Knot Too Shabby! Read online

  When they returned to the office, Zoey joined Daphne for a meeting in the conference room about the next season’s collection. After that, there was another meeting, this time about the status of the current season’s production.

  “Are you bored?” Daphne asked during a short break.

  “No!” Zoey said. “It’s all really interesting—even the stuff I’m not sure I understand. I know I’m going to have to learn about it someday if I want to be a fashion designer like you.”

  “That’s true,” Daphne said. “But to tell you the truth, after you’ve been to a few thousand meetings like this, they aren’t nearly as interesting as they were in the beginning.”

  “I can see that,” Zoey said. “Like, it was fun making dog outfits a bunch of times, but when I had hundreds of orders to fill, it wasn’t so much fun anymore.”

  “Exactly,” Daphne said. “The designing and creative sides of the business are my real loves—but I have to pay attention to the business side too, if I want to be a successful designer.”

  Before Zoey knew it, it was the end of the day and almost time to meet her dad in the lobby. Back in her office, Daphne kicked off her heels and changed into Converse slip-ons.

  “Sorry, Zoey, but my feet are killing me,” Daphne said. “Time to switch to Converse for the trip home.”

  Zoey’s eyes widened. “I love Converse too. I was wondering how you walked in those heels. They’re soooo pretty, but ouch!”

  “Ouch is right. Ah, the things we’ll do for fashion!” Daphne laughed. “Before you go, I have a little surprise. Something made just for you!” Daphne handed Zoey a small bag. Inside was a note telling Zoey that Daphne hoped she had a wonderful day and to please keep in touch. And, wrapped in silver tissue paper, Zoey found a Daphne Shaw T-shirt in just her size.

  Zoey was thrilled. Daphne didn’t make a children’s line of clothing, and even if she did, most middle-school kids wouldn’t be able to afford it!

  “Thank you!” Zoey said, giving Daphne a hug. “I love it!”

  Zoey found her taxi-shaped bag, which she’d left by Daphne’s desk, and rummaged in it until she found a little wrapped gift.

  “I’ve got a present for you, too,” she said. “I didn’t know your size, so I couldn’t make you clothes, so . . .”

  Zoey handed Daphne the present, feeling very shy all of a sudden.

  “Did you notice I’m wearing one of your designs?” Daphne asked. She took off her blazer, and Zoey realized Daphne was wearing a Tangled top from the Sew Zoey online store.

  “Wow!” Zoey exclaimed. “I didn’t realize. . . .”

  Not only had Daphne bought two dog outfits, she’d also bought a tank top! Zoey couldn’t believe Daphne was wearing one of her designs.

  “This is lovely!” Daphne said, her face lighting up when she saw the fabric necklace Zoey had made for her. “I’m going to put it on right now.”

  Zoey knew Daphne really did like the necklace and wasn’t just pretending because she didn’t just take off the necklace she was wearing and put it on; she showed it to everyone they passed on the way to the reception area, where Zoey’s dad was waiting.

  “Thank you for the most amazing day,” Zoey said to Daphne. “I’ll never forget it—ever!”

  “Thank you, Zoey,” Daphne said. “I’ve enjoyed our time together. You’ve got a wonderful daughter, Mr. Webber,” she told Zoey’s dad.

  “I know,” he said, smiling.

  “I’m going to take you to Libby’s aunt’s apartment via the scenic route,” Dad said. “That way you’ll get a mini-tour of New York.”

  “Awesome!” Zoey said.

  He drove down the West Side Highway, pointing out the Freedom Tower, where the World Trade Center had once stood, and the Statue of Liberty, raising her beacon of light in the middle of New York Harbor. Then he drove up the FDR Drive on the East Side, so Zoey could see the Brooklyn Bridge and the Empire State Building.

  Lexie lived on the Upper East Side. When they arrived at her building, they had to drive around the block a few times before finding somewhere to park. Then Dad helped Zoey carry her suitcase up the four flights of stairs to Lexie’s apartment.

  “Welcome!” Lexie said as they entered what seemed to be her living room and kitchen together, although neither part was very big. A small bedroom opened off from the living room. The colors made Zoey feel like she was in a little jewelry box.

  “Whew!” Dad said, catching his breath from the climb. “Cozy place you’ve got here.”

  “I love it,” Zoey said. “But no wonder you didn’t want more than one of us to come with Libby. We would have had to sleep all smushed together! It’s tiny!”

  Lexie laughed. “Believe it or not, Zoey, this is actually a pretty decent size for an apartment in the city.”

  Zoey had been really looking forward to moving to New York when she got older, but she’d only ever stayed in a nice hotel with Aunt Lulu. She wondered what it would be like to live in a little apartment like Lexie’s.

  “Well, I better get going so you ladies can get the party started,” Dad said. “I’ve got a bit of a drive back, and who knows what Marcus is up to. Have a great weekend, girls.”

  “We will,” Libby and Zoey chorused together.

  They looked at each other and laughed. Their pajama party weekend had officially begun!

  CHAPTER 5

  Fangirl-tastic!

  Guess what? I made it through the visit to Daphne Shaw’s studio without making a fool of myself! Not only that, it was the best day EVER! Daphne is sooooo nice and down-to-earth. I’m not sure why I was scared. I mean, she’s a person just like me, right? She was even more fabulous than I hoped she’d be. I’m even more of a fan than I was before!

  I got to tour the entire studio and even sit in on some business meetings, which might sound boring, but it wasn’t. I’m serious! Even though I didn’t understand every single thing they were talking about, I was learning a lot. One thing is definitely for sure: It made me all the more certain that I want to be just like Daphne Shaw when I grow up!

  Dad took me on a mini-tour of the city on the way to Libby’s aunt’s apartment, which is where I got the inspiration for some of today’s designs. Can’t wait to spend more time exploring the Big Apple!

  “Who’s up for pancakes?” Lexie asked, drawing the curtains to let daylight into the cramped living room, where Libby and Zoey were sleeping on a blow-up air mattress.

  She was still in her pajamas, but they were really stylish ones—blue silk with white polka dots and mother-of-pearl buttons.

  “Me.” Zoey yawned.

  She poked Libby, who was still sleeping.

  “What?” Libby asked, half asleep.

  “Pancakes?” Zoey asked.

  “Uh-huh,” Libby said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

  Lexie got busy in the kitchen, which was basically in the same room. It was fun hanging out with her, Zoey thought—like having a sleepover with their friends, except one of the friends was a grown-up.

  “I thought we’d hit the Metropolitan Museum of Art first, then take the subway downtown and go to the Tenement Museum,” Lexie said.

  “We have to leave time for window-shopping, Aunt Lexie,” Libby said.

  “And to go to Sweet Sugar Sunshine to get the cupcakes for Priti!” Zoey reminded her.

  “Okay, then,” Lexie said, “You girls better eat up, because we’ve got a full day on our plate!”

  Zoey had never been to the Metropolitan Museum of Art before and she couldn’t believe how big it was.

  “Where do you want to start?” Lexie asked. “Ancient? Modern and contemporary?”

  “Let Zoey choose,” Libby said. “Since it’s her first time here.”

  “Um . . . I can’t decide,” Zoey said. “I wish I could go to all of them, but I know we don’t have time. I guess maybe modern and contemporary?”

  “Great choice,” Lexie said. “Some of my favorite artists are in those galleries.”


  Zoey could have happily spent the entire day at the Met with her sketchbook. In fact, she thought, someday she would have to ask her dad if he would bring her back to New York so she could do just that. She was fascinated by how light reflected off of Van Gogh’s brushstrokes, how Seurat painted with dots, and how Kandinsky used intense colors. Libby and her aunt had to keep dragging her away from canvases that caught her eye, with the reminder that they had lots more to do that day.

  “I feel like my head’s about to explode with ideas,” Zoey said as they sat on the steps of the museum, enjoying warm, salty, street cart pretzels before heading downtown.

  “That’s what I love about living in New York,” Lexie said. “If you’re a creative person, there’s so much to inspire you. And not just in museums. Everywhere you look. It’s what makes it worth paying crazy rent for a small apartment.”

  “I definitely want to come here to live someday, maybe for college,” Zoey said. “But first, I have to get through middle school!”

  “And high school,” Libby reminded her.

  “Well, let’s get moving so we can pack in all the things we have planned,” Lexie said. “Like window-shopping.”

  “YES!” Libby and Zoey chorused together.

  “And getting cupcakes,” Zoey added. “We can’t forget the cupcakes!”

  They took the subway down to the Lower East Side. Zoey was glad Libby’s aunt knew her way around, because they had to change trains to get to Delancey Street, and Zoey found the subway system really confusing.

  “You’re in the middle of the Lower East Side now,” Aunt Lexie said. “This was the heart of immigrant New York. Imagine the streets crowded with people who’d just come off the boat, all speaking different languages.”

  “There still are signs in different languages,” Zoey said, looking around her at the signs on various storefronts.

  “That’s because there’s still a vibrant immigrant community,” Aunt Lexie said. “It’s one of the things that makes New York such an interesting place to live.”

  They walked over to Orchard Street and bought tickets to the Tenement Museum. There, a guide took them on a walking tour of the original tenement building and explained that families lived together in the cramped apartments. They worked long hours under horrible conditions.

  Zoey was relieved when they got back outside into the sunshine after the tour was over. The tenement rooms were depressing. They made her appreciate her comfortable room at home—and not having to share it with Marcus and Dad!

  “It makes my little place seem like a palace, doesn’t it?” Lexie asked.

  “Yeah, it does. Plus, I can’t believe they had to sew in there for fourteen hours a day,” Zoey said. “It would take all the fun out of it.”

  “Young girls in the garment industry worked those kinds of hours, seven days a week,” Lexie said.

  “You mean kids worked? And they didn’t even get the weekend off?” Libby exclaimed.

  “We’re lucky we live in the United States at a time when children’s and workers’ rights are protected. In some countries children still work in factories and under horrible conditions,” Lexie said, sighing. “But enough sadness. I’m grateful to be here, now, spending the day with you girls. What should we do next?”

  “I’m grateful too. But I’m also starving,” Libby said.

  “Me too,” Zoey said.

  Lexie laughed.

  “Lunch it is. Then we can go up to SoHo and do some window-shopping,” Lexie said. “I think we could do with some cheering up. It’s always fun to look at all the beautiful things for sale, even if we don’t buy them.”

  The cupcake shop was in the same neighborhood as the Tenement Museum, so Lexie said they would stop there first, before heading to lunch.

  “But will the cupcakes be fresh enough if we buy them today?” Zoey asked.

  “They should be just fine for a few days, but if you want, I think you can freeze them,” Lexie suggested.

  “Yay! Sugar Sweet Sunshine, here we come!” Libby said.

  “You know what? I’m thinking we should have dessert first today,” Lexie suggested. “I can’t wait till lunch!”

  The following morning, Lexie took the two girls out to brunch at a cute restaurant in her neighborhood. While they were waiting for their food, she told the girls she had a surprise.

  “What is it?” Libby asked.

  Aunt Lexie rummaged in her handbag and took out an envelope. She handed it to Libby. Inside were three tickets to Slumberland, the new musical based on Sleeping Beauty.

  “Wow! Thanks, Aunt Lexie!” Libby said. “Mom said it was almost impossible to get tickets for this show!”

  Aunt Lexie tapped her nose.

  “I have connections,” she said, smiling.

  “Thank you!” Zoey exclaimed. “I’ve never been to a Broadway show before!”

  “Well, I think you’re going to love this one, Zoey,” Aunt Lexie said. “The costumes are supposed to be out of this world.”

  Zoey was so excited, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to eat the waffles she’d ordered. But when the waiter put down the plate, her appetite suddenly reappeared. They were so delicious, she finished every last bite.

  “I don’t think I could eat another crumb,” Aunt Lexie said after they’d finished. “How about we walk across Central Park to the theater, to stretch our legs?”

  It was a beautiful day; warm and sunny, but not humid. They walked west from Lexie’s neighborhood and crossed Park Avenue, waving at the doormen who guarded the entrances of each of the imposing apartment buildings.

  “Look! There’s a dog wearing one of your Doggie Duds outfits!” Libby said.

  Sure enough, Zoey saw a fashionably dressed woman walking a dog wearing the Draper. She couldn’t believe one of her dog outfits was being worn on Park Avenue!

  “I can’t believe people get so dressed up on the weekend,” Zoey said. “She looked like she just walked off the cover of Très Chic!”

  Aunt Lexie laughed. “New York is the city that never sleeps, Zoey. I guess that goes for the fashionistas too.”

  Having to be fashionable 24/7 sounds tiring, Zoey thought. She loved to dress well, but once in a while it was fun to just be a slob.

  Lexie made sure they strolled down Madison Avenue for a few blocks, so they could check out the windows of the boutiques.

  “Madison Avenue is one of my favorite places to window-shop,” Lexie said.

  Zoey wished she had her sketch pad with her—but as it turned out, they didn’t really have time for sketching. Lexie made them keep up a brisk pace across Fifth Avenue to Central Park.

  It seemed to Zoey like the warm weather had brought half of New York to Central Park. There were people everywhere she looked—playing soccer, roller-skating, bike riding, playing Frisbee, dancing, sitting on the grass and reading a book.

  “Sometimes I like to come here, sit on a bench, and just people watch,” Lexie confessed. “You see all kinds of characters.”

  Zoey decided that she would have to come back to New York and do some people watching in Central Park. She bet her sketchbook would be filled with interesting ideas after a few hours of watching New Yorkers walk by.

  When they exited on the west side of the park, they continued over to Broadway.

  “Broadway! Don’t you just want to dance and sing?” Libby asked, skipping a few steps and pretending to tap dance.

  “Um . . . ,” Zoey said. But then she laughed and started to pretend to tap dance along with Libby.

  Lexie shook her head, smiling. “Where do you two get the energy? My feet are killing me from the walk across the park!”

  “Come on, Aunt Lexie! You’re not that old!” Libby said, linking her arm through her aunt’s as well as Zoey’s.

  “If you can’t beat them, join them,” Lexie said, and she pretended to tap dance down the sidewalk with Zoey and Libby.

  By the time they got to the theater, they were all out of breath. Zoey took her
Playbill from the usher and gazed up at the elaborate patterns on the ceiling of the theater as they were led to their seats.

  “Careful, Zo. You almost tripped on that old lady’s cane!” Lexie warned.

  “Oops, sorry,” Zoey said. “It’s just so . . . beautiful here.”

  “I know. I love these old theaters,” Aunt Lexie said. “But it might be a little safer to look at the ceiling when we’re sitting down.”

  Zoey loved everything about the theater—from the red velvet chairs to the huge chandelier hanging above their heads to the thick red velvet curtain across the stage. When the lights dimmed and the music started, she almost clapped her hands in excitement—except that no one else was clapping yet, so she didn’t.

  And then the overture ended and the curtain opened on a fairy tale castle, where cooks were preparing the feast to celebrate the birth of baby Aurora. Zoey was transported. The sets were amazing. The singing was fantastic. And the costumes! It must have been so much fun to be the costume designer for Slumberland—to design all those beautiful outfits for the lords and ladies of the court, for the fairies, and for Aurora.

  “What do you think?” Aunt Lexie asked when the red velvet curtain closed for intermission, right after Aurora pricked her finger on the spindle and the whole castle fell into an enchanted sleep.

  “I love the dancing,” Libby said. “And the singing.”

  “You were right—the costumes are amazing!” Zoey said. “And the sets! The whole thing. Thank you so much for taking me.”

  “It’s my pleasure,” Lexie said. “Now, who wants some peanut M&M’s?”

  The second half was even better than the first. Zoey couldn’t believe how quickly they changed the set for each scene. It was one thing in the movies, where they could film in different locations and use special effects, but this was right in front her very eyes—and the eyes of an entire theater audience!

  When the final curtain came down, the audience rose for a standing ovation, and Zoey, Libby, and Lexie were on their feet, cheering loudly and clapping.

  “We better take a taxi home,” Lexie said when they emerged from the theater. “I don’t want to keep Libby’s mom waiting when she comes to pick you girls up—especially since you have a long drive back. Of course, getting a taxi when all the matinees let out is another story. . . .”