Who says a bunch of gals can't all just get along? From the looks of Wednesday night's dinner hosted by The Ruby Collaborative at Contigo, no one would ever suspect otherwise.

The Ruby is comprised of a group of women who've grown tired of stereotypes labeling female-only functions as breeding ground for discord and, instead, encourages ladies in creative industries to come together in collaboration on a regular basis.

Co-founders Ana Perkins (graphic designer and stylist), Chelsea Fullerton (graphic designer and photographer) and Candice DePrang (vintage curator and stylist) all motivated each other, in one way or another, to take a leap of faith in their careers. That unique kind of support served as the stimulus for The Ruby Collaborative, which began as "a quarterly gathering of ideas, inspiration, cocktails and crafts" in early 2012.

"What we wanted to do was bring together lots of different girls that have an incredible creative vision who we thought could benefit from partnering with other talented women," Perkins told CultureMap at Contigo.

"This right here..." she gestured toward the table of chatting women, "everyone talking and forming some sort of connection is exactly what we wanted."

Owing to the success of events like Wednesday's private dinner at Contigo, The Ruby is currently considering how it can expand beyond an events- and invite-only model in order to be more inclusive of other members yet remain intimate.

"We will have an event every month through the end of the year, but we're still ironing out the details on what the scale of The Ruby will be in the future," Perkins said.

Keep up to date with the gals online and allow them to lead you into some charming networking opportunities that'll strengthen your impact in and around Austin — one crafty cocktail at a time.