Interfiliere Dreams of Livingwear- Day One

I depart for Lyon from NYC on a hot gorgeous day in July, and arrive in Lyon on a hot gorgeous day. While boarding the plane, I run into an old friend, a proprietor of a lace company, he hugs me and says “ this is great, Wilson is on the plane, so it's not going down”, which is precisely what I thought when I saw him! We land, I then lose him and his companion in the clamoring crowd going thru immigration.

Not having been in Lyon in many years, I was unable to recognize any change. I had to arrive a day early to set up my “pop up shop”, and thinking I should appear somewhat fashionable I wore a long black dress and tall shoes....it wasn't the best choice. The forum was a huge maze of two halls, unfinished, with workmen everywhere and it appeared to need a few more days of construction in order to be ready for the throngs of people expected to attend the following day. But that is how it's done, pretty much overnight.

I had been invited to curate an “shop” of garments and home accessories inspired by Downton Abbey using fabrics from vendors in the expo, the goal being to show the intimate fashion world what I considered to be modern, comfortable, timeless yet timely Livingwear for women. My “benefactress” as I call her is a woman who lives and breathes not only fashion but art, curiosity, color, perfection, and kindness. It was an honor and a privilege to be invited and I wasn't about to screw it up, I wanted it to be sublime and I wanted her to be thrilled with the outcome so I arrived a day early to get it together.

I first spot the design director of the organization and she welcomes me to her “world”, she is wearing an apron, shorts, sneakers and hunched fashionably over a table of swatches; beautiful, textured, colorful swatches…if you don't know this about me, you know it now, it's a kind of high for me, to be surrounded by fabrics. I whip out my phone and start taking pictures of the fabrics so I can later visit the fabric booths attributed to them and browse…all of a sudden I hear “ah, ah, ah, no, no!!! It is my benefactress, she cannot see my face from behind the pillar, only my arms and phone, as she approaches we all begin to crack up. You see when one attends a show like this, photos are forbidden, and she believed me to be an early interloper, a spy, a picture taking rogue, and being the force that she is, she was not going to allow it.

We embrace, chat briefly, I thank her once again for having me and it's back to work for everyone. I begin to really observe my surroundings, the many workmen and security personnel that are so often invisible. The closest to my booth being a tall man in a black suit. He has a gentle smile and light brown skin, I believe him to be of Arab descent. I go over and introduce myself, he does not speak very much English, only Arabic and French, but we find a way. His name is Adi, we “discuss” football, NYC and the sadness in the world. He becomes my temporary friend and constant companion during the next 3 days.

I then take a really good look at my booth, inside and out and shed a few tears, it was beautiful, they had taken my ipad sketches and blown them up and made them into walls that would be the backdrop for my work. There was still plastic on the floors, hooks missing from the walls and no mannequins yet but I wasn't concerned, I had no doubt it would all come together. As the day begins, people begin to wander over and I am introduced to some of the loveliest people, it is a journey I will take you on over the next few days…..

#dream