Allison's Corner

Burda Easy Fashion E993 - 2A

2009-10-04T18:36:00.001-07:00

Description:

With Lust and Humor

Dress 2A

Sizes 34-44

You will feel feather light and sexy in this transparent Chiffon Boho-dress. The printed fabric flatters the silhouette.

Review:

I definitely don’t think I could pull off this dress. Where you would actually wear such a thing? It’s not really work appropriate and not dressy enough for a nice dinner. Maybe the movies or the mall? But it does look very Nicole-Richie Bohemian-chic. Check out similar styles below. I particularly like how they pair this style with boots and faux fur. But the beret seams kind of out of place, don’t you think?

Live.Laugh.Love by sourcat featuring Tory Burch

Burda Easy Fashion E993 - 5A

2009-10-03T04:22:00.001-07:00

Description:

Ethnic style delux

Vest 5 A

Sizes 34-44

The Long corner on the front of the vest gives it a cool seventies touch. The tapered cut makes a great figure and refines the outfit.

Review:

I guess I’m just not a “vest person.” I don’t think I’d ever wear one, but some celebrities are rocking this style. The collar definitely makes an otherwise yawn-worthy vest into something a little more interesting. But be careful with fabric choice! This piece of clothing can go from chic to home-ec by just the wrong type of fabric. It needs something rich, like the velvet shown here or satin perhaps. You might be able to get away with a dark wash denim, but a cotton print or any sort of holiday “theme” is a definite call for disaster.

Burda Easy Fashion Magazine

2009-10-02T20:17:00.001-07:00

While I enjoyed the Burda Style (formerly Burda World of Fashion Magazine) see review, I decided that I just couldn’t justify the $80 subscription. Yes, it had copious amounts of patterns in it, many of which I would consider making. But I know me, I would be one of those people who would always intend on making things, but months months would probably go by before I actually got around to doing it. Therefore, I would be paying $80/year for a very limited number of actual garments to show for it. It would be much more economical to simply wait for a sale on a pattern from the Big 4 that way.

I knew that Burda came out with a special Plus sized magazine twice a year, but since I’m not plus sized that didn’t help me much. But I did like the concept.. twice a year fall and spring.. perfect! I briefly considered just purchasing the August and February magazines. Off of e-bay with shipping it would total me $30/year, much more reasonable.

Then I discovered that Burda used to offer an Easy Fashion magazine in English, which was targeted at a younger crowd (all patterns are for sizes 34-44). Sadly, they don’t offer the English version any more, but at only $15/year for two magazines I thought, why not? It was suppose to have copious amounts of pictures explaining the various steps, so maybe I won’t need to know German so much. I got my first copy in the mail a couple of weeks ago

Like Burda Style, the magazine is stapled up the middle, but the patterns in the middle are a little different. The patterns aren’t printed on top of one another, so you technically don’t have to trace them out. I thought the paper was also a little different. Where the Burda Style paper is very much like newsprint, this one is more like tissue paper, with one side feeling smooth.

Also, instead of the instructions being print on newsprint in the sort of instructions/patterns “packet” that Burda Style uses, the instructions are printed in the magazine after all of the photos, and in color. I prefer it this way over the way Burda Style does it.

The photo instructions seem fairly easy to follow.. if you already know how to basically construct that type of garment. I’m new to sewing, so I’ve been busy translating. It’s surprisingly easy to do the translations. Well, most of the translations. I’m going to have to ask for help on some of them, because they just don’t make sense to me.

The patterns, in general are more trendy than those found in the Burda Style magazine. I personally like this. If I’m buying a pattern magazine, I don’t want it to show me how to make the same basic shirt over and over again, I want what’s hip now. That being said, some of the patterns are “trendy” only because of the fabric they used or some extra piece. So there are definitely patterns that can be easily extended beyond one season.

So since Burda has decided to merge with the more open source-ish (and based in the US) burdastyle, I decided now was a good time to start an Easy Fashion fan club or something like that. I haven’t quite decided on the format, but I’ll be posting the instructions for Easy Fashion pieces in English on my blog, and reviewing the various styles.

Food of the day

2009-08-30T02:58:00.001-07:00

Stir Fry

We’ve been trying to clean up our diet recently, and I think stir fry is a great way to do it. It’s all about veggies.. and the sauce. The sauce I think is the key ingredient for stir fry.

The sauce we use is loosely based on this recipe and is as follows

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated

1 tbsp fresh garlic, grated

2 tbsp honey

1 tsp corn starch

Whisk the sauce together and add about 2/3 of the way through cooking

Word of the day

2009-08-22T03:52:00.001-07:00

Rest

The word of the day is “rest.” I vow to get more sleep so I can have more energy.

I actually really enjoy going to sleep with soft music in the background, especially Sound Sleep. There are no drum beats to keep you awake, it gradually gets louder from the beginning, so you don’t wake someone else, and I’ve found that it helps me block out street noises better than a fan.

Burda 08-2009-117 Muslin

2009-08-20T01:15:00.001-07:00

I made a muslin to check for fit, and I’m glad I did! It gapped funny in the back and in the front, and it was way too tight on the hips.

See?

So I took in the center front seam a little bit and now it looks like this

Now I’m just unsure about the shoulders. It looks funny to me, but I don’t know if it’s just the fabric or what. I think I might try sloping the shoulders more and see if that helps.

Fabric from Fabric.com

2009-08-18T14:11:00.001-07:00

I recently ordered some fabric, and I gotta say I like it. I shopped the sale and clearance bins to pick up these 5 fabrics for less than $30, including shipping. From left to right: wool blend suiting jasper dark brown, stretch twill soft brown, truffle double knit camel, georgette magenta, crepe georgette lavender.

The crepe georgette lavender is already earmarked to become the burda 08-2009-117 shirt

It should look similar to the photo, except a lavender shade. It is the same 100% polyester crepe georgette type they use in the photo

The truffle double knit camel will probably be made into a cardigan. I like Esther from burdastyle.com, but I don’t like how slouchy it is.

For the wool blend suiting, I think I’ll probably make Vogue V1051

So that just leaves the stretch twill and the magenta georgette. I’m not sure what I’ll do with those yet. Any ideas?

Muslin

2009-08-13T00:00:00.001-07:00

what is a muslin?

A muslin is a mock up of a finished garment. You make a muslin to check for fit before sewing/cutting up your nice fabric. It’s called a muslin because it is traditionally made with muslin fabric (but really any cheap fabric you don’t care about will do) I like to make mine out of old sheets I buy at Goodwill. You’ll want to sort of “copy” the type of fabric your final product will be in so you can check fit and drape.

how do I make a muslin?

Since you’re not going to wear it in the end, go ahead and mark up your fabric with permanent marker.

take off seam allowances where you don’t need them

To cut down on sewing (because you just want to check fit), cut off seam allowances for the neck, cuffs (or armholes if sleeveless), and hems. You don’t need them. If you’re working with burda magazine patterns that have no seam allowance, this is really easy because you only have to add allowances where you’re going to sew.
don’t cut out decorative pieces, just the main garment

If your garment calls for piping, you don’t need to do it. Pockets? Not needed unless you are concerned about their size or placement. Frills on cuffs, neck, etc? Again, not needed unless you don’t know if you’ll like it.
sew

Baste stitch all seam lines together, then try it on. If it calls for a zipper, just pin it together.
let out, take in, and mark

If seams are strained cut them open and add more fabric, re-pin, and mark your new line. Look for bunches or gaps, try taking the seams in to get rid of them. Adjust your neckline and armhole if you need to. Mark all changes.
make new pattern

If you made minor alterations, you’re probably ok to stop here. If you made a lot you may want to make another muslin and check fit again. Repeat as many times as you need until you are happy with the way the muslin is fitting you.

For more information visit: http://www.alleycatscratch.com/lotr/PatternMod/Muslin.htm

Color Inspiration

2009-08-12T00:26:00.001-07:00

Creative Workplace from PotteryBarn

I love the combination of bright blue and black + muted accents.

Recycle Old Clothes

2009-08-10T18:03:00.000-07:00

Alright, so you have some old clothes you want to get rid of, but it’s stained or torn up, and isn’t even Goodwill worthy. Do you just throw it out? No! (Well, maybe)

You should first scavenge things off of it that are still useable like buttons, zippers, clasps, cords, maybe even velcro or elastic if you can get it off somewhat easily.

If it was a well loved t-shirt you can cut out the design and save to make a blanket out of it later.

If the material is in descent shape, you can always make some sort of accessory out of it (headband, bracelet, necklace, etc). Maybe a Louis Vuitton inspired necklace

Burda Sleep Mask (08-2009-146)

2009-08-10T02:45:00.001-07:00

I had an old black spandex tennis skirt I was going to give away, but after thumbing through the latest Burda Style magazine, I noticed there was a pattern for a sleep mask. So I decided to cut it up and make sleep masks instead. The pattern for it is printed in a gray tone right on the page with the instructions, so it was easy to find and trace. What I thought was going to be a pretty simple project ended up taking me all day because I’ve never sewn stretchy material before.

Tip	Pin tissue paper above and below the stretchy fabric. That way the feed dogs don’t stretch out the fabric as it moves through your machine and you don’t stretch out the fabric as you guide it.

Steps I took were:

Trace the pattern using art supply store tracing paper. I bought my paper off Amazon for a decent price.
The instructions tell you not to add seam allowances, but since I wasn’t using the bias tape, I decided to add 1/2 inch to it. To add the extra allowance, I used a compass set so that there was 1/2 inch between the point and the pencil.
After I made one copy, I duplicated it so I would have 2
Pin each to the fabric and cut out
Pin fabric together, keeping on the tissue pattern pieces
Sew using the stretch overlock stitch following the pattern line
Trim close to the stitching, being careful not to cut into the stitching
Sew a band measured to fit your head comfortably to either side of the mask

Food of the day

2009-08-09T03:00:00.001-07:00

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients:

Betty Crocker SuperMoist prepared cake batter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 8oz can crushed pineapple

2 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350 F
Melt butter and place in the bottom of a cake pan
Sprinkle brown sugar on top
Drain pineapple and spread evenly on top
Pour cake batter on top
Bake for 30-35 min or until pick inserted comes out clean

Burda Style 08/2009

2009-08-08T00:00:00.001-07:00

I received my first Burda Magazine today! Here are my first impressions

There’s an entire pattern “packet” inside, it takes up about half the magazine. I was expecting the newsprint patterns to be attached in the middle, but the directions and everything else to be in the magazine part, in the back somewhere. It’s not, there’s a whole newsprint section that includes the patterns and instructions.
The entire magazine is stapled on the middle, it doesn’t have a binding on the spine like a lot of other magazines that tells you the name and the issue. This is both a good and bad thing I think. I’m still debating on how to organize the patterns and such, but I think putting a string through the middle and placing it in a notebook is a good option. As I make the patterns I’ll do my zip lock bag of pattern pieces, the model photo and a picture of the finished project. But it might be good to also have sheets of the available styles somewhere.. computer or in the notebook. I’ll have to think about it more
Every picture looks like an ad. I’m not sure why. When I started flipping through I went right past the first couple pages because I thought they were trying to sell me a motorcycle or cologne or something. Once I recognized a photo from online I realized that they weren’t, in fact, ads. They were professional photos of the garments you could make, along with descriptions of the fabric and other accessories shown.
I had read online that some people were disappointed with how many “crafty” items there were. There really didn’t seem like that many to me. My first reaction was “holy crap, that’s a lot of patterns,” which was probably compounded by the first bullet point in that half the magazine is newsprint.

In the end I’d call it more of a “pattern brochure” than a magazine. ~~I was kind of looking forward to the section that teaches you how to do one of the simpler patterns, but sadly that was omitted in this addition~~. (I found it, it’s in the newsprint section) I would say this magazine is geared more toward the intermediate sewer. Someone who has had experience in doing a wide variety of sewing techniques and doesn’t need to look up or learn many new skills. I’m not there yet. I’m a beginner sewer.

That being said, I’m still going to attempt some of the easier patterns in this issue like this shirt

whose difficulty description is “easy to sew, with simple features.” (and I think it’s super cute.. at least on the model)

photos from http://www.burdafashion.com

New Beginnings

2009-08-07T17:50:00.001-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikbphoto/3152398403/

Here’s to new beginnings! I have decided I need a fresh start, so today I’m going to look at the world anew. Does anyone else feel the need to start fresh?

Plan a schedule
I need to balance work, hobbies, and life. I’m thinking I’ll make a to-do list for every day. It will start out with just a few extra items I need to get done a day and grow as I get used to doing more. Right now I think I’ll begin with something simple: making the bed every day.

For this I’m going to use Remember the Milk for it’s reminding feature. Every day I’ll get a list of tasks I need to get done.

Although I don’t know how good I’ll be at sticking to a list, I’m going to try.

Word of the day

2009-08-07T17:49:00.003-07:00

My word of the day is simplicity. I’m going to strive to keep the things in my life as simple as possible. This means reducing clutter!

photo from http://www.flickr.com/photos/estheticcore/2865135186/

Allison's Corner

Burda Easy Fashion E993 - 2A

Burda Easy Fashion E993 - 5A

Burda Easy Fashion Magazine

Food of the day

Stir Fry

Word of the day

Rest

Burda 08-2009-117 Muslin

Fabric from Fabric.com

Muslin

what is a muslin?

how do I make a muslin?

take off seam allowances where you don’t need them

don’t cut out decorative pieces, just the main garment

sew

let out, take in, and mark

make new pattern

Color Inspiration

Recycle Old Clothes

Burda Sleep Mask (08-2009-146)

Tip

Food of the day

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Burda Style 08/2009

New Beginnings

Word of the day