A Dior Model in Waco

Parked beside the East Terrace House on Mill Street in Waco is a small red car. This car belongs to Patricia Alleman, who is the house’s vibrant tour guide. She leads her guests through the house with practiced ease, explaining in her throaty British accent that the wallpaper from the late 1800s was often “pretty horrible,” composed of ugly patterns with “great big cabbage rolls.” 

With every gesture, she jingles from two charm bracelets on her left hand full of elephants and hearts. Two chunky rings with diamonds and purple stones hug her fingers with their acrylic burnt orange glitter nails. On her feet are heeled black sandals with rhinestones and her outfit is composed of three pieces, all in a shiny blue knit; think “monochromatic grandma.” Around her neck is a silver elephant pendant made of silverware on a chain, the head made of bent fork prongs. Her set of keys to the household objects is made of silverware too. Patricia’s hair is pure white fluff that stands upright. Her makeup consists of penciled eyebrows that make neat angles on her snowy forehead, blush that sketches small triangles of rose on her cheeks, and metallic lavender-colored eyelids with thick black mascara. 

After graduating from high school Patricia planned on attending London University and contacted an agency for a small summer job before college began. Soon a modeling company called her agency to tell them they wanted her. They sent her to Dolores Hats, back then Christian Dior and Dolores Hats were with the same people. That summer Patricia started a job as a showroom model, “not a runway model.” But “it’s basically the same thing,” Patricia digresses, “it’s a long room, you come out from behind a curtain and have to walk the whole length of the showroom and the whole way back. I had to wear my own clothes. Neutral and black was the best thing, I couldn’t wear anything that would distract from the hats.” Despite being a model, Patricia claims to be unphotogenic, “I don’t have any pictures of me with hats or anything. I’m not very photogenic. My boss used to say, ‘I must have the only model in the whole of London that’s not photogenic’.” Her favorite part of the job was dealing with all the buyers, “like from Paris, all those big stores. Most of them were really nice except the one from Harrods, and she was a you-know-what. But all the others were nice.” 

She climbs the stairs slowly but with ease, with not a hint of breathlessness, a vibrant spark of life in the ancient house. She points to the friendship quilt on the bed, “I just think it’s fabulous.” Patricia’s earring rattles to the floor, “whoops.” Patricia seems to know everything and to have done everything. The switch from modeling for Dior to giving house tours in Waco, Texas in a single life seems like a change that would have given whiplash to the average person, but apparently not Patricia.

Written by Mallory McKeever

Edited by Ruthann Daniel