Chapter 57 A Multitude of Fashions
Returning to the city after the amazing weekend wasn’t as disappointing as it seemed at first. Emily noticed a change in Byron; although he was back at work, and it was still the bleakest winter season, his heavy mood seemed to have lifted.
It scared her a little that she admitted her love for him. Somehow she had pictured her life going differently. She had the idea of traveling the world and meeting many different men before falling in love with someone. But then who said she still couldn’t travel the world?
Emily felt refreshed and ready to attack her goals with new energy. She had been on the verge of giving up on her fashion venture, but she decided to keep fighting until she faced either absolute defeat or victory.
There was one other thing she could do to get more publicity for her fashions: enter a competition. She discovered that there was a designer face-off planned for young designers under 30, and the winner would get their work featured in a national fashion magazine.
On the first day, the rules were announced to all the designers, about thirty of them gathered in a meeting room of the magazine’s offices. Of course, one of her fellow competitors was Ruby. The baby-faced saboteur sat in the very front row; once in a while she looked back, casting a suspicious glare over the rest of the designers.
Meanwhile, the magazine editor, a grey-haired woman dressed in a loose pant suit, introduced the rules and procedures. Letitia Derouche was a well-known figure in the fashion world, and it would be an honor to have one’s work chosen by her.
“You will be given a week to complete the outfits,” the magazine editor was saying. “You will have to make them from the materials we provide, so stay flexible and use your imagination.”
Emily was looking forward to the challenge and intrigued by what materials would be given.
“Next week, we will all meet back here, and your clothes will be tested on the runway,” the editor continued, “Our panel will judge them on wearability, originality, and beauty.”
Next, the candidates were called into a different room one by one to receive the supplies they would be working with.
Some people moved about the room, getting to know their competitors in a friendly way. Others seemed fake friendly. Ruby was just being Ruby.
“You might as well give up now, my dear,” she said to a young woman who sat next to her, “We both know you can’t create anything spontaneous.”
“Please pay no attention to her,” Emily said, going over to them.
“Oh, who do we have here?” Ruby crowed, “another loser for me to defeat in the contest. How nice of you to make yourself available to lose yet again.”
“As I recall, I didn’t lose last time,” Emily said, smiling contentedly.
“Just because you got on a boat and a few people saw your designs doesn’t mean anything,” Ruby retorted. “And in case you haven’t noticed, this particular competition is not set on a boat, so how are you going to escape all the designers who will outshine you?”
“I have no reason to escape,” Emily said, “By the time I’m done here, this competition will never know what hit it.”
“Wow, overconfident much?” Ruby taunted.
“We’ll see,” Emily said. “I wish you the best of luck.”
As each person emerged from the room with their bounty, Emily noted everyone seemed to get something different. One guy had a bagful of linen fabric, while another marched out with tartan.
This would make it harder for people to copy each other. Ruby was already put at a disadvantage.
When it was Ruby’s turn to go in, she soon emerged again, bags stuffed with fabric, but zipped up so no one could see inside. She was wearing a delighted though evil smile on her face, so she must have gotten something she liked.
Emily’s turn came soon after, and she was given a bunch of denim and flannel. It looked like she was supposed to plan for a country western theme.
This was not exactly her forte since she grew up in a big city, but she was sure that with a little inspiration from her favorite country singer Quinn Faines she would come up with something the likes of which people have never seen.
