Last night, or really the entirity of yesterday, was the most amazing experience. As if I'd been given access to some special, exclusive world that one's permitted glimpses of, through television, or film or photographs of the goings on of others. I was allowed in though, and was in amongst it all. Beyond being simply allowed in however, I gained so much more than that, and got one of the biggest surprises of my life, and I imagine, my lifetime- people were actually kind. And more than just smile and move-on kind, but actually warmly kind to me. Without even knowing who I was, they showed me around, and asked me about myself, and were generous and helpful. Maybe it was only false kindness and they were all secretly hating me inside, or maybe it was only because they wanted something of me, I did get one experience of that, but throughout the day, I just kept on wondering- where are all of the horrid fashion people, that devil in Prada? Maybe it's simply because Canadian fashion people are simply more kind, I'm not sure, but even now, I can't stop marvelling at my immense luck, it all still feels unreal.
I got there, with boots covered in snow, and an apparently lost look on my face, and right away stepped through the wrong doorway. Apparently it was for backstage, and the man there took me for one a late models, and tried to usher me inside. Which was a nice thought when I first arrived, but really did not last very long at all, when one sees the "real deal," tall, gorgeous creatures, totally up upon another level completely. After that little false entrance though, I made my way to the proper front, and the doorman there said that I looked a bit lost, and had I been there before? I said that I had yesterday, for my ticket, but that I'd never been to see a real show before. He gave me directions, and pointed out the way nicely, and I found my way there.
I got to my first-ever fashion show then, remarkably late. Robin Kay herself was outside the closed doors to the already started show when I arrived. She's a former designer, who's label got taken over (my mum used to buy her old stuff), and she was hosting the entire fashion week. Despite rumours from others that she was a bit of b*tch, she was actually quite polite to the rather muddled me. She told me that I wasn't too late, and that I could still get in. I got a seat near the front even, the actual media section. I took my seat, and sat down near an also surprisingly kind middle-aged woman. She gave me her paper on the outline of the outfits (which we got for almost every show), and didn't laugh at me when I grinningly confided that this was first "real" fashion show. I don't remember much from the show itself, which was honestly rather dull, but I did notice as I left, that the area I'd been sitting in was for the people of CityTV!
The next show I sat in for was also continuingly dull clothing-wise, a line of men's t-shirts with various Italian phrases printed across the fronts. Although the later two shows were much better, I don't think that it was as much only for the outfits themselves, but also the experience itself of going. A million times better than any school fashion show, which apart from a couple of decently talented students, the vast majority of which, being a bunch of teenagers in safety-pinned garments doing their best impression of strippers in training.
I wish that I had taken pictures too, although I was afraid I wouldn't be allowed to use my camera, but there were several people in my section who brought theirs. I likely would have been embarassed by my cheap Loblaws brand disposable type, although no one in that entire day of beauty and wonder laughed at me once! I saw one man though, sitting across from me at the shows, who had the tiniest, most silvery camera I had ever seen. It was smaller than the size of hand, closer to a pencil sharpener than a camera. I had never seen anything that impressive in advertisements, even.
The show before that one was for a designer named Ulla something, who had the most insane amount of outfits. Fourty-five, I believe it was, I still have the pamphlet for her show somewhere. The outfits were all very loose and feminine, and a bit faerie-like. They had the sweetest hats as well, who were designed by another woman. I think that the outfits were made of that fabric which is sort of clingy in places, by light too in parts, I forget its actual name, like the fashion student I'm not. They actually had a pair of ankle boots that I own myself as well, the white ones with rounded black buttons. There were several other variations of those boots being paraded down the runway as well, in different patterns. Which was another aspect of the shows that made them slightly more welcoming, the fact that some of the shoes come from the all-exclusive stores over in *gasp* Chinatown.
There were real, famous people there though that day. Apart from Robin Kay, and the woman sitting beside me, there was a Much Music host, named Sarah Taylor. I saw her in the distance later on, but she was right next to me at the coatcheck. She was really tall as well, being a former model, but looks better on television, more alive. I don't remember what she was wearing, but I was right beside her and didn't say a thing. I came face-to-face with Jeanne Beker as well, as I was leaving the last show. She's a fashion writer, and was hosting the after-party and was about my height. I felt as if there were other people that I ought to know there too, faces that were important and vaguely familiar, but I didn't know the names of. I think that the woman sitting beside for my "first lunch" probably worked for a fashion magazine. She was eating the pizza, and I'd ordered the over-priced panini, which honestly wasn't very good. She started talking to me, and said that it looked pretty good. I talked to her for a bit too, which is brave of me, because I normally hardly even talk. I asked her how the pizza was, and said that it was nice that they used as many vegetables as they did. She said that yes, it did make one feel better. Later, her friend came by and said that there was another young woman waiting for her outside. The woman I'd been talking to sighed a bit, and said that they all seemed to be asking her for a job. I felt rather relieved then, because if anything- I wasn't about to be asking anyone for a job!
I was there... met some rather nice people too.
