Sunday was another day in the fashion lab. For the first hour, I worked on the volume study that I was supposed to redo for Jen's class (it had been due with the Yohji project). I ended up cutting out two assymmetrical strips of paper, and then pinning them to the mannequin in a way that resembled stair-steps. (Incidentally, it was close to what Jen had been trying to suggest to me to do. Let's hope she likes these better than than my pinned-down attempts at paper cubes I turned in for the Yohji Project:Part 1.) After that, I spent about 4 hours pinning together and sewing up the many curved pieces my dress has. I got the entire front and back sewn up. Sharon happened to come in and was pretty impressed (since she had predicted earlier in the week that I wouldn't finish).
I finished up around 3 pm, so that I could get ready for the Malaysian Embassy Gala that night! I took a nap, showered and got gorgeous. I wore a bronze halter-neck dress, with pleating down the bust and a flounce running down the center front. I went to Nisa's room about 6:30 pm. Not only was she getting ready, but Redza and two other friends of his from LeMans, Fairuz and Changhan, were there as well. So I just sat at the table and talked with Nisa as she curled her hair, and the guys did various things. The cab came to get us at 7 pm, and it was about a 20 minute ride down to the eastern portion of the Seine, where our boat was. We walked a little way out, and finally the guys recognized some other people from the Embassy, so we all stood around and talked and took pictures while waiting to board the boat. (We were easily the best dressed people there, since everyone else was sporting the basic jeans/shorts and tee shirts. We were definitely meriting glances as people walked by.)
We boarded the boat a little after 8 pm, and were called down to the lower level (where the dining room was) soon after that. As we waited for dinner to officially start, we talked and took pictures and generally relaxed. There was a short welcome speech, and then we began with an appetizer while the boat pushed off. Our appetizer was a triangular crispy shell, with beef, spices and cut carrots inside. (It was really good, I finished the whole thing.) While waiting for the main course, we chatted with the other people at the table, with Nisa, Redza and Fairuz occasionally switching into Malay. (This is where I smiled, nodded and laughed when everyone else did.) I also talked with the guy sitting next to me, who was French and of Vietnamese origin. It was pretty interesting. Around this time, dinner came out! It was chicken in some really spicy sauce, served with coconut rice. It was all really good, but I wasn't used to the spiciness, especially since there was only orange juice and not much water to down it with. (I knew I probably wasn't going to eat the entire thing, but I was still pacing myself with a bite of chicken and then a forkful of rice. I did manage most of the chicken, though. Fairuz seemed to be especially impressed with me, since he had warned me that the food was going to be spicy. But I think I gained some respect with eating all of that appetizer. The whole time eating that main dish, I was thinking, "OK, I haven't grown up with this, so obviously I can't play at the same level in one night than they can, having done so throughout their lives".)
After dinner, there were presentations of diplomas for the graduates, who were from all over France. There was also a drawing for prizes. Fairuz and I talked, and he joked about how it was all fixed. Incidentally, he happened to win the next drawing! He came back to his seat with a gold rectangular box, and Changhan took it from him and shook it. Then he just started opening it, and it turned out to be a lamp from IKEA.
Afterwards, we were invited to the top deck for cocktail and enjoyed the view. We all hung out, joked around and took pictures. I talked with Fairuz for a bit and also Chunghan, and it was really interesting. After a while, I went to find Nisa and hung out with her while she and some friends ate some leftovers.
When the boat docked, we got off and took a taxi back to the apartment building. I hung out in the room for a bit, and then went to bed.
Monday was a public holiday, but not for me. It was all about the embroidery. I had 4 panels to do, and I had left those for last because the method they required was a lot less time-consuming than the one used for the first 2 panels. I ended up finishing around 3:30 pm, so I decided to go see the Tour Eiffel! (This was to balance out the fact that I had seen it at night, but not by day.) I took the metro there and walked around the side that faced the river, as well as Trocadero in the 16th arrondissement. (Now I've seen it from both sides!) I walked under it, and up and down the promenade, getting pictures of it as well as the Ecole Militaire, which it faces. I then strolled back along the Seine, stopping in Monoprix for some groceries. That night, I drew up some sketches for Susan. I drew swimsuits (since we're doing beachwear), dresses/cover-ups, shorts, pants, skirts and tops. I had 30 sketches, when we only needed 10, of which we'd (or rather, Susan would) choose 8.
More updates to come, as usual...
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