• A girl not unlike myself (in fact positively more like myself than anyone else in the world) awoke one morning, that is to say she opened her eyes to her mind already running 100 mph.  You see her brain didn’t switch off in the 30 minutes for which her eyes were shut, which in conclusion meant she hadn’t ’slept’ in the last 4 days for which her eyes had not been shut longer than 30 minutes.  Tis a curious thing this business of sleep…  She made a note to ponder this later.

On route to the venue- Oh my, did I forget to bring… *eyes shut* ..Wait I think I left… *head rolls forward*…

A time which I can only imagine was 10am- Everything looks far too bright, so I scurry off into the darkness of Black Box to see what’s happening, what’s not, who’s there, and what’s what.  Make up is being made up, and I do a quick head count; ‘models missing, make a mental note’.  I should at this juncture that my ‘mind’ was in fact Puteri, a wonderful petite blessing of a girl without whom I would never have made it there.  I mean that figuratively and literally… for she was also my driver.

10:10- I created my ‘port in a storm’ a very very important place to which I will run countless times in the day to shelter and take a breath.  Rails are set up there, steamers are acquired and bags of shoes delivered.  ‘Note: I need steamer people a.s.a.p’

10:45- (this is wishful imagining, in truth it may have taken me far longer to get myself together)-  Fittings.  Now this should have been done days in advance, but given the short notice-ness of the situation it was some kind of miracle that we had models at all.

Movie style flash back: Guy avec camera drives me and a box of newly arrived samples to iamjetfuel shop.  After deciding most samples are of the thumbs up variety Puteri and I set about casting models.  “Great, but this time I want you to walk moody.”  Apparently my British sullen sensibilities don’t translate well over here… must be all the sunshine. I did, after many hours of watching girls walk, find some models I loved.

So back to the fittings- one by one I got the models in to dress them, figure out their looks, and generally pray that all my efforts would not be lost with some ill-fitting dress.  Another head count ‘Note: Still one model down…’

12:00 - Time for my own make-up by the wonderful Aslina from Brush & Blush.  A moment of calm in the make-up chair, a moment of eyes shut without shut-eye, a moment of clock watching.  And for the first time in my life I’m wearing falsies, much a day for firsts. ‘Note: final model just walked in, I’m not going to have a heart attack today.’

The blur that was the final few hours before it began- I see Yuna looking calm, and hugs and, fittings, and me kicking myself that I couldn’t find the time to pick up some trousers for her look.  More models, more fittings, dress our host, find pins, lose mind, cut, stitch (and by that I mean stitch Yuna into her dress)  and all at once… catch breath… a full venue… models in the wings… it begins.

Just out of sight- I listen as Yuna plays, this was the moment of calm before the inevitable storm, a melody to dissipate the nervous tension.

Backstage mid show- A strange concoction of arms and legs, pins and jewellery (by the wonderful Poya) and a heady calm sets in.  Much, I imagine, like watching a bicycle on ice, beautifully chaotic with the potential for ending up a crumpled mess.

A moment after it all ended- Apparently I had words, because I was interviewed several times and not once did anyone complain of a lack of words, but I felt utterly speechless.

Meeting people- By this point I had come to terms with the fact that I had presented what resembled a show.  Now I was savouring that sweet feeling of relief, and the excitement that came from entering a room full of beautiful people.  Somewhere between shock and euphoria (and a hint of girly giddiness) I’m staring into a crowd of smiling faces and it sets the world to rights.  I would have happily stayed another hour meeting you all, because I felt like saying to every person there “Thank you, after all the stress, the pain, the heartache, the caffine, the paracetamol, the lack of sleep, for this, for you, I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

(Images via: Sling, Carol, Zul, Ajwad  and Sue Anna Joe)

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