The idea is that we will find something TO DIE FOR (well, at least to get excited about!) and blog about it… maybe adding pattern notes, too.  We’ll see how that all goes.

SO – for my first offering – direct from netaporter.com:

This Jill Sander Cashmere cardigan.

Why I love it: JIL SANDER!  I love her classic, investment lunching/office wear.  (In Australian designer terms, I’d perhaps compare her to  in Carla Zampatti.)

Cashmere  – swoooon!  There’s a real culture of cashmere  in the US that Queen Sue and I have been noticing for a while now – all  you lucky lucky things who have access to 2nd hand cashmere jumpers!  They’re such a rarity here, we never see them for sale… maybe we just don’t move in the right circles,or maybe cashmere is just too warm for most Australian cities most of the time? Anyway, CASSHHHHHHHMERE!!

And to make it even better – this cardi is in fact 70% cashmere, 30% silk.  Oooh, the luxury.

The drape – so now! And yet this piece will work for years, I reckon.

The colour! “slate”.  Ooh, works with black, works with colours, works with denim… Yum.

Only problem isssssssss: the price.  Yep, that’s  £750 Great Britain Pounds – or $1557.44 Australian pesos dollars.  YIKES!

Sadly, so far I haven’t seen any patterns that have even a slightly similar back drape.  I can see how it’s done (I think!) with a long, curved back extension on one of the back pattern pieces; the other pattern piece would then be considerably shorter and the drape hides the seam… you can see the small reinforcing square that suggests this construction when you look at the front shot.  Think I might have to grab the 12″ mannequin and have a bit of a play with this idea!

(Oh, I just remembered an issue of Threads that had just the sort of drape on the front of a skirt!  Issue #127, October/November 2006)

Aha!

(That issue is still available to back order, if this is something that you MUST have!)

OR if you have any ideas on the construction, please comment – I’m really curious about this! Has anyone tried something like this?