Cover Designs! #37: Dear Mrs. Bird

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well.

Today's pick is Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce.

Summary from the Publisher

London 1940, bombs are falling. Emmy Lake is Doing Her Bit for the war effort, volunteering as a telephone operator with the Auxiliary Fire Services. When Emmy sees an advertisement for a job at the London Evening Chronicle, her dreams of becoming a Lady War Correspondent seem suddenly achievable. But the job turns out to be typist to the fierce and renowned advice columnist, Henrietta Bird. Emmy is disappointed, but gamely bucks up and buckles down.

Mrs Bird is very clear: Any letters containing Unpleasantness—must go straight in the bin. But when Emmy reads poignant letters from women who are lonely, may have Gone Too Far with the wrong men and found themselves in trouble, or who can’t bear to let their children be evacuated, she is unable to resist responding. As the German planes make their nightly raids, and London picks up the smoldering pieces each morning, Emmy secretly begins to write letters back to the women of all ages who have spilled out their troubles.

This retro inspired outfit could be put together fairly quickly - you could use the Astoria Sweater pattern by Seamwork to sew up a knit top; you'd just have to shorten the sleeve to get this look! It even has a nice ribbing at the bottom to copy this cover image really closely. 

The skirt is a crisp A-line and could be replicated with the Liesl & Co. Garibaldi Skirt, in the mid-length view. This is an easy sew and a great fit for big prints like the cover image, since there are no front or back seams to worry about! 

Finish up your look with a nice pair of pumps and some fun upcycled typewriter themed jewellery!  

Enjoy this charming story with its vintage flair and make yourself a bright vintage inspired outfit to wear while reading! 

Cover Designs! #36: No one is Coming to Save Us

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well.

Today's pick is No One Is Coming to Save Us by Stephanie Powell Watts. 

Summary from the Publisher: 

JJ Ferguson has returned home to Pinewood, North Carolina to build his dream home and to woo his high school sweetheart, Ava. But he finds that the people he once knew and loved have changed, just as he has. Ava is now married, and wants a baby more than anything. The decline of the town’s once-thriving furniture industry has made Ava’s husband Henry grow distant and frustrated. Ava’s mother Sylvia has put her own life on hold as she caters to and meddles with those around her, trying to fill the void left by her absent son. And Don, Sylvia’s undeserving but charming husband, just won’t stop hanging around.

JJ’s newfound wealth forces everyone to consider what more they want and deserve from life than what they already have—and how they might go about getting it. Can they shape their lives to align with their wishes rather than their realities? Or are they resigned to the rhythms of the particular lives they lead? No One Is Coming to Save Us is a revelatory debut from an insightful voice that combines a universally resonant story with an intimate glimpse into the hearts of one family.

This beautiful summer outfit on the cover of this dress could be reproduced with a few pattern ideas. The first one I thought of was the Know Me 2040 by Brittany J. Jones. It has slightly wider straps and a skirt that's a bit fuller, but it's close. 

Or the Claudia dress by Tessuti might work -- it has the lower, angled bodice of the cover image and skinny straps too. It has a straight skirt, and even has pockets!

You might even choose a similar fabric, like this black and white floral from Fabrics & Fabrics

If you want to accessorize like the lovely woman on the cover, you can use the new Closet Core Sunhat pattern -- it's free, has a sewalong video, and looks very similar to our cover image! 

You could even make a bag to match, the Classic Handbag by Mrs H is similar though not quite so square. Still, make it in black and it would be close.

Any of these ideas combined could get you close to the elegant summer outfit on the cover of this book. Perfect for summer reading. 

Literary Sewing Circle: Author Feature!

 

Today's the day to talk about the author of our pick for this round of the #LiterarySewingCircle! Connie Willis is a multiple award winning author of speculative fiction. She has won, among other awards, ten Hugo Awards and six Nebula Awards, including Hugos for every book in the Oxford Time Travel series. She was the 2011 recipient of the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award from the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA).

She lives in Greeley, Colorado with her family.

By Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0

Her interests in her fiction lie in exploring the unusual - from time travel to telepathy to alien visitations! There is also a strong element of humour, especially snappy dialogue and ridiculous mishaps, influenced by classic screwball comedies. 

To find out more about her influences, favourite reading and most recommended movies, you can read a recent interview with her by the LA Public Library. It focuses on her most recent book, The Road to Roswell (which features alien abductions and more) but ranges widely, and even gives a hint at another Time Travel book in the works. 

What is her connection with making and sewing? Well, for one thing her husband Courtney is an accomplished quilter, and Willis has written an account of their trip to Quilt Town, USA (aka Hamilton, Missouri) It's an entertaining story, especially her description of trying to explain the fact that it's her husband who's the quilter.  

Another aspect of her work that I find fascinating is how she uses clothing and fashion as a character building device. When our historians are going out to a new assignment, they look closely at the clothing and hairstyles and all important accessories that will make them fit in -- we notice people around us, and consider them part of our society, partly because of how they look and the small details of daily life that reveal someone who is the same as the rest of us. 

As Ned takes his first trip back to the Victorian era, he's carefully dressed in a striped blazer, flannels, and a boater. And of course appropriate facial hair. And Verity can't be sent too far out of bounds when she gets lost in translation, because of the Victorian gown she is wearing - the Net doesn't want her going too far afield, so as not to cause any disruptions to the space time continuum by appearing vastly out of place in her current garments. 

In Willis' most recent book, The Road to Roswell, the main character tries on a ghastly lime green bridesmaid dress early in the book which she has to wear for lengthy periods -- the alien in the story has a conniption when she changes into something else because it thinks her clothing is her actual self. Really interesting to think about how clothing "makes the man", so to speak. 

Although Willis doesn't speak much about making, sewing or fashion directly, I think her interest in it shows in many of her books, and enlarges our perceptions of her characters. Her vast mental library of references to other literature, to films and history, also includes the fashion of everyday life. I hope if you read more of her work after this book, you will find this as well! 

Cover Designs!: #35 Look At Me

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well.

Today's pick is Look At Me, a book by an English author, Sarah Duguid.

Summary from the publisher:

Lizzy lives with her father, Julian, and her brother, Ig, in North London. Two years ago her mother died, leaving in a trail a family bereft by her absence and a house still filled with her things: for Margaret was lively, beautiful, fun, loving; she kept the family together. So Lizzy thinks. Then, one day, Lizzy finds a letter from a stranger to her father, and discovers he has another child. Lizzy invites her into their world in an act of outraged defiance. Almost immediately, she realises her mistake.

Look at Me is a deft exploration of family, grief, and the delicate balance between moving forward and not quite being able to leave someone behind. It is an acute portrayal of how familial upheaval can cause misunderstanding and madness, damaging those you love most.

There are quite a few lookalike patterns for this dual cover dress. First up is Butterick 5181. View A looks perfect, even with a waistband, but I think it may be OOP now. 

If you can't find this one, you could try the more recent Butterick 6759, which also has a similar waist yoke to the cover design, although this pattern has buttons down the front of the skirt. You could adapt that though! 

If neither of these Big 4 patterns floats your boat, there are a few Indies that might work as well! You could try the V-Neck Dress from DG Patterns which is quite similar -- but it offers a knit option while the cover design really says woven to me. 

Or you could use the V-Neck Dress woven pattern from Tailorpatterns on Etsy. It might also capture the shape of our cover design dresses. It's one of many classic designs from this pattern shop. 

As to the fabric choice, well, it's going to be a surface design assignment for you, or an opportunity for some creative piecing! Fabric paint, applique, scrap piecing or a lucky Spoonflower find might suit you if you want an exact copy of either one. I see some pattern hacking in the cards if you want to make your own version, in either colourway. Have fun if you do give this a try! 

Cover Designs!: #34 Last Christmas in Paris

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's pick is a seasonal one: Last Christmas in Paris by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb. 

Summary from the publisher: 

August 1914. England is at war. As Evie Elliott watches her brother, Will, and his best friend, Thomas Harding, depart for the front, she believes—as everyone does—that it will be over by Christmas, when the trio plan to celebrate the holiday among the romantic cafes of Paris.

But as history tells us, it all happened so differently…

Evie and Thomas experience a very different war. Frustrated by life as a privileged young lady, Evie longs to play a greater part in the conflict—but how?—and as Thomas struggles with the unimaginable realities of war he also faces personal battles back home where War Office regulations on press reporting cause trouble at his father’s newspaper business. Through their letters, Evie and Thomas share their greatest hopes and fears—and grow ever fonder from afar. Can love flourish amid the horror of the First World War, or will fate intervene?

Christmas 1968. With failing health, Thomas returns to Paris—a cherished packet of letters in hand—determined to lay to rest the ghosts of his past. But one final letter is waiting for him…

The startling red of the coat on the cover of this book calls out for a copy! There are a few options to make a classic coat like this. You might start with Vogue 9367. Even though you can't see the front of the cover image, you might want a coat with some interesting detail on the front, like this Vogue pattern has. The back looks nearly identical to the cover image, if you use View C for length.

You might also try the Closet Core Siena Maker Jacket. It would just need to be lengthened a bit from its above-knee option to replicate the look of this coat quite well. 

Or, you could try the free Hydrus coat from Mood Sewciety. While this pattern was created with cosplay in mind, it's quite a nice coat, with the perfect silhouette to copy this cover design. 

While you're at Mood you could check out their red wool blends, like this cashmere/wool coating

Or for something a little more fiery red, you could use this mohair wool coating from King Textiles. 

Whichever pattern or fabric you might choose, coat making could be a fun winter project accompanied by listening to this book in audio format. 

Cover Designs!: #33 When We Were Young

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's book, When We Were Young by Jaclyn Goldis, gives us that last glimpse of summer!

Summary from the publisher:

Three generations of women come together in this page-turning debut full of family secrets, heart-wrenching drama, and the promise of second chances.

Corfu, 1942 : To sixteen-year-old Sarah Batis, the Nazis are a distant danger—of far greater threat is the opposing needs of her heart and her people. Tradition demands that Sarah marry a Jewish man. Only Sarah has fallen in love with a fisherman outside their community. And when the Nazis invade, Sarah must watch from afar as her family is taken away. . .

Corfu, 2004 : Sarah's daughter, Bea, has built a happy life with a steadfast husband and two independent daughters. Their summers on the Greek island with the Winn family appear idyllic, especially the love that blossoms between Bea's daughter Joey and Leo Winn. But there is a secret threatening their beach paradise.

Florida, 2019 : Joey is only days away from marrying the nice Jewish man her family adores. The arrival of Leo, Joey's first love, sends her reeling. Even after fifteen years, the attraction between them burns bright—but Leo isn't looking for a happy reunion. He's there to reveal why he really broke up with her during their last summer together.

Weddings have a way of bringing out the best—and worst—in those you love the most. And as the revelations of her family flood to the surface, what Joey learns will either bring them closer together . . . or tear them apart forever.

This simple sundress has a couple of notable features. First, those straps look like they are made with ribbon rather than self fabric - easily adapted in this pattern suggestions. Also, there is perhaps a waistband, or maybe it's a belt. You pick!  

The first suggestion to copy this cover design is the Avid Seamstress Sun Dress. It has the silhouette and a back similar to the cover dress, although the skirt is slightly fuller here. If you changed the straps to a ribbon, you could get a close match!

For another option that is similar, although with the small difference of an elastic back waistband, try the Wide Strap Maxi Dress created by Elbe Textiles for Peppermint Magazine. It's slightly lower in the back and longer as well, but has that light summery vibe. 

And to top it off you can make yourself a Cote D'Azure sun hat by ShannonMac Designs. Just add a black ribbon and you're set. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Cover Designs!: #32 Fatal Inheritance

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's pick -- Fatal Inheritance by Rachel Rhys -- is set in the late 40s, moving from gloomy England to the sparkling French Riviera. 

Summary from the Publisher:

London 1948: Eve Forrester is stuck in a loveless marriage, isolated in her gray and gloomy house when out of the blue, she receives a letter. A wealthy stranger has left her a mysterious inheritance but in order to find out more, she must travel to the glittering French Riviera.

There, Eve discovers she has been bequeathed an enchanting villa overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and suddenly, life could not be more glamorous. But while she rubs shoulders with the rich and famous, challengers to her unexplained fortune begin to emerge—challengers who would love to see Eve gone forever.

Alone in paradise, Eve must unlock the story behind her surprise bequest—before her unexpected twist of fate turns deadly…

The cover dress is one I'd love to wear myself -- especially in the same location! I love the colour and the fabric looks like a nice sturdy cotton of some kind. 

The FibreMood Ivory Dress would be perfect if you just changed the sleeve to a cap sleeve! It has that pointed back yoke (and front ones too) and a nice full skirt. 

Another option would be KwikSew 4133. This one is a little more Western wear style, but all in yellow, again with the sleeves changed to a cap sleeve, it would be very similar, even down to the princess seam lines. Just add a sash and you'll be set. 

Then you could crochet yourself this little hat pattern by LilyHandmade Studio, in some raffia yarn, and you'd have the outfit down pat! 

All you'd have left to find in order to really match the cover is the location. But I'll leave that part up to you ;) 

Cover Designs! #31: In Honor

 

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's pick is a YA novel that would be a good summer read -- it's by Jessi Kirby, titled In Honor. 

Summary from the Publisher:

Honor receives her brother’s last letter from Iraq three days after learning that he died, and opens it the day his fellow Marines lay the flag over his casket. Its contents are a complete shock: concert tickets to see Kyra Kelly, her favorite pop star and Finn’s celebrity crush. In his letter, he jokingly charged Honor with the task of telling Kyra Kelly that he was in love with her.

Grief-stricken and determined to grant Finn’s last request, she rushes to leave immediately. But she only gets as far as the driveway before running into Rusty, Finn’s best friend since third grade and his polar opposite. She hasn’t seen him in ages, thanks to a falling out between the two guys, but Rusty is much the same as Honor remembers him: arrogant, stubborn . . . and ruggedly good-looking. Neither one is what the other would ever look for in a road trip partner, but the two of them set off together, on a voyage that makes sense only because it doesn’t. Along the way, they find small and sometimes surprising ways to ease their shared loss and honor Finn--but when shocking truths are revealed at the end of the road, will either of them be able to cope with the consequences?

This is a funky summer outfit, and there are two dresses that spring to mind, although I'm sure there are plenty of patterns in this style out there. 

The first choice would be the Sew Over It Rosie Dress (on sale today only, too). This has the perfect shape for a knock-off of this cover, including the cute accent at the neckline. 

A fabric like this might give a close match! 

Viscose Abstract Dot from Fabricville

If you wanted to highlight the tinge of red in the cover dress a little more forcefully, this bright print would make a great summer dress, too.

Art Deco Petals from FabricsGalore

The next option might be a vintage reprint. McCalls 7599, View A (leaving out the petticoat) would give a very similar result to this cover image. 

And of course to top off this look, you'd need to find some slouchy red cowboy boots! These Jessica Simpson boots at Poshmark were the closest version I could find, but red velvety ones would give an even closer match! 

Whatever you wear in the sunshine this summer, I hope you enjoy it - and all your summer reading too.

Cover Designs! #30: Well Matched

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's pick is a rom-com title that's part of a series all set in the world of Renaissance Fairs; it's Well Matched by Jen DeLuca.

Summary from the publisher: 

Single mother April Parker has lived in Willow Creek for twelve years with a wall around her heart. On the verge of being an empty nester, she’s decided to move on from her quaint little town, and asks her friend Mitch for his help with some home improvement projects to get her house ready to sell.

Mitch Malone is known for being the life of every party, but mostly for the attire he wears to the local Renaissance Faire—a kilt (and not much else) that shows off his muscled form to perfection. While he agrees to help April, he needs a favor too: she'll pretend to be his girlfriend at an upcoming family dinner, so that he can avoid the lectures about settling down and having a more “serious” career than high school coach and gym teacher. April reluctantly agrees, but when dinner turns into a weekend trip, it becomes hard to tell what's real and what's been just for show. But when the weekend ends, so must their fake relationship.

As summer begins, Faire returns to Willow Creek, and April volunteers for the first time. When Mitch's family shows up unexpectedly, April pretends to be Mitch's girlfriend again...something that doesn't feel so fake anymore. Despite their obvious connection, April insists they’ve just been putting on an act. But when there’s the chance for something real, she has to decide whether to change her plans--and open her heart--for the kilt-wearing hunk who might just be the love of her life.

This fun summer read has lots of potential! And you get two outfits in one: modern women's wear, and Ren Fair-ish men's wear ;) 

For April's outfit, you could probably whip up this pair quickly, using any free t-shirt pattern, something like the Toronto Tee by Rebecca page, or the Anything But Basic Tee by DIBY.

And it's hard to tell in the drawing if April is wearing jeans or close fitting trousers. Either way, you could whip up this whole outfit from Closet Core patterns, using the Ginger Jeans or Sasha Trousers, plus their new free Core Tee. 

As for Mitch, well, this outfit takes a little more finagling to put together. The top could probably be made using a nice linen or cotton blend, using this Butterick 4486 historical pattern - View B would be the closet match. 

The kilt is more of a tutorial kind of make, rather than a paper pattern. You can find instructions on kilt making on the Scottish Dance website. But if you'd prefer more of a pattern with some historical info included, you can also go to the Folkwear Scottish Kilt pattern. This includes instructions on the measurments and construction of men's and women's kilts, as well as actual patterns for the men's vest and jacket. 

Or if you want to go full traditional, check out the online class that Paula Duncan offers via her Kilt Making Academy -- she's a bespoke kilt maker who also teaches the basics. It looks very cool! 

Enjoy your summer sewing and reading! I hope that if this Cover Designs entertained you, you'll look up the whole Jen DeLuca series for some fun summer reading.