving, and supportive, simply being who I am in society has been rough for me some days.

      Growing up in the white suburbs of Irmo, South Carolina, caused some confusion for me. People would often tell me that I talked “white” and dressed “white.” I didn’t really understood what that meant until my middle school years, when I moved to Orangeburg for two years (7th and 8th grade). Being constantly told that I didn’t act “black” was kind of confusing for me. I mean, I listened to rap music, I could dance, and I was clearly black. But for some, I guess I was never “black” enough. During this time, I was also shopping in the “husky” section. My mom would make it seem special, as if it was this exclusive shopping club for cool kids. She has a way of making me feel better about things. I remember in middle school, a girl told me she liked my jeans! I was excited because she was one of the “popular” girls and was super sexy. She asked where I got them from, and I told her with all the pride in my voice, “These are from the “husky” section.” She laughed and said, “You mean the fat boy section?” I was like, “Nah, the husky section.” She then notified me that “husky” was a nice way of saying “fat boy.”That was my first time being called fat, and I have to admit it hurt me. I felt shamed and didn’t want to shop in the husky section anymore. My love for clothes and fashion was still there, but it couldn’t emerge in full force due to my size at the time.

      By high school, I had grown some and was able to shop in “normal” stores. My mother went to Myrtle Beach one weekend for a work conference. While she was there, she bought me a pink polo shirt from the Ralph Lauren outlet store there. It was a bright fuchsia pink, and I LOVED IT. I had never seen any guy wear that style of shirt before, and I was super excited to be one of the first at my school to rock it. I ironed it, hung it up, and waited for Monday to come so I could straight UP stunt on these students. Monday came, I got dressed for school, and I was rocking the pink polo. I got onto my bus, and everyone was like, “DAMNNNNNNNN, that’s dope. Where did you get that shirt?” I was feeling myself at that moment, and for the first time I felt CONFIDENT AF. Of course I had some haters that said stuff like, “That’s a faggot color,” or my personal favorite, “You know that’s a girl shirt, right?”