I went into day seven of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week prepared. Bags of party mix lollies at the ready, I arrived for the last shift sad that we were nearly at the end but glad to know there was rest and a decent meal waiting at the end of the day.

The sun came out, then disappeared again. It rained, then cleared up. There was no way to know how the day would go weatherwise so we started by bringing over giftbags aplenty – stocked up with additional product for the last day, a result of over ordering and leftovers from the evening parades.

     
 
The last lunchtime parades, Generation Next, featured Supre, Bardot, Dotti and James Marlon. Lots of pretty things for me to ogle – that I will not be able to buy given my current status of employment – were seen on the catwalk and there was the ever present eye candy. But the last day was far from over.

Ruby Rose’s collection, Milk and Honey, was scheduled for a special parade at 4.30 and though we had been told earlier in the week there would be no gift bags, the leftover product changed that and we spent the afternoon stocking up more bags and eating lollies. The whole team were supremely grateful for the sugar fix and it made the bag packing and long day all the more bearable.

By 3.30, people were starting to arrive for Ruby’s show, queuing in the rain for the chance to see their idol. An hour later, the people waiting stretched across City Square and over towards the Kevin Murphy tent. It rained and the wind blew, but they waited.

I was moved from the VIP area to the door, where there was a concern the people would surge once the doors were opened. Little me; in my red knit and bubble skirt; doing crowd control. Seriously, for those who have met me, have a laugh – for those who haven’t, I’m about 5 foot nothing in flats and couldn’t stop a fly if it flew at me!

The crowd was very well behaved, considering the cold and masses of people, and I only had to tell off one couple who thought using the tent as a support while the girl climbed atop the guy’s shoulders was a good idea.

Ruby’s show was a hive of activity – I honestly couldn’t tell you that much about the clothes but the energy, excitement and music was enough to keep us going for the last few hours of our shift. The models – all volunteering their time – strutted their stuff and had some fun with the final show of the week, which included dancers, drag queens and cutting up clothes on stage.

Funniest moment of the day was the guy standing outside the tent, getting his groove on in the rain on the grassed area. I love that it was a ‘dance like no one is watching’ moment – while at least a dozen people saw and smiled.

And then it was over. The tent was cleared, we packed up and it was done. Hugs were exchanged by our team who had worked together for seven days to bring you two shows a day – and three on Sunday – in a venue plagued by wind, rain and the burden of Melbourne’s unexpected weather.

This also brings to an end my volunteering days. After five fashion festivals – two at MSFW, two at LMFF and one at RSFW – I have done my time taping shoes, steaming garments, carting giftbags, setting and resetting rooms and cleaning up all the stuff people leave behind. Having finishing up at my ‘real’ job the Friday before fashion week, now is my time to chase the dream and put all those hours of volunteering to good use, to find the job that means as much to me as volunteering does.

So happy end of Fashion Week. I hope you found something you loved, got a laugh out of me vacuuming, washing the catwalk or participating in crowd control or were inspired to follow your dreams. Keep visiting the Style Emporium for all the happenings in my life as I find new (paid!) employment and keep you up to date with what the cool kids are doing.

Image One and Two: Generation Next show
Image Three: Crowds for Ruby Rose
Image Four: Models for Ruby Rose
Image Five: Ruby Rose and her dog
Image Six: ‘Frog’, the show caller (who is fabulously eccentric and brilliant fun to work with)
Image Seven: The City of Melbourne team with Ruby Rose
Image Eight: The Town Hall after the seating was removed