Femme Fatale

Did anyone's New Year's resolutions start off with "1. Become femme fatale"? If so, this is the pattern for you. The jacket alone would drive a good man to a life of crime, right? (And notice that all of the women in the illustration are wearing the same shoes, standard issue in femme-fatale boot camp. In fact, at femme-fatale boot camp, you sleep in four-inch heels. It builds (lack of) character.)

Sadly, my resolutions are all of the mundane kind ("achieve world domination, clean out hall closet") so this dress isn't for me. (I think, for world domination AND cleaning out the closet, you need sleeves, or else how can you roll them up to get started?)

If you do buy and make this, I would suggest staying away from black-and-red as a color combination; it's a bit cliché, fatale-ly speaking. Why not try a very deep, almost poisonous green, with a chartreuse-yellow lining to the collar? Daring and absinthe-ish, no? Or maybe a leonine gold-yellow, with a deep chocolate lining (good for brunettes). And why not two shades of pink, pale and hot? For blondes, I'd do that deep cobalt lined with a sky (or Carolina) blue. With your sapphires, of course. (Which you acquired in a slightly underhanded way. But don't worry, it's not your fault the bank went under. How were you to know that darling Mr. Wilkins was so unstable?)

If you, like me, think being a femme fatale is too much trouble, perhaps you should consider this dress instead. Much more practical.

Thanks to Jen (at MOMsPatterns, who got it from Julie at Damn Good Vintage ...) for the link! Click on the image to visit the eBay auction (and to see a much bigger picture).