I’m not one for the regular sewing magazines, as I never actually have the patience to actually read the content. The only ones that do attract me are the pattern magazines. I do love Burda, with all its limitations, and I feel I get so much for my money because of the tons of free patterns, but they also have such great styling and photography. To be honest, I had seen other pattern magazines, like Ottobre, but I was never convinced, they just did not catch my imagination in the same way. Though I keep an open mind and I am quite curious about other options out there.
So, I kept hearing about this Belgian sewing magazine, called La Maison Victor, on French sewing blogs and sometimes here and there in the UK ones. And lo and behold, it’s now landed in the UK as well. So off I went to check it out for myself and write a review for you guys.
What is La Maison Victor?
In their own words, La Maison Victor is an internationally growing sewing magazine, for contemporary, homemade fashion. It’s present in several different countries which include Belgium, The Netherlands, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the UK, the USA, Canada and Australia. It focuses on sewing, knitting, crocheting, and working on DIY projects.
So what’s in this first UK issue?
I’ve never seen a foreign issue before, so this is me going into it with no particular expectations. Though I must admit that I definitely hold Burda as a standard for pattern magazines.
Quick overview: 8 sewing patterns, 1 knitting pattern, and some other DIY crafty projects. I don’t knit and neither do I craft, I’ll be focusing mostly on the sewing part. I liked that there is a pattern overview on the back cover of the magazine so you can get an idea really quickly without having to browse through the entire magazine.
Here is the summary handily available on the back page:
The ladies patterns are a simple summer top, a really nice strappy bustier dress, a jersey dress with an exposed zipper and a button down midi skirt.
The men’s pattern is a pair of chinos.
And there are also three children’s patterns: a pair of casual trousers, a baby girl dress and a boy’s shirt.
Look & feel
The styling feels quite scandi, with good product shots. I liked the drawings, which have a hand-drawn feeling to them. The paper is good quality, glossy for the content pages and a good weight paper for the patterns.
What did I like best?
Now, if you’re used to Burda, you might have a shock, people! There are real instructions, with pictures! Shock, horror! I’m afraid I’ll get spoiled for Burda from now on, haha!
Also, the patterns come in a nice booklet and there are fewer patterns on one sheet, so none of that cross-eye inducing palava. Even better, there are video tutorials available on their YouTube channel.
The other thing that is is new and different is that you can buy the fabrics used for the samples, so if you really really love the pictures in the magazine, you can make your exact version. Unfortunately, this issue is ram packed with leaf prints and the like, so it’s a no no fabric on my side, I’m afraid. I did like the stripey fabric for Solange dress, but probably I could find something else as suitable in my stash. No, no more excuses for buying fabric, my stash is overflowing as it is.
What’s not so cool
I think I’m a bit spoilt by how many patterns there are in a Burda Mag. Even taking into account the plus size and the kids patterns, I always find I can sink my teeth into any given issue. With just 8 patterns and only 3 women’s, it just felt like I’m not getting enough bang for my buck.
Verdict
I haven’t made any of the projects in this issue, so I can’t comment on how good the instructions or patterns are. This is based simply on content and look & feel.
As a general observation, more choice for pattern sewing magazines is always a great thing! Let there be competition and magazines bending over backwards to get our attention. So that’s a plus!
I myself will stick to the policy I usually adopt with Burda, i.e. checking out the patterns before deciding to invest in the magazine. So, let’s see what issue 2 has to offer and I’ll keep you posted!
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HAVE YOU TRIED LA MAISON VICTOR? WHAT OTHER SEWING MAGAZINES DO YOU USUALLY BUY? LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK IN THE COMMENTS, OR TAKE IT TO TWITTER @SEWRENDIPITY!
I was tempted to buy this magazine by the Solange jersey dress with the exposed zip which I shall probably make with some striped jersey I have in my stash. I think the magazine is well presented but I’m not sure I’ll use any of the other pattern in this issue. Like you I shall wait and see what future issues offer.
Author
I think you could get the Solange on their website? I might have seen it on one of their versions, but I can’t remember if it was UK or other language website.
Thanks for commenting!
The only sewing mag from abroad that I’ve tried is one that isn’t “abroad” for you 🙂 I’m in Canada. The Suzy magazine I liked but wow to have it sent to Canada was honestly $$$ and for what strikes me as a blog in print too pricey. I did try Octobre briefly but all those lines YIKES I knew I wouldn’t really do them. Now I subscribe to Threads and love it (still an import for me but not as far to ship 🙂 )
Author
I haven’t heard of Suzy magazine, I just google it. I can’t tell what the model is, have they got PDF patterns you can download? Where is it published? From your comment, I take it that they haven’t got pattern sheets.
I used to subscribe to Threads, and although I recognise the quality, I realised that I don’t actually read them, I just collect them.
For me, Burda is the pinnacle, because their patterns are so stylish and fashionable and up to date and it looks amazing. I might be biased, because it was the first contact I ever had with the sewing world.
I also tried Sew Sew Def, Mimi G’s magazine, and I got one issue because I loved the pattern. I haven’t actually read the content, but the pattern was great. I would not subscribe to anything, but I do love dipping in and out if the patterns are good.
Thanks for commenting!
No Suzy doesn’t include any patterns at all. It’s rather like a very upscale, in print blog style – loads of lovely pics of makes – what’s new online ie blogs to follow. The paper is high quality, pics are great but overall it’s just too pricey for something I flip through in about an hr 🙂
Author
Ha ha, well then, that’s not even making my list. Only reason to buy sewing mags is to get many patterns for £5.95 :).
I made that bustier dress as a sample for the shop I work at… My boss told me to make it in my size so I could wear it instead of just display it on a mannequin. It’s going to stay on a mannequin since the front is so low cut and gapes as well, so you can see the underside of my bra if I bend over just a bit. So if you make that one, make a muslin!
Also, and I don’t know if it’s the same in the English instructions, they refer to ‘facings’ in the Dutch instructions all the time and it took me five minutes of trying to find pattern pieces for a facing to realize they meant a lining.
Author
Thanks for the tips! Summer is already gone in the UK, so no point to even attempt to make that dress, but good to know :).
Your review is spot on. I must admit I love a sewing mag. For me it’s an indulgent treat. Time for me to read & enjoy a coffee. Finding the time is a whole different issue. I won a 6 month subs to burda when I first started sewing & being a newbie I got a bit confused with it all lol.
My favourite mag at the moment is simply sewing. I like the indie pattern that comes with it. I get bored of the big 4 giving away their patterns that aren’t popular in other mags 😏
Author
Oh, where did you win the subscription from? I’d really love that!! It annoys me that in the UK, it’s more expensive to subscribe than to buy it from the shop. Otherwise I would have done that ages ago.
Thanks for the review! It’s nice that there’s a new pattern magazine available in the UK but I suspect this will be an occasional treat rather than displacing Burda for me; like you I like there to be more patterns per mag. And I don’t mind tracing Burda too much.
Author
No, neither do I, though I always curse when I have to do it, I think it’s worth it. Burda is like my first love, I always come back to it 🙂
I have a bunch of LMV but I have only one successful project from them , the Lora dress and a few less successful . For me is the tracing sheets that are killing it. People complain that Burda is bad but I think they did never see the LMV ones, also they put the pattern pieces on different sheets so you will find the front bodice on sheet A and the back on sheet D… it must be something I really like to take the effort to make it…that being said I do buy it occadionally 😁. I have a subscription for Burda, Knipmode and Patrones , all 3 my faves. So many magazines and so little time to sew😂.
Author
I have heard the same about the LMV tracing sheets. I haven’t attempted to trace them. Burda is a necessary evil, because they are so stylish, and I got used to their logic by now. Btw, in the UK it’s more expensive to subscribe than to buy it from the shops. Is it the same for you? Where is Patrones from?
I just looked here and it is a bit cheaper, per 6 is like 1 magazine free. Oh, and I just realized that now it costs 1 euro more than the last edition…so again , it must be something really special to buy it. The same here with Burda, I know how it works and even if it looks scarry , LMV it is worse. I have for years a subscription to Patrones in Spain, if you don’t know it you will love it! They have very fashionable patterns…I love it. I know there is also now in dutch under the name Fashion Style and also in Russian and German( I am not sure how is called there) . I don’t speak Spanish but I understand good enough and if you know the terms one time then it is easy…instructions are bad 😂 but you are not a beginner 😁. If you do a Google search on ” rukodeli irina blog” you will get a russian blog and that lady puts every month scans from the Patrones magazine…take a look , you will like it, this month there is a great trench , can’t wait to get my magazine 😁
Author
Thanks a lot!! Great tips!!
Oh wow, I’m happy they’re going international. I’ve enjoyed LMV since the first issue…. in 2014. And I do agree, it’s a bit thin on quantity of patterns you get, but I enjoy the articles, the lay-outs, the inspirational bit. I find them more fashion forward than most other sewing magazines. At some point the patterns got a bit repetitive, so like you I would only buy if I saw something interesting… until my sweet mom bought me a two year subscription for Christmas.
Author
I am seriously thinking of getting a Burda subscription, but it really annoys me it’s more expensive than getting it in the shops. But I will maybe put it on my Christmas list 😁!
I was disappointed with LMV but look forward to seeing another one to see how they follow up.
My big issue with Burda isn’t the stacking of the patterns….it’s how very, very WHITE it is. The total lack of diversity in their models just isn’t acceptable.
Author
Hi Caroline, that is a very very good point… The problem with Burda is that their content is made in Germany and redistributed in other countries, so there is little room to account for the diverse make-up of other countries, like the UK for example. Growing up in Romania, where the majority of people are white, this did not stick out, but since living in the UK, I am becoming more aware of such issues.
I guess that’s why magazines like Sew Sew Def appeared, to bridge that gap in the market. Glad to see that Big 4s have stated using much more diverse models in the last few years, and I know Seamwork magazine also do.
Thank you for your comment and raising such an interesting issue.