Chapter 5

Back home I got my bag out of her car, gave her an air-kiss, and walked to my house. It was a lovely evening and I was feeling great. I let myself in and was greeted by my mother and Suzette who wanted to know how my weekend had gone.

I told them that I had been careful but had fun and that the concert was great. I didn’t think they needed to know any details. Back in my room I separated out the items for the laundry and put away the ones I had not used.

I then drew a bath for a long soak and a proper clean out of my sexual areas before drying myself and adding a little cream. I was a bit sore down there as well but it was, I think, understandable. In bed I lay and contemplated how I would act over the rest of the summer break. I thought that Jim would be good to get me a car but I determined that he was no longer going to have me in bed.

As it was now into July I needed to think seriously about my upcoming start at the Chelsea and wondered when they started orientation times. I would need to go into London a few times to get everything in place. Over the next week I took a good look at the papers that my mother had on the college.

I saw that I had a little time to spare as the term did not start until early September so I needed something to fill in my next two months. If I had been Armand still I would have gone up and down the road cutting lawns and weeding gardens but that is no job for a teenage girl.

I had the sudden thought that I could work in a dress shop and gain lots of experience with customers. I hauled our old typewriter out and wrote a resume which was half- truths surrounded by wishful thinking. I had used three pages of carbon paper so now had four copies.

On the Wednesday I went into Redhill and started my quest. The first two I called into were just not interested and the third took a copy of the resume and said they may call me. My fourth call was a shop in the Belfry that I had shopped in a couple of weeks ago.

Helen, the owner, remembered me as being discerning and told me that it was my lucky day. Her assistant had not turned up Monday and had her mother call the shop this morning to say that she was not coming back.

“She has been good but used to get into arguments with customers, telling them what she wanted to sell them rather than selling them what they wanted to buy.”

This was something that my powers would allow me to see exactly what the customers wanted. All I needed was to make sure I knew the stock.

She wanted to know when I could start.

“Why not now? If I can check out the stock today I could be able to work in the store tomorrow as well as the usual tidying up.”

So I was let loose in the store to pull out anything I wanted to look closer at and the last part of the day I was in the back room, looking at suppliers catalogues.

The next day I went into Redhill with Collette and was in the store before opening time to sweep up before tidying the racks. About ten we had two customers in at once so I took my first.

I asked her what she wanted and she told me she needed something for a wedding on the weekend. I asked her what sort of dress she wanted and she described the one in her mind.

I knew there were a couple in the shop that would suit so I told her to go to the changing rooms and I would bring her something to try. She had told me her size so I got the ones I knew would work and took them to her.

She was so happy with the look she ended up buying both. My first sale and Helen congratulated me. By the afternoon Helen was leaving most of the customers to me and spent much of her time checking stock and drinking tea.

I had one customer who was really a problem with what they wanted. It was a teenage girl with her mother and I could see that the mother wanted something demure while the girl wanted something off-the-wall while she described a dress that fell in between.

I ended up showing her a number of dresses, from the demure one her mother instantly liked to an outfit that wasn’t quite as racy as she wanted but did fit both their ideas.

As it was for a school dance I sided with the girl to tell her mother that it would be too embarrassing to turn up looking like her grannie. They took both with the demure one ‘for church’ so everyone ended up happy. Helen had been looking on and told me that I was a real find.

Collette came in while we were putting the try-outs back on racks and Helen greeted her with a peck on the cheek. She said that she had been told by the owner of the salon that Collette was one of her best workers and could see now why I was as good as I was.

After we locked the shop I went home with Collette and she told me that Tony had been in touch and wanted to have a foursome for the pictures Saturday evening but she had told him we were both busy at a dressmaking project.

She said that he would call her again and that I should expect a call from Jim. I said that we had better organise a project so they could see we were not lying. After lunch together on Friday we had a look in the drapery shop and she picked some material that we could make matching skirts out of.

When Helen saw the material she asked what I was going to do with it and she asked me if I would be interested in making special orders for her ‘special’ customers. When I asked why these were special she told me that she had a small group of men who would come in to buy dresses but it was always difficult to fit them properly.

I told her that we could do it if they would submit to a full measurement wearing the underwear as it would be no good to make something that fitted the male body and would then look stupid on their alter-ego.

She said she had the phone numbers of a couple of the men and would call them to see if they would come in, telling them that she could now supply their requirements.

She made a couple of calls and we had our first appointment for Saturday afternoon. We had quite a good Saturday morning and when the guy came in she introduced me to him.

He called himself Cathy and I took him out to the back room.

“Cathy, I know that doing this is a big thing for you and I want you to be as comfortable as you can be with this. Helen knows me as Amity but I was once, a lifetime ago, known as Armand but please forget that you know this.”

“I can fully understand what you want and am committed to help you be the best woman you can be.” I went out to the shop while he changed into his female self and went back in when he called me.

I took all of the measurements needed and then asked him to describe the dress he would like. Of course, I could see what he was after. For effect I had a drawing pad and sketched what I saw.

He was very happy with the design and I went out and got a couple of dresses that were close so we could finalise his idea. I then got him to change back into his male wear and I spoke to Helen about how I wanted to work things.

When he came out I got him to leave his bag with Helen and to join me in shopping for fabric. We went to the drapers and, with him pretending to be along for the ride, we looked at designs and materials, ending up with a few metres of a fabric that actually lightened his aura when he looked at it. He was afraid to even touch it in the shop.

Back at the boutique he paid a deposit and made an appointment to come back on Wednesday, just at the closing time. I told him to bring his full kit with him as he will be able to walk out looking good. I don’t think he really believed me.

Saturday evening Collette came around and we made our matching skirts. Well, they were matching in pattern but she ended with a pencil skirt and I made mine as a fuller drape. I asked her if she had she-males in the salon for make-overs and she said that it only happened now and then.

I told her that I may send a couple her way in future but to bring a make-up box over to the boutique when she finished Wednesday afternoon.

Sunday we went to church and I worked on my Stevie figure while starting a Bonnie Raitt one. I looked forward to working this week as I was having a lot of fun with it.

Wednesday Cathy came in carrying a small bag. He went into the back and Helen and I closed the shop once Collette arrived. When Cathy called that she was ready we all went to the back room.

I introduced Collette as his make-up artist and then showed him the dress I had made for him. He gasped when he saw it for the first time and Helen even had to sit down.

I thought that his choice of fabric was over the top but stunning. He carefully put it on and we then sat him down so that Collette could do her part. When Cathy had put the wig on it was a good looking girl that stood in front of the big mirror and admired herself. She had brought a pair of heels with her and the dress accentuated the bust line so that no-one could question her gender.

She paid her bill with a smile on her face and we left the shop to go to a café where we all sat and had a tea. Cathy was in seventh heaven in a group of girls as she always dreamed of.

She asked me, if she came in with material, whether I would make her some more dresses and skirts. Helen told her that we would be happy to but she was so good now she could come in and try on from the stock.

When she left us to go home it was one happy Cathy that walked tall with her heels clicking on the pavement. Helen turned to us and said that this could be the beginning of something big and we just had to see how it panned out. She gave Collette a twenty for her work and asked if she would be interested in doing some after-hours work if it happened.

Collette and I left her drinking another cup of tea and went home. On Thursday morning I got to the shop and Helen was a bit excited. She showed me some notes that she had made regarding costs and profits and told me that if we could work on a couple like Cathy in a week we could actually lift the profit margin by a considerable amount. I wondered if there was enough like Cathy to make it work but held my thoughts to myself.

During the morning I had to look after most of the customers as Helen was answering the phone and writing things on a notepad. I commented that she was pretty popular this morning and she told me that it us that was popular.

It seemed that Cathy had been so sure of herself that she had driven around to her like-minded friends to show off, even fooling their partners. All the calls were from men who wanted to be dressed by us and she had been making notes on what they wanted and getting their phone number so we could set up an appointment. She had told them that the work with Cathy was the first time we had done this and that we would have to organise things if we carried it on.

She asked me if I would be prepared to concentrate on the new project but she was a bit worried that the normal business would suffer without me. I told her that a friend had lost her job at the supermarket last week and I would bring her in to show what she could do.

Roberta, from the Group, had said on Friday that she had been a victim of downsizing and I knew that I could give her the power to do the job. Helen went off to the shopping centre office to see if she could do a deal on a bigger place as the centre was not fully leased and I looked after the shop, selling a couple of skirts while she was away.

She came back with some keys in her hand and we shut up, leaving a sign that we would be open again soon. Just a few doors from us there stood an empty shop which was about the same size in the retail section but had several rooms in the back. It had been designed as a medical centre which had never been leased out in five years.

It would be perfect to have a sewing room and a make-up / changing room while leaving room for our normal business. She told me that the management had been keen to let it and had offered it at the same rates as the present shop with a three year lease. They had even thrown in the changes to the signage and would cover the moving costs. It was a no-brainer and she had already signed up for it.

She said that she would buy a good sewing machine, cutting bench, dressmakers dummy and an overlocker if I was coming on board. I told her about my plans to go to Chelsea and she told me that she was sure that I would be able to make enough hours in the week to do this and that she would help me with my college projects.

I gave her a hug and we locked up to go back to the shop and open up again. As the shopping centre had a food court that was open after hours there was no problems should we need to have after hours appointments. Things were starting to look interesting.

When I met Collette to go home I asked her if we could detour to Robertas’ home. We knocked on the door and Patricia opened it. We asked to see Roberta and were invited inside. I explained to Roberta that there would be a full-time job available in the boutique at the Belfry and she was excited but unsure that she could sell dresses.

I got her to stand up and we hugged while I transferred enough of my power to let her see auras and have some insight into thoughts. I then got her to ask Patricia about the dress she would like to own.

“My word, I can see it!” Roberta exclaimed. I asked her if she would be able to find a dress that was similar if she had the stock to explore.

When she said that she thought she could I told her to meet me at the boutique at ten tomorrow and she would meet Helen and we would do a test. Next morning we got her to deal with a customer with me and she did very well.

As I was able to see the thoughts as well I could lead her to the right area of the stock and watched while she chose the one that I would have. Helen was very pleased and told her that she could start Monday morning.

Roberta gave us both a thankful hug when she left and Helen asked me how I did it. Well, I wasn’t going to tell her the truth, was I?

The rest of Friday was a whirlwind of customers wanting dresses. It seems that a wedding was taking place in Reigate for two TV personalities and, although it had been kept secret, the secret was now out and all the ladies in Redhill intended to be outside the church.

As there would be TV cameramen there, you just could not be seen in something dowdy. Between us we must have sold twenty outfits and Helen was beaming by the time we locked up. On Saturday morning we had a few stragglers for the big event and then it went very quiet.

We started planning the big move to the new shop and Helen gave me the keys and told me to go and work out the best use of the back rooms. On second look I saw that there were almost more rooms than we needed at present. As well as a small storage area for paperwork and office supplies, there was a kitchen and also both male and female toilets, both big enough for disabled use.

These were all right at the back and between these and the shop area we had two rooms each side, all with a small closed area with a sink. The retail area was a big rectangle with the door to the corridor in the middle so we would need to put the sales counter on one side and we could use one of the back rooms as a changing room.

There was enough space to put up three cubicles a side. The next room on that side could be for stock while the two rooms on the other side of the corridor could be for a special dressing room with shelving for more trans-appropriate items and a small make-up cubicle; the other would be the sewing and storage of customer fabrics.

I had a tape measure with me and sketched the layout with dimensions. Back in the boutique I measured the sales counter and discovered that it would fit the retail area nicely so it would just need moving. When the Centre closed on Saturday the management organised removal and erection of our signage while we rolled our racks from one shop to the other.

Sunday morning we were back again while the counter was moved and all of the electrics were wired up. It was just a matter of walking back and forth with bundles of clothes for the storage area and cleaning out the old shop of the tea making supplies. The last things to be moved were our shelving and the refrigerator and then the workmen took down our old changing booths and re-erected them where we indicated.

Monday morning the old shop now sported a sign which stated that we had moved with an arrow pointing the way. The new shop was slowly being forced into the shape we wanted for the browsing customer.

We only had a few during the day so it was easy going for the three of us, Roberta having started today full-time. It was a good time for her to discover our stock lines as she was hanging stock in the storage room and tidying up in the retail area.

The new kitchen was a great addition as it became a place of refuge after busy times. We had a shelf unit we could not fit into the retail area so we put it into the sewing room and arranged all of the supplier books on it for easy consultation.

On Tuesday I was told to go into London and get the items needed for the sewing room. At the Sewing Centre I ordered a bigger Janome, an overlocker, a dummy, cutting table, sewing table and a roller chair, paying by filling out a blank cheque that Helen had signed and putting the amount on the stub.

She had told me that, if it was going to work, we had better get the best equipment. They would deliver it all to the shop on Friday morning. I also got a bunch of pattern books so we could offer a personal service to our normal customers if desired. They told me I could order a pattern and it would be posted if we set up an account, so I gave all the details and signed as the responsible person.

Wednesday we had a carpenter in to fit-out the ‘special’ changing area with a large cubicle with a seat and plenty of hooks. He told us we would get the shelving we wanted in the following week as he would pre-assemble it in his workshop before bringing it in and assembling it in the room.

Helen had been on to the manager of the Viva about getting a small make-up area and the supplier had been in and measured the space, quoting a new unit with a proper mirror and a swivel seat that could be used with the sink already in the room. He did say that a proper hair dressing sink would be best so we had a plumber in on Thursday to do just that.

I had gone to see the manager of the drapery store to talk about zips, buttons and fabric and had set up an account with them, telling them that we could do alterations and would be able to make up clothing if they sent us a customer with a pattern and the fabric they wanted.

One of our customers from last week brought us in a photograph she had taken at the celebrity wedding in Reigate. It showed about a dozen ladies in our products lining the entrance to the church. We asked if we could borrow the negative so we could get an enlargement made to put in the window.

Thursday Roberta and I took care of the customers while Helen rang the contacts on her list. We would welcome four on Saturday and a couple more said they would come in near closing time during the week. We wanted to make sure that we only had one at a time in the shop. Friday we had the sewing equipment arrive and set it all up in the sewing room; we were almost ready to get under way.

Friday evening Roberta was full of her week at the shop and the others in the Group were quite supportive of what we planned to do. A list of potential replacements for the group was thought to be a handy bonus. I had not thought of it that way and was a bit amazed at their callousness.

Marianne Gregory (C) 2022