Sheryl Lee Ralph Is Ready to Slay the Emmys Red Carpet with Help From Mystery Designer

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Sheryl Lee Ralph had a wild ride picking out her gown for the Emmys.

The actress, 65, told PEOPLE she and an Abbott Elementary castmate chose the same dress, so she has collaborated with an up-and-coming designer instead.

Ralph shared the story while attending The Hollywood Reporter and SAG-AFTRA Emmy Pre Party on Saturday, as an honored guest, thanks to her own nomination for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series.

"The most horrible thing happened," she said. "The designer sent my cast member and me the same sketch. And as I was picking out my dress, she had already picked out hers. Horrible."

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Luckily, another designer came to the rescue. Although Ralph didn't reveal who this mystery designer is yet, the actress promises big things.

"A young designer said, 'Miss Ralph, please let me do this for you,'" Ralph explained. "He said, 'I'm trying to get my ready-to-wear line together. And this would be magic for me.' And I said, 'Yes.'"

The Abbott Elementary star teased, "You'll just have to wait."

Win or lose, Ralph will be able to celebrate her first Emmy nomination for her portrayal of Barbara Howard at Monday's awards show. Barbara is a kindergarten teacher at Abbott Elementary, who Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson) looks up to in the ABC series. Abbott Elementary landed nominations in five different categories, including outstanding comedy series.

"I mean, in some ways I cannot believe that it's really happening," she said of her nomination. "The way it's happening, and it's been so good and everybody has been so wonderful to me."

Gilles Mingasson/abc Sheryl Lee Ralph with her Abbott Elementary costars, Quinta Brunson and Tyler James Williams.

RELATED: 'Abbott Elementary' Star Sheryl Lee Ralph Still Deciding on Emmys Dress: 'I Love to Slay'

Only a month ago, Sheryl Lee Ralph shared she had no idea what she'd be wearing to the Emmy Awards, on an episode of the PEOPLE Every Day podcast with host Janine Rubenstein.

"I don't even have a pair of shoes," Ralph told Rubenstein at the time. "I need to get it together."

The actress also said she and her daughter, Ivy-Victoria Maurice, were starting to strategize.

"My daughter does a lot of styling for me," Ralph said on the podcast. "She was like, We gotta get somebody, the right person, to make you fabulous on that red carpet."

It sounds like that right person has emerged just in time for Ralph to enjoy the evening in style.

"I love to slay a red carpet," Ralph told Rubenstein. "I love the walk. I love the preparation of it all: Depending upon what side of the car you will be getting out, where is the red carpet? Is that leg in a beautiful shoe? Does the leg come out first, and then you turn and you stand and is the train endless? I don't know, but I can see it in my head!"

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Ralph may be an industry veteran, but there was also a time in her career when she was dropped from a TV pilot because a producer told her she wasn't "Black enough."

The actress opened up about the painful memory to PEOPLE, as she recounted the highs and lows of her 45-year career.

Reflecting on trying to make a name for herself in 1980s Hollywood, Ralph says, "People's thinking was not very inclusive. You [had] directors who were still trying to tell you how to be Black."

"I was fired from a pilot because the producer told me I was 'not Black enough,'" she recalls. "Those were his words. It was horrible. I can still remember the way I felt."

Despite the painful comment, the actress says she remained positive: "It's all about the lens that you see through."

RELATED: Sheryl Lee Ralph Responds to Idea of Being a 'Blackfamous' Actress: It 'Can Be Very Much a Thing'

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Ralph said that she's now enjoying all the positive attention she's received for her role on the hit ABC sitcom.

"It feels better than you think," Ralph said. "It is so much of a good vibe. It is so much excitement. I'm tired, I'm happy, I'm busy, I'm confused. I'm overwhelmed. I am so many things all at once, and I am loving the moment. Love, love, loving the moment."

Abbot Elementary made its debut in December 2021 as a mid-season entry. Created by Brunson, the mockumentary sitcom follows a dedicated group of Philadelphia-based teachers and their daily lives working at one of the worst public schools in the country.

The hit comedy series also stars Tyler James Williams, Janelle James, Lisa Ann Walter and Chris Perfetti. Season 2 premieres Sept. 21.