This post-blogday, pre-birthday giveaway is for your choice of two patterns:
1) Vogue 1222 in size AA (6-8-10-12), a pattern I bought new not too long ago but haven't used. It's an Anne Klein New York dress with some great topstitching details; I think it would be perfect for office wear in a tropical wool or lightweight double knit (two of the recommended fabrics). On the Vogue patterns website you can see more pattern details, including this dress description:
Fitted, lined, above mid-knee dress has short (unlined) sleeves, seam and topstitch details, back vent and invisible zipper.

It looks like a good pattern (check out this fabulous review) to me but I don't think I'm going to get around to it.
OR
2) Simplicity 2922 in a size P5 (12,14,16,18,20) (EUR 38-40) (FR 40-48), another pattern I bought new but have not gotten around to making. This one has a lot of positive reviews over at Pattern Review, and looks like a straightforward dress to make - with several options for length, sleeves, and neckband.

This pattern is out of print but still available on the Simplicity website if you want to see some better quality pictures or zoom in on the images.
Any rules? Yes. This time around it's only open to followers - but you can be anywhere in the world; I'm happy to post internationally. Entries close at midnight Sydney time on Tuesday, 8th November. Oh and if your email address isn't available from your profile or your blog please note that in your comment so I can contact you if you win.That's it~!
Now onto the t-shirt :-). Bet you were looking forward to that!
So... I thought I'd try making a t-shirt from a proper pattern, Vogue 8650 - ooh the novelty - and given how simple t-shirts are, I assumed success would be guaranteed.
Not necessarily. Can you define success?
This is an OK around the house / post-beach kind of t-shirt, and very comfortable (I'm wearing it now) but it's just not good enough for casual Fridays at work or for a BBQ with friends. It reminds me of a cheap t-shirt I bought at Target a few years back for its colour (and that I now wear to the gym). I guess if it gets more saggy in the wash it can makes friends with the others in the gym collection.
I made this in a straight size 12, but it feels too big in the neckline and sleeves and the fabric pools around the waist. I guess it would be good for the first trimester of a pregnancy. It's easy to make as in there aren't too many steps and only 3 pattern pieces. However, there's a bias binding applied to the non-pleated areas of the neckline, and even with my walking foot the knit fabric on top of bias binding didn't want to sit flat. And others on Pattern Review have commented that the pleats are not equal widths (I adjusted them as I went to try to make them look even).
PS Yes that is a strange thing on my head, I believe it's called a fascinator, but we can say it's a flower. We had a fabulous work function for half the day to celebrate the 10 mins or less of Melbourne Cup race, and the happy buzz lingered to the evening - so the flower got to stay on when I changed out of my nice frock :-).