Newly Obsessed

I don’t know what’s gotten into me lately, but all of a sudden I’ve developed an obsession with envelope patterns.  Whereas before I was content to draft my own patterns or wait patiently for by Burda or Patrones magazines to arrive for painstaking tracing, in the last month or two I’ve become quite fixated on envelope patterns.  Yes, they’re convenient, but there must be more to it than that– convenience has never really been that much of a motivation for me when sewing.  Is it just me, or are envelope patterns becoming chic in a way that they haven’t been for the last few decades?

A few examples for your consideration, which my dear friend Khai was kind enough to pick up for me at the most recent Hancock’s sale:

Lovely, no? I drooled over these for quite a while, and now they have finally arrived, in a padded mailer full of joy.  The Cynthia Rowley on the right is quite popular right now; I’ve ordered some teal silk and cotton blend poplin for it.  The Project Runway on the left has a lot of appealing options, but I’m most taken with the leftmost pink taffeta rendition.  Pink taffeta is not my thing though.  I’m thinking navy cotton lawn, which would make it nice for work with a belt and sweater jacket.

Another recent acquisition (also a Simplicity Project Runway pattern) is this:

My plan is to use the slim version and draft a fitted sleeve, contrast collar, and cuff to create a dress inspired by L’Wren Scott’s headmistress dress, as worn here by Nicole Kidman:

I’m going to need to put a leash on it soon because the discrepancy between the number of patterns I have waiting to be sewn and the amount of free time I actually have for sewing is getting a bit ridiculous.  

And anyway, I need to finish up my dress for Pattern Review’s Little Black Dress contest first.