Ruby in the Rough

One of the funnest things about designing is the unique projects that come my way. It's fascinating to be so involved in people's lives during very important, momentous occations in their lives. One of my most recent clients had such an inspiring story. "Ruby", as we will call her in this story, called me to make her a custom dress because, well, at a height of 6 feet, it's just difficult to find anything that wil cover all those "Bs". (Ladies, we must know these: Bust, back, belly, and booty!) So, after a couple of phone calls and emails, we came up with a plan and Ruby came for a fitting. As we got to talking, she told me why she really was getting a dress made. While I knew she was celebrating a birthday, I never would have expected what she would tell me next. Ruby deals with a lot of chronic pain due to several health issues. While she has been in a lot of pain lately, she was determined to have a great birthday celebration. In between me telling her to raise her arms for measurements and put them down, I listened as she shared that she has outlived her mother by two years with the same disease. Wow. What an honor to be working with this lady. What a great thing to celebrate. Her birthday. Her life. I knew that I need and desired to make her dress exactly to her liking. Through our time we spent together through the fittings, we really bonded. I was beyond excited to show her the finished product. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she was nearly in tears. It was perfect. It was the perfect dress for her big night. She was going to get to celebrate her life. Ruby made such an impact on me. As she left with her dress in hand, she gave me a couple hugs and said it all seemed so final. We had become friends through this experience. We talked, we laughed, shared our thoughts, faith, and tears of joy. While this may sound dramatic, after all, I did only just make a dress, it's not at all. It's sharing life's moments. I have the opportunity to do work I love and meet incredible people at the same time. And, for that, I am thankful.

#chelseanye #chelsmarie