AHHHHH is it really over!? Months of preparation- of sketching, fabric shopping, measuring, cutting, sewing, hemming, taping, seam-ripping and resewing that led to last night’s 2 hours? I have true admiration and respect for Project Runway contestants who can do it all in a day (and alone too- I did it with a best friend)! Speaking of Project Runway, one of our fashion show judge’s was a runner-up for Project Runway Canada!
Here are my photos from yesterday, through the perspective of a designer. I was on my feet from 12pm to 10pm, frantically buzzing around our six models, first planning their make-up and hair. Our school had about two dozen guest hairstylists and make-up artists come in to turn our models into unrecognizable creatures from the kingdom of fierce.
We wove pieces of fabric into one of our model’s hair- à la Thakoon Fall/Winter 2011.
Our school cafeteria was transformed into a giant make-up counter. After staying there for a good couple of hours, my lungs were definitely stained with extra-hold hairspray!
The hours slowly crept towards 6 o’clock- an hour before the show. And then the anxiety excitement began. Last minute make-up touch-ups were done and Fashion Show zip-up hoodies (which you’ll see in the next few photos, worn onstage during opening) were delivered. I found myself wearing another girl’s flats which we swapped for the opening scene. Models ran around trying to find their shoes (I lost count of how many girls asked if I saw their black high heels), designers ran around looking for needle, thread and double-sided tape, and executives ran around slowly counting down time… 10 minutes until 7! Pre-show talk by the Producers. 5 minutes until 7! Group picture…
And then, the models assembled themselves onstage. My heart was in my stomach and my friend and I held hands in the alcoves. We heard the audience shuffle to their seats and grow louder in size. Finally, the lights went off. “Welcome to the 27th Annual Fashion Design Awards, Ever After.” The curtains opened. The opening scene song, which is now permanently seared into my brain, blared.
After opening scene, it was chaos backstage. Fifty+ people rushed back from the stage. Water was leaking in the change rooms, and everything was everywhere. Shorts were on top of sweaters on top of shoeboxes and backpacks. Bobby pins, q-tips and socks littered the floor. No amount of fashion documentaries prepared me for the blur of the five minutes each design team got to change their models. We were done changing everyone when I realized one of our models were missing her pants. She didn’t even realize herself and neither did my co-designer! We digged through the hills that drowned the change rooms and finally fished out her capris. Our scene rehearsed their moves for the very last time and then they whizzed unto the stage.
Our models posed and shuffled, ran, shimmied and flew like all the times we’ve seen them do so during rehearsal. At the end of our scene, my friend and I stepped on stage and waved to the audience. It’s hard to swallow that last year, I was sitting at the back of the audience and looking at the very place where I would stand a year later.
The next two hours went by with the snap of the fingers.
At the end of the night, the four judges stepped on-stage to name the three winning teams. The judges consisted of three fashion designers and one editor from Elle Canada. Although my friend and I didn’t win, we are so extremely pleased to have experienced the whirlwind of awesome that was Fashion Show. I went to sleep last night thinking about all the Fashion Show-related things; of all the amazing people that I’ve met and/or dressed because of Fashion Show. I am so thankful of these great opportunities that my school offers to it’s students. Although I’m far from the catwalks of New York, Paris and Milan; Ever After has given a small town girl a taste of the elusive world of fashion.
P.S. A post with a playlist of the songs from Ever After is coming up!
