From the first weather report on Saturday a week ago, I was shattered. After worrying about it being too hot, Mother Nature did a 180 and predicted a top temperature of 19 degrees, accompanied by a deluge of rain for the first day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival. For my first trip to Flemington, I had no idea what to do. How does one dress for the occasion? What shoes to wear? Did I mention I would be WORKING there?
Yes, finally all those years of volunteering at the Fashion Festivals paid off and I was given the call up last week to work the door at the VIP Marquee for the Myer Fashions on the Field. The role means I get to go to the cup carnival, get paid to be there AND I get to watch fabulous fashion and mingle with the VIPs. Of course, my answer was YES!
Due to my recent spate of unemployed ‘bliss’, new outfits just were not an option so I raided the closest and chose a Basque dress for the traditional Derby Day black and white. Black wedges to combat the wet, an oversized bow on my head and a trusty umbrella and I set off for Flemington on the train – apparently the ONLY way to get to the track.
The Fashions on the Field enclosure is rather beautiful (for a temporary structure!) and I was working in the upstairs VIP room – rather a blessing once the rain started around 12.30pm. It was warm, dry and most importantly, full of fabulous people to watch!
Guests on day 1 included Rebecca Twigley, Kris Smith, Hugh Sheridan, Geoffrey and Brynne Edelsten, Janice Breen Burns and Myer dignitaries. Champagne and canapés were on high rotation and the chatter never stopped, while downstairs fashionistas and misters (celebrating 10 years of men’s fashion on the field) walked the runway.
While my shift passed quickly – slower once I started to feel it in the balls of my feet – it wasn’t long before it was time to pop our own glass of champers. It is true about who you know, not what you know and it was these connections that got my colleague Miss O and I into the prestigious Lexus Marquee for the remainder of the afternoon.
A three story ‘tent’, the Lexus Marquee was all about luxury and designed to make guests feel as if they were in their own home. A who’s who of Channel 9 celebs, Miss O and I drank in the hospitality until the last race, when we made a dash for the train with 80,000 other punters in the rain.
I’ll be back at the track tomorrow for the Melbourne Cup, hopefully with better weather and more fabulous stories to tell!!
Image One: Myer Fashions on the Field undercover area
Image Two: Myer Fashions on the Field launch (Thursday 28 October)
Image Three: Myer Fashions on the Field upstairs VIP lounge and bar
