ruffly blouses = love.

I spent the better part of the past 3 days dreaming of sewing rather than sewing anything. BUT...while I dreamed, I traced! That's where I get most of my tracing done, in fact. Those days when I don't feel like actually sewing on one of the many UFOs lying about, I pop a movie in the dvd player and trace all those lovely garments BWOF (now BS) puts in my mailbox monthly.

This weekend I concentrated on blouses, because I love love love all of the retro and vintage-styled blouses BS has had in recent months. And of course, Emma Pillsbury wears any number of gorgeous ruffly and bow tied blouses every week too, which only spurs me on. I especially love this, in its over the top ruffliness:


Luckily, it's a basic button-front blouse pattern. The lace ruffles are what makes the shirt. I've got a couple of patterns that will work, including the Simplicity one I just finished (if I add a collar from another pattern).

And this blouse has made numerous appearances on Glee, which is enough to convince me I need one. Right now.



What I really love about it is that it has a V-neck, AND a tie. I mean, you don't really see that too often! I'm chesty (heh), so I like open necklines as a rule. I have made a "muslin" of the Miss MoneyPenny Pussycat Blouse (it's not quite finished I screwed up the collar and had to rip it out and reattach last weekend.)


I have to say...Vintage Hotpatterns instructions?? Not my favorite thing.

This BWOF top from the plus section in the 9/2009 issue is also a V-neck with a tie. Very chic. Traced it last night and can't wait to try it! Note that this issue also has a great, basic pencil skirt. And, not that you can tell from this drawing, nor from the photo in the magazine, but it has this great flounce in back! I would have totally missed it if Shannon hadn't pointed it out. Amazing skirt. It always pays to check the back views in the instruction section!



Then, just in the spirit of ruffly blouses, I remembered this great top I had dogeared from the 6/2007 issue:

Started tracing it, graded and did the FBA on the CF piece when this nagging deja vu thing just would NOT leave me alone. And then it dawned on me. I had just traced THIS ruffly top from the Spring 2010 issue of Burda Plus magazine:
Doh. Except for the bit of gathering at the bustline (which I could easily add to my ALREADY TRACED pattern), its nearly identical. In fact, I sort of like the plus version better!

For fabrics, I have a yummy robin's egg Imperial batiste and a lavender voile. Both will require a nice cami underneath, so I better get cracking on a pattern for that too. I also have some white Imperial that I'd like to use for the lace top.

Better get my buns offline if I want to see any of these garments in real life though!