Ottobre - My First Pattern Magazine

I've seen these pattern magazines and I could understand the value of howevermany patterns for the price of what only one pattern costs sometimes (unless you are spoiled by 99 cent pattern sales).
What put me off from buying one, until now, was the being-spoiled-by-99-cent-pattern-sales and the dreaded tracing of pattern pieces.  Confession:  I do not believe I have EVER traced a pattern.  Not even my expensive (compared to 99 cents) Sewaholic and Colette patterns.  I'm so reckless.  I just cut right into them and hope that my sizing is correct.  It's kinda extra risky for me too because I'm almost always the smallest size by measurements.  I've been really lucky and never really wished I had the option of sizing up after I cut the larger sizes off.
It's hard for me to pass up a deal and someone was offering some older Ottobre issues at a great price.  I'm really getting into European style design for kid wear and the timing was right.  I bit the bait and bought an issue.
4/09 to be exact.
The thing that attracted me to this particular issue the most was a pattern called the Tulip Pants.  My Molly Blossom logo is a tulip, so that always attracts my attention, but the design of them was just so dern cute.  I also had yet to decide on what pants I would be making my birthday girl who was about to turn three.
As soon as the issue came, I opened it up and poured over all the pages, checked out the measurement chart and tore out the pattern pages.
uh, yeah, I definitely needed to be motivated by cute pants and a looming birthday to get the gumption to trace all the pieces.  They were HARD to trace.  I got lost and would start on one piece only to find that I'd jumped over to another pattern altogether.
I finally got everything traced.  To add the seam allowance, I used two pencils side by side and didn't bother to tape them or anything, which was silly because they kept slipping all over the place. My knees hurt because I was crawling all over my wood floor since I don't have a surface large enough at the right height to get a good overhead view of the pattern sheet.
Ok, ok, cutting to the chase.  Construction was not difficult, for an intermediate seamstress.  I even got the zip fly right on the first try.  (no unpicking!!)
The result is so stinkin' adorable and, as the memory of my tracing difficulty faded, I loved them more and more.

Until I decide what to do about photos, you can see them here on Flickr:

Here
and
Here

The fit was great and, except for my Buddha-bellied birthday girl causing the zip to buckle under her pooch, they look really cute.  That buckling from the belly overhang makes me twitch.  I just don't like that look, so I won't be reaching for these often, unfortunately.  I'll make them for her again when her belly flattens out a bit.

I did get a bonus for all my hard work tracing.  I tried these on my skinny 4 year old and discovered that, although hilariously short, they fit!  So recently, while on Thanksgiving vacation, I cut out a pair for her using the same pattern pieces and just lengthening the legs and ruffles by a couple inches.  Hers will be purple baby wale cord.  I simply MUST sew them up before Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas!... I have Christmas card pictures to show and a couple of Christmas dresses and more in line to be sewn (of course).