Doctor T Designs

The latest collections from Simplicity and New Look are here!  Which would be a bit more exciting if they weren’t so full of pattern re-prints.  It seems as though Simplicity has retired all of their Game of Thrones inspired patterns and re-released them with new covers.  Even some of the New Look patterns have obviously been reprinted from recent releases (that are actually still in the current line!).  There are, however, some great new superhero patterns, which, clearly are a result of Disney owning Marvel and having licensing with Simplicity.  I’m predicting licensed Star Wars patterns within the next year (maybe as soon as the winter release if they can swing it, which would coincide nicely with the release of Episode VII) for the same reason.  It also seems that Simplicity has picked up the licensing from DC as well.  Granted, the fall release always has a lot of costume patterns (pre-Halloween), but this release seems to contain more than normal.  An attempt to compete with the new “Cosplay by McCall’s” site perhaps?  Interesting…  Anyway, back to actually discussing this release.

The licensed costumes (based on characters from DC, Marvel, Disney) from Simplicity are the most exciting patterns, so let’s start there:

 

There are also a lot of spooky-ish/more generic Halloween costumes:

Cute Jack Skellington Costume!

And, of course, there are all of the GoT reprints, which I’ve shown next to the original patterns:

Simplicity 1045 is the same as Simplicity 9891, which is an older pattern (back from the Lord of the Rings days).  All of the others are re-releases from the past few years that only seem to have changed the color of the gowns in the photographs.

As far as the rest of the release goes, there aren’t too many regular garment patterns, though I am rather partial to the Mimi G. patterns, and some of the other knit designs.

Love the turtleneck tunic and leggings.

I’m also digging this coat!  The shoulder cape adds a nice dramatic flair.

This simple knit dress is the sort of style that could look good on a lot of different body types.  The styling on the green one is particularly convincing in terms of adding it to my pattern wishlist.

These Amazing fit trousers are just my style.

At first I wasn’t too impressed with this pattern, but it has grown on me and now I’m rather liking it.  It has enough details and shaping to have an nice fit, but could be dressier or a bit more casual depending on fabric choice.

Vintage re-release from the 60s.  The diagonal seams remind me of the designs from the Fall Burda Easy from last year.

For those who need scrubs, this pattern has some interesting color blocking designs on top.

At first glance, the New Look patterns are pretty snazzy, especially some of the dress designs, but, again, I’m certain I’ve seen at least one of them before:

I thought this looked familiar!  I’ve been meaning to sew 6243 for a while now.

The dresses with the ruched tops are pretty!  I’m sure I’ve got a Burda pattern that has the same style as the more plain dresses though.

The shape of the skirt is slightly different, but the bodice has the same shaping as the previous pattern.

Another pattern that is a pretty, but similar to designs I already own.

The collar looks awfully tight on the model, but otherwise a nice basic blouse.

I’m rather excited by these capes – the arms slits seem to be quite practical, and the details are nice.

The rest of the release is a nice collection of wardrobe basics – simple, practical designs that aren’t particularly original or exciting, but are still solid patterns to have in a stash.

And that’s about it!  Overall Simplicity has a nice release of costume patterns, with a few exciting knits and coats, and New Look has a lot of pretty dresses, and a few other wardrobe basics.  It is certainly exciting to see the increase in licensed costume patterns, but I must admit I’m a bit confused over the re-release of all the GoT inspired patterns, especially when, with the exception of 9891, they have all be released so recently.  In any case, I still think I’ll be picking up a fair number of these new patterns.  So, what do you all think?  Are you excited by all the costume patterns, or bored because of the lack of other designs?  How do you feel about the large number of pattern re-releases?  Feel free to discuss in the comments!