A Deadline Beating School Newspaper Article

More School Newspaper Deadlines that I'm dangerously close to Not Meeting.

And, my Official Bedtime is dangerously looming.

I'm just going to have to type like a Madwoman.

'Flow'rs & Sunshine' Editors Start On the Next Line. Don't dare mention my Official Bedtime.

As you can see from the photos, the Op Shop Fashion Parade was much much more than a mere Fashion Parade. In fact, in terms of excitement, creativity & enthusiasm, it made New York Fashion Week look like a Complete Yawn. The only thing that was missing was Anna Wintour & her sunglasses sitting in the front row. And perhaps Blake Lively sitting next to her.

Maybe next year.

But let's Stick to Now for the Moment.

The event, which incidentally has raised rather a large sum of money for charity that we're still counting, took weeks & weeks of preparation. Many girls & their mothers cleaned out their wardrobes & donated unwanted garments, some with the tags still on . Bags piled up in the Drama Room which made it difficult for the HSC Drama students to practice. But they did it anyway.

Then we had weeks & weeks of emotionally draining lunchtime sessions, where Models & their stylists selected outfits from donations to showcase in the parade. Some outfits mysteriously disappeared, only to emerge under a pile of rubble some days later. Others, like a sequinned 'Sass & Bide' tee shirt, Completely Disappeared, never to be seen again. I'm still trying to let go of that one.

Finally, The Big Day arrived.

And it shouldn't just have been called a Fashion Parade. It was 'The Festival of the Outfit'.

It began with a morning Tutor Group selection of candidates for the Best Dressed & a golden coin collection for wearing mufti. At recess, what appeared to be The Whole School, assembled on the paved area for the Nail-Bitingly Nerve Wracking selection of six finalists. A team of hand-picked- by- me judges had to make some tough decisions as just about everyone had dressed to the Max. Oh dear, I hope I'm not sounding too seventies.... Next I'll be saying how 'groovy' everyone looked.

Anyway, you can see one of the winners in the last photo. Kitten is the one on the right, although the one on the left, Brigitte, who looked straight out of Paris 1960, could have won it as well as far as I'm concerned.

Before the parade, a huge team assembled in A11 for 'Hair & Makeup', always a Magical Combination. Augusta was as cool as a cucumber even though her hair was being teased & sprayed beyond recognition.

The parade went off like a dream, even though the audio visual equipment had a slight hissy fit half way through. But everyone behaved like real troupers.

The following week, we had a two day sale of the donated clothes. It was miles more exciting than a Sausage Sizzle, although I would much rather watch clothes being sold & perhaps buy some myself than eat a sausage sandwich. But that's just me.

The unsold clothes are sitting in bags in the back of A11, waiting for a team of girls to take them up to the Wayside Chapel Op Shop to be re-sold. They'll make a motza out of them. Also, the girls will be presenting them with a fairly fat cheque, all made possible by You, The Stylish School Community!

An Amendment.

Hello Friends. You may notice that there are no photos. I've deleted them. Don't ask why. Just do your best to imagine what they may have been like.