Chapter Seven
Evie
Evie helped the bride-to-be, Julia, into the ivory strapless ball gown. The dress had been designed over a few meetings and taken close to five months to make and to perfect the delicate beading and crystals embroidered on the bodice. Looking at Julia’s reaction as Evie fastened the last of the Duchesse satin buttons at the back, it had been more than worth the wait.
‘Are you happy with it?’ Evie asked into the mirror as she fixed the silk sash around the middle and tied it in a bow at the waist. It was the finishing touch, the final extra that took the dress from beautiful to jaw-droppingly stunning.
Julia remained silent.
‘Julia?’ Evie’s hand settled on her shoulder and she stood upright. ‘Is everything okay?’
Julia took a deep breath in, widened her eyes as tears threatened to escape. She flapped her hands in front of her face. ‘I won’t cry, I won’t cry.’
‘What is it?’ Her sister, Ella, pulled back the curtain to the changing area Bonnie had fashioned in the corner of the spare room. ‘Oh … My … God.’
‘I know!’
Evie deduced that these were threatening tears of joy rather than tears of anything else. She’d pretty much seen it all in her time here—tears of joy, tears of fear, tears of regret at making the wrong decision. But these tears were her favourite kind and assured her that all the hard work had paid off.
‘I’d hug you if I wasn’t scared of ruining my dress,’ Julia squealed. She turned to Evie. ‘You’ve done an amazing job, you really have. It’s a dream come true.’ When Evie reached for the Chantilly lace veil on the table at the side of the room Julia said, ‘Oh no, if you put that on me I’ll completely lose it.’
Evie took a tissue from the box on the mantelpiece over a fireplace, which hadn’t been used in years and now housed an arrangement of Mexican Poinsettias and verdant greens. In the summer it would most probably be replaced with a simple collection of spring roses or a chic display of flowers ranging in colour from pinks and oranges to soft creams and yellows.
She handed Julia the tissue. ‘Here, wipe your eyes, because this veilisgoing on. This is the second to last fitting and I want to ensure everything is as it should be.’ When Julia had wiped her eyes, Evie carefully lifted the veil into place, securing it in Julia’s gorgeous straight blonde hair with the attached comb and two extra hair clips. ‘Have you decided what to do with your hair?’
‘I’m thinking natural, perhaps pin the top up, but I’ve got a friend coming to have a play around with styles.’ She giggled. ‘My fiancé says he won’t be around for that one.’
‘It sounds very girly, and definitely not something he needs to be involved in. Now, turn around and take a look.’
Julia turned round to look in the mirror and gulped. ‘It’s perfect. Everything is perfect.’
‘And …’ Evie held up a finger to say wait, scurried over to the chest next to the table and took out a small bag in the same ivory silk as her wedding gown. ‘Now I know you didn’t ask for it, and there’s no extra charge, it’s just I hate seeing offcuts of material go to waste. You can use it to put lipstick in, a few hair pins just in case, maybe a tissue or two.’ She grinned.
‘Evie … it’s beautiful. I don’t know what to say.’
‘You don’t need to say anything.’ She went back to the drawer and took out something else. ‘And a little something for you,’ she told Ella, this time brandishing a tiny bag in midnight blue sateen. ‘It’ll match your bridesmaid dress.’
‘Oh Evie, it’s gorgeous.’ Ella smiled at Evie and then looked at Julia. ‘Thank you for making my sister’s wedding day so perfect. The dress is simply stunning.’
‘Oh nonsense, it’s not just about the dress. It’s the day that’ll mark the rest of your lives together,’ she told Julia. ‘That’s the biggest focus.’ But when she noticed them both frowning cheekily at her she giggled. ‘Okay, so it’s ninety-nine point nine per cent about the dress!’
Julia admired the dress some more, and Ella tried on the bridesmaid dress one last time so that Evie could make any final adjustments. Once they were finished, she tucked the gowns and accoutrements safely into special garment bags and hung them on a rack, where they would stay until collection just after New Year’s when they would do one final fitting to make sure everything was perfect.
Evie saw the sisters to the door as they giggled about rationing Julia’s food this Christmas to avoid any weight gain. But as Evie went through to the kitchen to reheat the fried rice leftovers she’d brought from home, Evie suspected Julia would come to the final fitting no different to the size she’d always been. Over time she’d got to know Julia, as she did with most brides; one reason Evie liked her so much was that she wasn’t the type to flash around the cash and make demands. In fact, from conversations held in her presence, she knew this dress was the biggest extravagance for the day, the day to be held out in Connecticut, away from the glitz and glamour of New York City that so many other brides were ready to be a part of. Evie loved the way Julia spoke about her fiancé too, with a fondness and respect that showed how deep her feelings ran. This was more than about just one day to Julia; this was about the rest of her life.
After lunch it was back to work sourcing fabrics from their supplier. Evie had always thought summer the busiest time for weddings until she started working at The Perfect Fit Couture; Christmas weddings seemed to have shot up in popularity these days.
‘Did we get the Rouleau button loops for the Morrison dress?’ Bonnie poked her head around the doorway, cup of tea in hand.
Evie looked up from the laptop where she was engrossed in the supplier’s website, requesting samples of new fabrics from Milan that Bonnie had agreed to try. ‘They’re in the top drawer.’ She nodded to the chest of drawers at the side of the room
‘Thanks. Would you be able to fix those on this afternoon?’
‘Sure thing. I’d noticed you’ve got another new client scheduled this afternoon. We’re getting lots of new custom lately, it’s great.’
‘Tell that to my husband,’ Bonnie quipped, although Evie wouldn’t mind betting he enjoyed having a wife who was independent and had made a success of her own business. ‘And I have some more good news for you.’
‘Oh?’
