Rip, rip, rip. The seam was well hidden inside. But the dress needed altering; it must be done. The flowing red plaid skirt puffed about as she separated the black velvet top from the skirt.

She sighed. How she hated to pull a brand new garment apart. The top was a sloppy fit. But the skirt was too perfect. So stitch by stitch, she carefully separated the dress into two pieces.

Finally the dress fell into two parts. She looked at the black velvet top. There was no way to remake it to fit her, so she tossed it aside.

The crisp fabric of the plaid skirt surrounded her. Red, silver, white and black threads woven into a tartan pattern. Gently she removed the stray threads and checked the edges lined up all the way around the waist.

A few stitches would get the skirt ready to wear. Now the search was on for a black blouse fitting to wear with it. Finding two online, she ordered them with the hopes they would arrive on time.

A back up dress already hung in the closet; her trusty standby. However she wanted to shine this year in something new, something different. Christmas dinner was only a few weeks away. Here’s to holiday soirées!