August Burda picks

In answer to a few commenters from my last shorts post, yes, that was a Burda magazine pattern. Whenever you see me write Burda with a string of numbers behind it, the first number stands for the month, the second the year, and the third number is the pattern number in that specific magazine. So Burda 06-2011-111 is pattern #111 from the June 2011 issue. I had several questions about that and wanted to clear up any confusion.

This is my last magazine unless I renew my subscription, which I'm not planning to do anytime soon. Those white shorts I just made were my first use of the magazine this year, and I don't feel like I'm using it enough to warrant the cost. Plus the designs just aren't that innovative lately. There seem to be lots of repeats. I still LOVE the magazine, but will be taking a little break from it for awhile.

Jacket 101 I really like. It has interesting design lines and detailing with that double buttoning front,  and y'all know I love topstitching. 

 Jacket 102 is my favorite from this month's designs. What an awesome military look with the shiny brass buttons and red piping. I would love to copy the example and use a navy wool. It's just gorgeous!

A while back I over-did it on the puff sleeve and couldn't get enough of them. Now I'm totally over that design element and don't even want to wear what I've already made. So blouse 107 isn't an obvious choice. But once you look past the puffy sleeves this really is a cute top. It's fitted, has ruffles but no collar so could be worn under a tailored jacket for fall/winter. (Duh, Amanda, see how they've styled it above.) Leaving off the sleeves and finishing the armholes with some bias tape should be easy.

 Skirt 121 is a fun little pencil skirt. And I always love tummy ruching on garments.

I'm really not sure why I'm drawn to dress 125. It's not very practical with that scarf thing around the neck (winter) and short cap sleeves (summer). Plus it's a tall pattern. Maybe I like it because they've made it up in such a fun black and white fabric. I'll probably not make it but do like it.

Okay, dress 126 is super cute! I love the shape of it and the use of two different fabrics. A little bit of camisole showing through adds a nice layering look. I'll be shortening it to the knee.

 Honestly, when I started looking at these patterns previewed on the Russia Burda site, I was a little miffed. How dare they go from hum-drum to interesting for my very last month?! Are the next few magazines going to be awesome now that I've decided not to renew? Then I looked at the September preview in the back and saw that folk-styled designs are back again and thought - Nope! Same old Burda! Now it feels like a really nice send off instead.

Did I miss any of your favorites?