(after a long absence, i'm BACK!)
Here it goes!
So on the 23d till the 26th of February, Indonesia Fashion Week was held, and i had the opportunity to experience it first hand!
A week before, i got a call from a family member, telling me that someone got me a spot to help out backstage for a designer. She told me the designer was Barli Asmara, and i was absolutely shocked. He’s one of the best (in my opinion) young designers in Indonesia, i was jittery and excited.
So he told me he would like to meet me on the 23d (a day before his show, which is on the 24th) and i sort of panicked a little. I mean here i am, just an ordinary girl, and a critically-acclaimed designer wanted me to come to his office and meet me!
So i got off early from school on the 23d and went home to get dressed and such, and then i was off to meet with Mr. Barli!
I went to his office, and i had a nice chat, he asked me what made me come to fashion, i told him that i was just drawn to the world of it; the clothes, the people, the headlines it made, and the influence it had. And he asked me what i wanted to do in fashion, and i told him about my love for drawing and designing, and also the equal love i have for reporting and fashion magazines. So i told him that i’d love to work for either a fashion house (weather it’s someone else’s, or my own) or in a fashion/lifestyle magazine. I don’t think i asked a lot of questions, because (believe me) i’m so extremely shy and i was still starstruck.
And then we went on discussing the plan for tomorrow, he said i should stop by his office first, before going off to the venue with his team. So, i nodded in agreement:)
I also got to see the face of Indonesia Fashion Week, Mesty Ariotedjo, a family friend (and to whom i owe greatly for getting me this amazing opportunity!), who came in to do a fitting. I watched as three gorgeous dresses were being tried on. My favorite would have to be this floor-length, slim, black lacy dress. it was so beautiful!
After the fitting, Mr. Barli had somethings to do so he had to go out. And then I went home (after thanking him about a million times, of course)
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The next day (the day of the show) i went home from school early again, to go home and get ready for the big day!
I met his team at his office and we went off to the venue. The first thing we did when we got there was transporting the clothes into the closet, where it would be kept safely before the show starts. What really surprised me was that the clothes had to arrive 3 hours before show time. I thought that was a really long time, but one of his team members said that during these three hours, the models were undergoing hair and make up, so if any of them needed an urgent fitting, the clothes would be ready.
So i did a few things in the closet, i helped with arranging the clothes in order of appearance, hanging tags depicting the models’ names and shoe size on each piece of garment, steamed the clothes, etc. etc.
I also walked around the closet (actually a pretty big space, but very dense because of the many clothing racks) and saw some other designers’ clothes (fantastic! and i loved that in almost every garment, there’s the batik element which represents Indonesia’s culture)
an hour before show time, the clothes were brought to the ‘actual’ backstage.
the ‘actual’ backstage had a small room for changing and storing the clothes, accessories, shoes. As we wait for Mr. Barli to arrive, we arranged the shoes (which are gorgeous by the way! i’ll post a picture!) and bags. I also got to watch another designer’s show, and see the model lineups etc.
When Mr. Barli arrives, he made a few changes to the clothes, etc. i noticed that he was very keen on details, it was amazing how he managed to see little things like a wild thread, truly great!
I wondered where the models were, i mean the show was about to start and they’re not here. I asked, and the team said that they would be using models from the designer before us! i was shocked, and a member of the team told me that the models would come in like a storm and we had a little under 5 minutes to change all of them.
I gaped, how are we supposed to that? i mean 12 models, 5 minutes, and the collection of the designer before us is all floor-length ball dresses with very very high heels. I asked that if it was actually possible getting the models out of those dresses in such a short time, so the team just told me to be prepared and just help as much as i can (and not to get in the way, i guess:))
and it was true, 5 minutes before they announced our show, the models began storming into the little room and it was crazily frantic. we had to dress them really quickly, and such. In a rush, being the klutz i am, tripped on some shoes a couple of times. and after that the models all rushed out the room to line up before the show starts. and just as the line was complete, the first model walked out. it was all very, very fast.
The show went absolutely fantastic, the clothes were amazing. and i clapped as hard as i can when Mr. Barli went out to the runway to take his bow.
After the show i spent a little more time with the team, and helped them carry the garments back to their cars, before saying goodbye. i didn’t really get the chance to thank Mr. Barli personally as he rushed out the venue after the show. Although i still said (shouted, would be more fitting) ‘Thank you’ as he was getting into his car and saw his team and I near the exit.
All in all, it was a splendid night!
It was great seeing, experiencing (and learning) such a professional environment!
And it was such a blessing to be able to work with him and his team!
Thank you so much Mr. Barli Asmara, for letting me tag along! And have a happy birthday (March 3)! i wish you all the very best!
-C
here’s a picture of the ID card (hope you don’t mind the little ‘I love Oz’ t-shirt in the background. it’s the theater geek in me:))
:):)
