My first love.
The initial spark to sew for me started way back in 2003 when I stumbled upon this magazine in a bookstore. Back then it was known as Burda World of Fashion (BWOF). When I browsed the first copy I found, I was awestruck. The magazine is jampacked with beautiful European designs (easily 2-3 years ahead in trends) and comes with full size patterns. It opened up a whole new world to me. A world of sewing gorgeous designs, using beautiful fabrics with endless possibilities and to be able to do it on my own! So I started hoarding the magazine. I even asked the MPH boy to save a copy for me every month and call me to pick it up at the bookstore when it arrives from the magazine dealer.
Back then, I have a sewing machine. A cheap, generic brand, purchased at the hypermarket which once broken, no one can fix. And that exactly what happened. The machine died on me barely a year of its sorry life with me. I managed to sew some pillowcases, bedsheets, curtains and errrmm....about ONE pattern from my precious BWOF lol
I remember sewing a cute lavender romper for Aisha who was just a tiny 3yo toddler that time and mind you, it had 6 buttons! Now that my sewing mojo is on full swing I wonder why I've not sewn as many buttons...
I faithfully collected BWOF until 2007 when suddenly I no longer received that monthly call from my trusted MPH boy. So I asked around and sadly...for some reason, the magazine is no longer distributed in Malaysia. So, so sad....I wanted to subscribe directly from the website, but somehow I find they are not making it easy for International customer to make a purchase (I suggest they look at how Ottobre is doing it, so easy to purchase with them especially the single issue options).
So, from then on, since I don't have a sewing machine, I auctioned off a few copies on eBay. This magazine's back issues are highly sought after on the International sewing community.
I remember a bit surprised when a fellow Malaysian bid on the magazine when I listed one of it on eBay US. And now that I'm on blogland, I realised the buyer was the very talented Alviana! Yes Alvi, I was keepsakes_n_such on eBay J
I now have a new, better machine and am seriously back in business with sewing, therefore, I will definitely try and sew a few designs from this amazing magazines I have in my hands. This magazine is now known as Burdastyle and perhaps one day our love affair will be rekindled!
zura, i sempat beli 3 issues at MPH (MV)... i didn't buy every month like u and always wondered who else bought them... now I know... :) I sempat jahit basic pants and skirt...
ReplyDeletefailily - exactly what I was thinking dulu jugak. always wonder ada ke orang lain kat Mesia beli coz selalu ada 1 copy je hehe...mula-mula I beli kat MPH MV juga pastu switch to Alamanda and request special order..
ReplyDeletebeshnye kalo ade lg.. hmm skng ni buku jepon yg byk. huk~~ kak zura nnt leh swap2 x? heee tp skin ade pon female, style and cotton friends je (br nk kumpul mag/buku)
ReplyDeleteskin, perhaps one day boleh wat swap..tapi akak ni pengumpul tegar, Female & CF pun dah ada hihi...Actually kan, buku Jepun lagi senang faham coz ada gambar..BWOF ni gambar cantik tp instructions dia kena tenung lama sikit (bagi akak lah) lol
ReplyDeleteJust a thought but if you know anyone out there who does get this mag, why can't they scan it for you and e-mail it to you. That way you get to see the mag.
ReplyDeleteThis is what i do for one of my friends who can't get a mag that she loves. The magazine people don't need to know as your not public with it. Or see if they actually offer am e-mag service as we call them here in the UK
Kind regards
Lia
Ps love your blog
Hi Lia! I wish I have a friend who can do that for me. The designs I can view on the mag website but to sew them I need the patterns. It's the paper pattern stapled to the middle of the mag which looks like jumbled up railways lol..very difficult to scan. I guess just have to try and subscribe one day.
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by my blog, I really appreciate it :)
Zura, wah banyaknya magazine u. can't wait to sew your projects out of these magazines.
ReplyDeletebtw dear, really hope that you setuju jadi pn. organiser or kick-start for the sewalong thingy. i tak reti la..say YES please and i shall wait for the design you choose for Ottobre sewalong.
p.s wish i hv burda magazine so that we can hv burda sewalong too..
dura - I organise ke? eheh boleh je. nanti i email ya? hopefully ada lagi yang nak join seronok kalau ramai tau, boleh dapat more inspirations..thanks babe!
ReplyDeletezura, still got copies ker? what issue? i might be interested.
ReplyDeletehi kak zura!
ReplyDeletecmne sew along ni? hee kalo skin xde pattern cmne pulak?
aida - you mean nak beli ke babe? ada rasanya yg nak letgo but tak sure you dah ada ke tak...jauhnya nak pos hehe..will email you ya? thanks babe
ReplyDeleteskin - sew along untuk burda ni akak belum plan dear, takut nanti akak sorang je yg jait hehe...kalau nak swap ngan akak boleh je, nanti email ya? :)
Zura,
ReplyDeleteLike you I collected Burda for almost a year before it disappeared from the shelves. Every now and then I would track one down in a mamak bookstore, until i checked online and found this link for overseas subscriptions:
http://www.burdafashion.com/abo/bumo/13/language/
I received a letter from them a few months later, and after I made the arrangements as best as I could (the letter was partly in German, and I was not sure if I was writing the right address, bank codes etc in my bank TT), I finally received my first issue about two months after I made payment. It would have been faster if I had had proper fax reports, as I failed to check whether my faxes of the paperwork had really gone through. I ended paying about RM270 for a year's subscription.
Alternatively, you could try contacting a distributor in Singapore, apparently, they still distribute there.
If you want to try subscribing, I can send you details of how I filled in my TT paperwork after you have received your notification letter from bura in response to your filling in the online form at the link above.
Good luck! C
Also, you may be able to download purchased patterns from the main site, here: http://www.burdafashion.com/en/index.html
ReplyDeletemamasan - I'm so glad you're commenting, thank you!
ReplyDeleteI once found a back issue in a mamak shop and I frequented those shops all the time, browsing the cheap back issues section just in case I get lucky again. But I guess not..I did initiate the subscription on their website, but I stopped all effort when I receive the half German letter lol.
Main reason I've not subsribed yet is they somehow wanted the credit card info tru either email or fax which until now I still don't dare. I usually only purchase on a website with verified & secure payment processing and totally prefer Paypal.
But, you made it and I know Alviana also has a subscription now. Perhaps I'll get over it and order soon, coz RM270 for a year's subscription is a bargain considering last time the shelve price was around Rm35 I think :)
a'ah, nak beli. i got a good bunch but if the issue is "right" i nak :) yes yes kat singapore its still distributed. RM35..mahal tu! I think I bought a bunch used before and all pattern sheet attached and there was 9 copies and it was CAD$25..so about RM75 for all!
ReplyDeletei think in canada, its selling for $5-7/each kot, i pun tak ingat but there is a bookstore in Vancouver that sells it.
HI!
ReplyDeleteYes, I am very hesitant to make any credit card purchase online, and the letterhead did not seem to match burda in anyway, until i realised that their mother/holding company had sent it!
I paid through bank telegraphic transfer. Hearing you say that now makes me feel like I took a risk, and after the months-long wait, I really thought I had been duped. I tried faxing my TT receipt, but my faxes didn't seem to go through properly. I then emailed all the details of my payment to them, to every email I could find on the site! As I got no response, I was half thinking, they can read my mail but probably can't respond in English, or I really have been duped!
Then I got my first issue and have been receiving it middle of the month for about 6 months now. For Nov and Dec, they sent the issues out almost 2 weeks early for Xmas sewing time, but since it's back to normal, I haven't gotten the next issue yet (more than 6 weeks without a new one, DIE!).
You might still be able to just go ahead with the letter you received, if it wasn't too long ago.
ANyway, love your blog, and wish I had the patience to make anything with the level of workmanship I see on it, and others too. Still, my girls are at the age where they love anything I make for them, so I have been happily dressing them in slightly wonky clothes ;p
All the best!
C