I plan on sewing today, and to get in the mood I’ve been trawling the web for patterns.
I adore Japanese designed clothing, so it will come as no surprise that I am doing some serious hand fanning over this pattern book. Tres cute. See the rest here. Love, love love them all.
Wouldn’t wear them all, oh no. That would be silly, as I am not built like a Japanese teenager. But the boxy jacket is definitely me, and the polkadot dress from the cover? Can’t you just see that with one of Ysolda’s little sweaters, like Briar Rose or Liesl.
I was inches away from buying this polkadot pattern book, with my cursor poised above the Buy It Now button, when I noticed that a 35 inch bust is apparently what passes for large in Japan.
Well damn and double damn.
If you’re smaller (and younger) than me, and you sew, there are more of the same to be had from this ebay seller. If, like me, you’re of a certain age and size, you will find momentary diversion in the English translations of Japanese titles.
*wistful sigh*
It’s been a while (more than ten years) since I’ve done any sewing, but… could the patterns be sized up? I mean, it would take some fiddling with math and maybe a photocopier but would that be possible?
They could totally be resized, but I’d have to do it to every pattern I wanted to sew from the book. Seems easier on the whole to just find a pattern that’s close in styling, that comes in my size.
If you want something that fits a typical middle aged western body and are well drafted, sew up beautifully, try Ottobre Design. They are based in Finland, but have pattern magazines in English. I like Burda (from Germany) too.
You are 100% evil. After more than ten years of my mother encouraging me to sew, this book of sassy little dresses has seduced me to to sewing side. Mom is thrilled, naturally. 😉
If it’s any consolation, Japanese men look better in skinny jeans than Japanese women.
Yeah, Japanese women are small in many ways, and it’s not just the teenagers. Nothing is more frustrating than being tall and busty in the US and not finding ANYTHING living in Japan. You can find “Queen Size” clothing, but sleeves here are never long enough for me. And don’t get me started on the padded bras (I think my US C-cup is an I-cup here).
let me know when you find that pattern, because I would love it in my size too!
Darn, I was so excited at seeing that cover picture! I didn’t even read the rest of the post before I opened the link. Then I saw that my 42″ chest won’t fit into any of these. 😛 I have a wedding to go to in September and that dress would be just the thing with a little knit cardigan for the Bay Area breezes. Let us know if you find a similarly styled one…