Miss Scarlet's School of Patternless Sewing (24 page)

Mary Theresa thought of the day’s events as she cleaned up her kitchen and tossed the paper plates after dinner. Tonight’s special: a take-and-bake ultimate pizza from Zecchini’s Italian
Restaurant. Hadley often bought the sixteen-inch pie because the kids considered it “the goommyest food in the world!” “Goommy,” as Mary Theresa had learned, was the twins’ word for something that was both good and yummy. For months, Hadley, Rocky, and Lucy had attempted to persuade Mary Theresa to try a nibble, but she refused. She’d dismissed it as empty-calorie junk food, just like she did with all of Hadley’s meals. However, tonight she indulged. It took a single swallow for her to agree that her kiddos knew goommy.

It wasn’t the food that made her feel satisfied inside, but rather the feeling of enjoying a meal with her children. She, Rocky, and Lucy were finally bonding—and all it took was her tuning in to their little world instead of always trying to drag them into hers. As with any set of first-grade twins, there were moments of mayhem each day, especially when Mary Theresa tried to meet her work deadlines. But she worked through each situation without the aid of books, manuals, or printed lists. Well, at least not as many as usual.

Mary Theresa shut off the kitchen light, jogged upstairs, and checked on Rocky and Lucy. When she confirmed they were still happily playing in their room, she strolled into her bedroom and turned on her iPod. John Coltrane.

Hadley still called every night for the kids, and he now chatted with her, too, once a week. At first just small talk about Rocky and Lucy, but as more time passed, their conversations stretched. Sometimes Mary Theresa forgot she was married to him; he became more of a friend she could open up to about anything… except her marriage. Any time she hinted about their counseling or even her sewing class, he changed the subject. She didn’t push it. Mary Theresa took Scarlet’s advice and visualized the actions she wanted in her life. She imagined her and Hadley embracing. In love, this time showing it.

Mary Theresa stepped in front of the orangey-red dress she had finished in class that hung from the top of her closet door. She lingered for a moment, removed it from the velvet hanger, and slipped into it. She even ripped off the elastic band around her ponytail and let her long, dark hair fall on her petite shoulders. It had been a decade since she had showed off her body, much less inspected it in front of a mirror. After having two kids, Mary Theresa appreciated how well-toned she was.

She pranced around in the dress and tried on various layers of jewelry with it. If only Hadley could see her now. She thought back to the crazy idea that had popped into her head during class. She raced downstairs for her smartphone before she changed her mind.

“Mommy, don’t run down the stairs, you’ll fall and knock your teeth out,” Lucy hollered from the entranceway of her room.

By then Mary Theresa had already retrieved her phone from the kitchen counter and raced back up the stairs, two at a time, until she reached the top. Both her children cheered and pumped their fists in the air as if she had just won a relay race. The image of Rocky and Lucy trying to copy her moves shot into her mind.

“Just because I did that doesn’t mean you can, you hear me, sweeties? It only works for grown-ups.”

Both kids nodded their heads dutifully. “You look pretty, Mommy,” Rocky said. “You should send Daddy a picture in the computer.”

Mary Theresa kneeled down and scrunched Rocky’s face with her hands. “That’s a swell idea. I’ll be right back. Go back and play, OK?”

She went back in her room, took a deep breath, and sat in front of her vanity. After teasing the hair at the crown of her head and then smoothing it down, she opened her makeup
bag and applied a heavy coat of mascara and liner. She dabbed some gloss on her pinkie and ran it over her lips. Hadley would either appreciate her efforts or think she had popped a wire in her brain. After slipping on her black strappy sandals that she’d worn only once (to a funeral), she posed in the mirror and snapped two photos. Before she could second-guess her instinct, she sent them to Hadley with the subject line: “My latest creation from my patternless sewing class.”

Mary Theresa decided to treat herself to a shopping spree soon and ask Scarlet to guide her. The idea reminded her of something she had meant to do—check out DaisyForever.com.

Mary Theresa carried her laptop to the kids’ room, crawled onto Rocky’s bed, and read Scarlet’s entire blog while the kids worked on their USA floor-map puzzle.

She learned even more about Scarlet. The girl could launch her own beauty magazine or style column. There on the site, Mary Theresa watched makeup application tutorials, how to smile for photographs, how to keep positive during hard times, how to open a Roth IRA, how to clean vintage shoes, and so much more. Scarlet was a media natural.

When she finished reading every article and even commenting on a few, Mary Theresa felt invigorated. She wanted more! So she Googled Daisy de la Flora and followed a new cyber wormhole that led her to numerous photo galleries, movie pages on
IMDB.com
, and video footage from the infamous funeral. She even found a thirty-second clip of Daisy chatting about her muse, Carmen Miranda.

The last link carried Mary Theresa to eBay, where 107 auctions were listed for Daisy originals: purses with outlines of animals and flowers and filled in with gems, crystals, beads, and rhinestones; gaudy belts; triple-stitched cloaks; stoles dripping with dangling trims; and beaded gloves with hats and shoes
to match. Growing up, Mary Theresa had heard of Daisy de la Flora, but only realized now what she had missed out on. Between Scarlet and Daisy, Mary Theresa wanted to reinvent herself inside and out.

She almost closed out her browser when her eye caught a photo that stood out from the rest—a pair of sleek suede black boots dotted with diamond-shaped crystals. She moved her mouse over the Bid Now button, but then clicked Buy It Now instead. Before today, she wouldn’t have dreamed of spending $425 on such a frivolous splurge—especially with her current salary reduction.

But Mary Theresa didn’t only
want
the boots, she needed them to step foot into the soon-to-come adventure of her life.

She powered off the computer and decided to check her smartphone for a response from Hadley. Who knew if he even received her silly pictures? As she waited for new messages to load, she held her breath.

He answered: “Daddy like!”

Tuesday, December 27, 5:25 p.m.

You are worthy.

Salut, my soulsearchers!

Are you still with me? I promise I haven’t ignored you. I’ve had a series of exciting/time-consuming events march their little sticky feet into my life and take up residence on my schedule. They’re here to stay for a while, so let’s all be friends, shall we?

I just finished reading more than 300 comments on the Little Victories post, by far the most DaisyForever.com has ever seen. Mil gracias for all the kudos. I’m delighted to my crystal core that you got all goosepimply about the idea. Pretty please, send me pictures of what you make so I can share them here.

As far as my mystery… did I solve it? Yes. Someday I’ll share it with you. Who knows, maybe I’ll write a book about it!

Now on to today’s topic: self-worth.

Last week a little birdie flew in my window and delivered a sealed envelope to my bed pillow. (OK, it was an
e-mail, but I like drama!) In the envelope was a letter informing me that the Johnny Scissors Emerging Designers Program has not only been moved up six months, but will be discontinued after this season! And this was the twentieth year, too! Well, you know I’m kissing my lucky stars that I made it in on the tippy top of the final tailfeather.

An odd thing happened when I initially announced the news of my trip to my family. They weren’t as excited as me. In fact, they didn’t dig the idea at all. And with the recent developments, they suggested I throw in the embroidered towel. With a little encouragement from a friend, I cranked up my moxie meter to level ten and spoke my mind. I stood up for myself to people I had been intimidated by for years. We’re currently not on speaking terms because of it.

At the same time this happened, my dear friends in my sewing class helped me complete an enormous order that I would have never been able to finish on my own. I owe them so much gratitude, and love them so much. You know who you are.

They motivated me to never let anyone make me feel unworthy again, or settle for anything less than what makes my heart sing. Remember Daisy’s trip to New York when she was seventeen that I wrote about? My situation is hauntingly familiar to hers. She had a meeting with Carmen Miranda; I have one with Johnny Scissors. Except in my case—I will have the honor to shake his hand, and I’ll do it on behalf of Daisy for Carmen.

I’ve been inspired by Daisy’s adventure and want to pay it forward. This is my gift to you:

1. Be proud of your skills and successes.
   Acknowledge them and appreciate them; these are your own personal superhero tools for fighting off mediocrity.
   
2. Be firm, honest, and choose your words wisely.
   Yelling, name calling, crying… none of it will work in your favor. Come from love in your heart and respect who you are talking with.
   
3. Don’t hide and sulk. Toot your horn, darn it!
   I don’t mean to overdo it—love is a two-way street, you know. If you deserve credit for something, and everyone pretends otherwise, remind them!
   
4. Don’t let the Negative Nellies/Downer Dans steal your joy.
   They can only get away with it if you let them. Chances are they are unhappy and it makes their eyebrows twitch to see you smile. Shock them and say something nice to them to lighten their day!
   
5. Show appreciation.
   Once you have said your piece, end the conversation with kindness. Be the one to set the example.
   

P.S. I have a date tonight (my first in over two years!!) with a dear friend. Pray for me that I don’t act like a spaz!

P.P.S. Daisy, if you are out there, Merry Christmas to you!

Until next time, kiss kiss, bang, bang!

S
carlet had three minutes before Marco was to arrive for their date. She quickly sprayed on one final coat of AquaNet and grabbed her purse—a tiny drawstring velvet bag.

Dressed in a simple olive green cocktail dress and her favorite black patent-leather heels, Scarlet stripped away layers of her vintage-loving lifestyle. Her shiny red hair that she normally pressed into finger waves now rested flat down one side and behind her ear on the other. She finished her toned-down look with medium gold hoop earrings, a light layer of foundation, and sleek black eyeliner. Scarlet compared her look to that of a secretary on an afternoon soap opera. She hoped it would balance her out with Marco, who was known for his simple trousers and button-up shirts.

Just as he said, the clock struck seven and the doorbell rang, sending a new kind of zing into Scarlet’s stomach. She licked her finger and slicked the edge of her hair and opened the door. She took one look at Marco and heaved a sigh of delight.

The normally conservative Marco had transformed himself into the spitting image of a ’50s-era Rock Hudson. His tall, muscular frame showed off a shiny black suit with narrow lapels on the cardigan-style blazer, a skinny tie with a gold tie bar,
a hankie peeking out from his front pocket, and glossy black hair parted sharp on the side. In his hand, Marco spun a fedora around his finger.