Hitting the Pattern Sale

Joann had McCall patterns for 99 cents (rare--the sale is usually $1.99) and Vogues for $3.99 over the holiday weekend, so I undertook the epic journey by bus out to Seven Corners to stock up. My focus this year is on mindfulness when it comes to new fabric, which has cut my buying drastically (I am, however, hoping to lure Cidell into a visit to Fabric Mart's brick-and-mortar store eventually, at which point all bets are off.)

I am definitely happy with my restraint; looking at my over-full fabric shelves makes me feel a little panicky and the downward trend in their groaning overload must continue. However, I have never felt any such compunction when it comes to patterns, even though I have way WAY too many of those as well. Patterns are smaller, store more neatly, and are much easier to part with (I have a whole stack for Freecycle already pulled out). I don't feel weighed down by patterns as I do by fabric.

I love knits and I love knit patterns, so of course there were several of those in my basket. The Palmer/Pletsch basic tee on the upper right has a French dart. A friend with a large (to put it mildly) bust has asked me to help her come up with a basic tee pattern that she can make several of and I thought this might be a good place to start. I don't like that it's "semi-fitted" and neither will she (she is otherwise slim and if her clothes aren't fitted she looks much larger than she is due to her bust), but the marked lines on the pattern will help me with fitting.

If I ever find an animal print that I can stand (I have had several hints from the boyfriend that he would like to see me in animal print), the Vogue dress on the lower right will be the perfect pattern. I considered the ones that Fabric Mart just had on sale--I actually liked some of them--but I do not trust rayon knit and won't buy any that I can't feel first.

And the drapey, cowl-y top in the lower left is just fun.

I neither make nor wear jackets, but why should that stop me from buying jacket patterns? I do plan to make a suit at some point this year. My 12 year old interview suit is not cutting it anymore. It was sold as a suit, not separates, so the skirt was a wee bit tight to begin with (the ol' pear shape situation). It is now unbuttonable, and it's not comfortable to have it zipped all the way. This is fine if I don't take the jacket off, but come on.

And yet, that still doesn't explain me buying these patterns, because the replacement suit will be the conservative, plain, and uninteresting, unlike these jackets.

And of course, dresses. I really like the shape of the bodice on the vintage Vogue. I am very into the cut-on sleeve lately. This looks (of course, drawings can be very deceptive!) like it will have a nice shape over the shoulder.

The DKNY does not appeal to me much in the fancy satin fabric as shown, mostly because I do not need any more dress up dresses. However, when looking through the catalog I realized that it could be made in an everyday fabric for a flattering, sophisticated, but not fussy look. Must contemplate my stash.

I was drawn to the V neckline with collar on the Palmer/Pletsch shirtdress, though again the semi-fitted part of it gives me pause. I would want to tighten that up a bit. As it's a princess seam, it would be a cinch (do you see what I did there? har har).

I've been looking at the McCall with the drapey skirt for a while. It looks somewhat similar to my Drape Drape birthday dress, though actually looking at the pattern and instructions I saw that the drape skirt is actually an overlay, not the full skirt. I don't know that I have any plans for it, but I figured at 99 cents, it was less dangerous to my well-being than a candy bar.

I got obsessed with M6363, in the upper left corner, from the moment I saw it on Debbie Cook's blog, even though she determined that the pattern drafting was a bust. So it may be a blessing in disguise that this is only a plus size pattern and I'm going to have to use it as a model to draft my own. I bought it so that I could see how the front is drafted. It seems obvious that it's a slash and spread, but I don't know where exactly it is slashed and how much to spread.

I bought this silk jersey in 2007 from Mood Fabrics, along with an eyelet that I am sewing as we speak (well, not literally, but it is my current project). It is time to sew this Too Good to Use! I have been looking for the perfect pattern for over four years and it is time to decide. If I can get M6363 to work for me, it is exactly what I have been looking for. Doesn't break up the print too much, but has tummy disguise and some style.



Who knows when I will get to any of these projects, but there's nothing wrong with a little fantasy sewing, right? What are you fantasizing about?