Groovy Mama 2.0

 

I made another version of the same 1975 maternity pattern I posted about a couple of weeks ago.  I have worn the first version many times already.  It's comfy, roomy and I feel like it's funky enough that I don't feel like I'm wearing a huge maternity muumuu.  So I decided to make it again.  This time I tweaked a few things.

 

  

I lowered the darts 1/2" and I think they are just right now.  I straightened the shoulder seam ahead of time.  I made long, straight sleeves instead of the belled shorter sleeve.  And I added six more inches to the length.  The result is more dress than tunic.  It's perfect for wearing over leggings, whether that is fashionable or not.  I finally splurged and bought some maternity leggings and oh my gosh, why did I wait so long?!   Holy cow, they are so comfortable they make me want to cry when I put them on.  Like real tears of joy.  I'm going to have to look in to some actual maternity pants now.  I have three pairs of pants I can still wear at this point.  Two are my normal pants that have a lot of stretch.  They sit low, too, so the waist band sits beneath my belly.  The other pair of pants is an elastic waist, ponte knit pant my mom bought me recently (thanks, mom!).  I think I'm about ready for the real deal, stretchy belly maternity pants at this point.  I've been trying to wait as long as possible.

 

I love the a-line shape of this tunic/dress.  It's swingy and retro looking without being too in-your-face vintage.  I used a houndstooth double knit I found at Hancock.  It's synthetic, but its soft and warm.  I'll be able to wear this until the end of my pregnancy, I think.  Once again, I was too lazy to stabilize the knit before I hemmed the bottom edge.  It's pretty ripply.  Eh.  I can't be bothered.   I needed this to be quick and quick it was.  Start to finish it took me a couple of hours.

 

I also rounded off the points at the neckline.  I didn't like the way the corners looked on my first version so I used a round glass to shave off the point with a curve.  I did it when I sewed the  neck facing.  I had to top stitch afterwards because this synthetic knit does not press at all.  The facing kept shifting outside, even with understitching.  I really like the way the rounded edge looks, whether the collar stands up or flops over.

 

Maybe not the most exciting piece, but I definitely count this one as a win.  I know it will get lots and lots of wear.  I'm actually thinking about making one more version of this pattern.  Do I need the maxi version or would the volume be too much?  And just for posterity, this is the bump at almost 23 weeks.  Ack!  It's going by so fast!