Burda magazine March 2015

I’m of two minds when I get a pattern magazine in the post and there’s really nothing I want to sew from it. On one hand – “arrgh! What a waste of my subscription money!”, but on the other, well, at least there’s nothing new to be added to my already-overflowing Must Sew list, right?

I don’t often comment on the covers of magazines, but seriously, did no one at Burda HQ look at the “aloha hawaii” writing overlaid onto the skirt of the same colour and not foresee problems?!? Maybe we should reclaim “aloha haw” and get it trending on twitter, pff.

Oh geez. Let’s start with the abomination on the left – to me this looks like she took a burlap feedsack, wrapped it around her waist, and borrowed some man’s belt to hastily cinch it together. The jungle background isn’t helping, either, all I can think is that she’s on some survival tv show, forced to cover herself with whatever’s available. The unwearable jumpsuit on the right is almost chic in comparison – if you overlook the fact that it’s open to the navel ad requires wearing something else underneath it (the jumpsuit in the upcoming Sewing Bee book is far, far nicer).

This dolman-sleeved woven top is quite a nice take on a woven tee (which are much more frequently short sleeved or sleevless). I’m not completely sold on the underbust gathering, but that could easily be converted to pleats or darts. Still, a nice enough staple to have in your pattern arsenal.

This wrap dress is probably my favourite of this issue – I rather like the waist treatment, and the deep pleats at the skirt are flattering, too. Overall, a really nice, fresh take on the usual wrap dress.

I’m of two minds when I get a pattern magazine in the post and there’s really nothing I want to sew from it. On one hand – “arrgh! What a waste of my subscription money!”, but on the other, well, at least there’s nothing new to be added to my already-overflowing Must Sew list, right?

I don’t often comment on the covers of magazines, but seriously, did no one at Burda HQ look at the “aloha hawaii” writing overlaid onto the skirt of the same colour and not foresee problems?!? Maybe we should reclaim “aloha haw” and get it trending on twitter, pff.

Oh geez. Let’s start with the abomination on the left – to me this looks like she took a burlap feedsack, wrapped it around her waist, and borrowed some man’s belt to hastily cinch it together. The jungle background isn’t helping, either, all I can think is that she’s on some survival tv show, forced to cover herself with whatever’s available. The unwearable jumpsuit on the right is almost chic in comparison – if you overlook the fact that it’s open to the navel ad requires wearing something else underneath it (the jumpsuit in the upcoming Sewing Bee book is far, far nicer).

This dolman-sleeved woven top is quite a nice take on a woven tee (which are much more frequently short sleeved or sleevless). I’m not completely sold on the underbust gathering, but that could easily be converted to pleats or darts. Still, a nice enough staple to have in your pattern arsenal.

This wrap dress is probably my favourite of this issue – I rather like the waist treatment, and the deep pleats at the skirt are flattering, too. Overall, a really nice, fresh take on the usual wrap dress.

I couldn’t bring myself to scan each and every hideous wedding gown in the wedding feature. With every single one I thought to myself “ugh! What a horrible, ugly dress. If I saw a bride dressed in that I’d pity her, and then think less of her for choosing to wear that out of all the dresses in the world…”. And then I’d turn the page and think the exact same thing all over again. Ugh, Burda, I know you do weddings every March, but if you haven’t got anything good, just repeat some old ones, or do that thing where you copy famous vintage celebrity gowns, remember that? Those were great! These are just depressing.

I love the concept of creating colourblocking by overlaying fabric onto existing tops or dresses. But Burda’s method sucks! Yes, why don’t we interface jersey, then clip and press back the seam allowances and then, to top it all off, hand stitch them in place (so that as soon as you move the stitches pop!). Yes, why don’t we…

And to top off this stinker of an issue, I give you… the frumpiest pair of dresses to ever grace the pages of Burda, conveniently placed on the same page of the Plus section. Seriously, the poor model looks like she’s three times larger than she is, and the fabric just looks cheap and nasty, like someone was let loose in the quilting cottons section of Joann Fabrics. Ugh.

The designs I didn’t pick out from this issue I was just pretty ambivalent about – I know there was lots of asymmetry which is usually my thing, but this all just seemed a bit too quirky and hastily tacked on to an otherwise standard design. The good news is, I’ve got a Manequim magazine to show you later this week, and it’s a bit better!

What about you, did you like this issue? I know some people found a lot to like in it, so maybe it’s just me!

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