A little while ago, we had Cara Waters in the Birdcage, watching guests flit between marquees, catching up with friends and networking.

Melbourne Fashion Festival chief executive Caroline Ralphsmith and husband Dion Werbeloff, chief executive of the Gandel Group, which owns Chadstone shopping centre, chatted to CBD on their way to Penfolds with plans to then visit the VRC’s marquee Lucky’s.

Ralphsmith was recovering from the tragedy of her Derby Day dress which only arrived on Monday, two days after Derby Day.

“I ordered it about three weeks beforehand, plenty of time, but it did not arrive,” she said.

“It sat in Dubai, Singapore and then Melbourne Airport for a very long time.”

There was no such incident for Cup day, with Ralphsmith wearing a dress by Paskal, a Ukranian designer and headpiece by local milliner Stephanie Spencer.

Another couple marquee hopping were Victorian Chamber of Commerce head Paul Guerra and his wife Amelia Guerra.

The pair chatted to CBD in the Crown marquee and Guerra said, “we’ll do a few marquees and then head back to the members”.

Guerra said he had been having a “terrible race day” and had been losing on the punt.

“I’m having an outstanding day on the track, but I would like to back a winner,” he said.

Guerra was also keeping a close eye on the two electoral races, that for US president and lord mayor of Melbourne.

“They’re both going to be tight by the sound of it,” he said.

Guerra said he expected Nick Reece would win the lord mayoral election, “which is good”, but would reserve his judgement on the US election as it was too difficult to tell what was happening on the ground.

You can read more about the juiciest moments in the Birdcage here.