Interactive fiction 

How to play: Read the numbered scenes. At the end of each scene, choose an option and jump to the corresponding number. Keep a tally of the “Colour Coins” you earn. Reach 10 coins and your outfit unlocks Legendary Status at the grand soirée.

You begin with 0 Colour Coins and a closet that sighs every time you open it.

1. THE BLANK CANVAS

It’s 8 a.m. in a rainy North‑East UK flat. Your mirror reflects a black T‑shirt and jeans—fine, functional, forgettable. Somewhere inside you thrums a craving for chaos, sparkle, pattern, roar. Today, you decide, your clothes will finally match that pulse.

A. Pull out the plum‑purple cardigan splattered with neon squiggles (+2 Colour Coins). ➜ Go to 2.
B. Close the wardrobe, fire up Pinterest for inspo. ➜ Go to 3.

2. CARDIGAN OF POWER

The knit feels like dopamine woven into wool. You twirl, accidentally knocking a mug of cold tea across the floor. Oops—but the splash looks oddly artistic.

A. Lean into the accident: drip‑dye old trainers to match the spill (+1 Coin). ➜ Go to 4.
B. Decide you need statement bottoms first. ➜ Go to 5.

3. THE DIGITAL RABBIT HOLE

Your feed explodes with sequinned berets, checkerboard flares, and tiger‑print dusters. One pin screams Own the room. A link leads you to an article on maximalist fashion. The colours practically leap off the screen, insisting you stop scrolling and start living.

A. Purchase a rhinestone‑encrusted belt online (+1 Coin, delivery in 3–5 days—too late for tonight). ➜ Go to 5.
B. Slam the laptop shut and raid the attic for forgotten treasures. ➜ Go to 6.

4. SHOE REVIVAL

You splatter‑paint the trainers in shades of aqua and gold. They dry surprisingly fast.

A. Pair them with your loud cardigan and mismatch‑pattern socks (+2 Coins). ➜ Go to 7.
B. Realise your lower half still whispers “suburbia.” Seek louder trousers. ➜ Go to 5.

5. TROUSER TRIAGE

Options tumble from hangers: vintage tartan kilt, velvet bell‑bottoms, jeans embroidered with koi fish.

A. Pick the kilt; safety‑pin on neon patches (+3 Coins for heritage clash). ➜ Go to 7.
B. Choose velvet bell‑bottoms but roll them in glitter first (+2 Coins). ➜ Go to 7.

6. ATTIC TIME CAPSULE

Dust bites your throat, but reward glitters: a silk scarf printed with art‑nouveau lilies, a faux‑fur stole dipped in emerald dye, and your grandma’s 1970s costume‑jewellery box.

A. Drape everything at once; you’re a walking gallery (+4 Coins). ➜ Go to 7.
B. Select just the lily scarf for chic restraint (+1 Coin but minus hipster points). ➜ Go to 7.

7. ACCESSORY ALCHEMY

Your reflection is now a mosaic. Time to choose focal accessories.

A. Layer three contrasting belts diagonally (+2 Coins). ➜ Go to 8.
B. Build a tower of hats—beanie, beret, bucket (+3 Coins but neck strain). ➜ Go to 8.

8. FACE & NAIL FIREWORKS

You dab electric‑blue eyeliner into star shapes, paint each nail a different hue.

A. Add stick‑on jewels at the corners of your eyes (+1 Coin). ➜ Go to 9.
B. Glue tiny seashells to two fingernails (+2 Coins). ➜ Go to 9.

9. THE CONFIDENCE CHECKPOINT

Colour Coins total? If 10 or more, you’ve reached Legendary Status—skip to 11. If less than 10, bravely own your look—go to 10.

10. NEAR‑LEGEND

Your ensemble turns heads at the bus stop—some admiring, some confused. You realise maximalism isn’t numbers; it’s conviction. A stranger compliments your courage. Gain +2 Coins for internal glow.

If this bumps you to 10+, proceed to 11. Otherwise, celebrate anyway—proceed to 11 because rules are meant to bend (maximalist lesson #1).

11. SOIRÉE OF THE SPECTRUM

You step into the converted warehouse where tonight’s charity gala unfolds. Chandeliers bounce prisms across graffiti‑splashed walls. Instead of a red carpet, a rainbow runner guides guests inside. Cameras flash—not at the celebrities, but at you.

A stylist rushes over: “Your outfit is an aria! May we feature you in tomorrow’s North East Style Journal?”

You nod, accepting a mocktail that’s electric‑violet and sprinkled with edible glitter. Someone whispers, “They embody the storm after the rainbow.”

Across the room, you spot others in daring prints. Maximalists recognise one another the way fireflies sense kindred light. You exchange Colour Coins—literal holographic tokens handed out at check‑in—to vote for the evening’s Most Fearless Dresser.

Midnight approaches. Balloons drop, confetti cannons erupt, and you’re crowned “Patron Saint of Pattern.” Your prize? A custom cardigan commission in any palette of your choosing. The designer smiles slyly: “Dare we start with neon tartan or glow‑in‑the‑dark florals?”

You reply, “Both.”

12. EPILOGUE: THE MORNING AFTER

Sunlight ricochets off last night’s glitter as you sip coffee wearing the same riotous outfit—because maximalism laughs at ‘occasion wear.’ A notification pings: your rainbow‑runner entrance has gone viral. Comments range from “iconic” to “my eyes!”, proving spectacle is subjective.

You tally your final Colour Coins—11, 15, who’s counting now? The real treasure is a wardrobe that finally speaks your dialect of daring. You shut the closet door, confident it will never sigh again. Instead, it practically hums, waiting for the next adventure.

MAXIMALIST MANIFESTO (Keep on your fridge)

1. More is a starting point, not a limit.
    

2. If you love it, it matches.
    

3. Choose joy over subtlety.
    

4. Function follows fantasy (pockets help).
    

5. Buy less beige; buy pieces worth gasps.
    

Tape a Colour Coin beside this list. Each time you dare brightness, add another. Soon your fridge will resemble a disco ball—and so will life.

Adventure authored by Poppy Lin, fashion game‑writer. For expansion packs—“Glitter Apocalypse,” “Pastel Punk,” and “Galactic Grandma”—subscribe to her newsletter.