From Japan with LUV!

Just after Easter I received some Japanese pattern books & mags. I LUV LUV LUV the Pattern Magic books and will have to find a way to incorporate some of the very innovative styling into my projects. The mags, entitled Female, feature styles that are a bit too jeune for a thirty-um-sumthin like me, but there were a few things that caught my eye:

I always like these high-neck designs, but, alas, I do not have the Victorian-esque swan-like neck required to really carry them off very well.
I think the print used for this one is outstanding. I also like the use of darts and tucks to really define the waist.

These two are a variation on a single theme. One in a great textural fabric for the office and the other lengthened and flared for a nice outerwear garment.

Finally, I was planning to make a nightgown out of cotton lawn using Simplicity 3799 in anticipation of the inevitable dog days of summer here in Texas. Then I saw this in the Winter 2008 issue of Female:
With this surprise design element at the back: So, after I finish my nightgown and if all goes well with the Simplicity pattern, I think I will use the pattern drafting instructions for the back of the model in Female and morph it to the Simplicity for a cute, breezy summer frock. I have some cotton gauze in a print and coordinating solid from Joann's that might be just the ticket. Here's the draft from Female: