The Alyssa Diaries No. 16: The Sara Shepherd Show

Alyssa continues her discourse from her work on the Sara Shepherd fashion show a couple of weeks ago….

Here we are the day of the show. We all have not slept more than a couple hours the past few days and look like a bus ran us over. Coffee, cigarettes, and junk food fuel over diet. Yet, when I wake up this morning I am overly excited about the day’s events and anxious to see the final product.

This morning I finish up a couple of last minute hems and buttons. We also have to get everything ready and packed for transportation of the collection-outfits in garment bags, tags labeled, shoes in their proper places, and making sure we have all the necessary supplies for backstage. The truck to transport the collection arrives a couple hours before the show to pick up the collection, we have a 1:30 p.m. call time for the 4 p.m. show. One of my jobs of the day is to go with the collection and make sure it gets into and out of the truck and to the correct location.

Once at the venue, we unpack the collection putting each outfit on a rack to their assigned model. This is where the cards we made for each model come into play. There is a dresser allocated to each model to help her change, put shoes on, zip & button her up during the show. We go over each outfit with the dressers to answer questions and make sure everything is alright. Also, each garment needs to be pressed or steamed before the show. While I am pressing, the models prepare for the show in hair and makeup.

Before I even realize it, it is 10 minutes before the show.

Dressers start helping their models into their first look. You can feel the anticipation in the air. And then the show starts. My main priority during the show is to go from rack to rack help any dressers in need, make sure everything is going smoothly, and the outfits are put together in the manner they should. Everything goes effortlessly except for one zipper breaking. The show flies by and I am already packing the collection up again to head back to the hotel.

It has been a long day, but it is not over yet. Once back at the hotel, it feels strange to to only be surrounded by two people. This past week there have been copious amounts of people coming in and out of the hotel room. Now, it is just Sara, her husband, and I. We all have huge grins on our faces as we begin retelling our personal accounts of the day. These stories continue over a late night celebration with the whole team. Even though exhausted, I am still fueled by excitement and adrenaline and cannot wait for next season…

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