Friday, June 27, 2014

Black + magenta ikat print jersey faux-wrap dress

Hello! And surprise! I have been missing for a few months because pregnancy fatigue really got to me. Being pregnant at 36 and caring for 3 other kiddos at the same time is tiring. Thank goodness we are having a pretty mild summer so far with lots of rain. It won't last, I'm sure, but I'm enjoying the cooler temps while I can. I haven't been doing a whole heck of a lot of sewing - just haven't had any mojo to work with. In the evenings all I want to do is vegetate in front of the television or go to bed. I'm way better at squeezing in some time in front of my sewing machine in the afternoons. Also, making maternity clothes has never been a favorite thing for me, mostly because the pattern choices are so limited. This time around, though, I've actually found a few cute patterns that I like and want to make up.


I picked out this fun jersey border print from Mood Fabrics without anything specific in mind. It has a different border on each selvage and my plan was to utilize both into one dress. The larger border is the abstract squares I used for the sleeves and belt, and the small border is a black and white concentration of the main fabric that I planned to have showing at the hemline. Unfortunately this dress turned out to be matronly long, so I had to chop off the smaller border to get a length I was happy with.


The pattern I used is #132 from Burda Magazine's June 2010 issue. I cut my usual size 38 and the fit is just right, if a little tight in the sleeve area. Theirs has a skinny little tie belt, but I have a distaste for those types of belts being used on a garment with a horizontal bodice/skirt seam. They never stay where they're suppose to and always need adjusting. Instead I cut a thicker belt and sewed it in between the front wrapping bodice side and the skirt. It wraps around the back freely from the dress and ties in the front and never needs any fiddling.


This pattern has lots of room for a growing belly. It actually droops a little in the front right now, and I expect to wear it straight through to my third trimester. You can see at the side seams that I lined up the horizontal pattern starting at the hemline. With the side front gathers attaching to the ungathered back the pattern no longer lines up, but that can't be helped. The fronts I lined up with the back starting at the underarms. There is a vertical seam down the center back which I did not give much effort to matching up other then at the hemline. I was incredibly surprised when the pattern lined up so perfectly at the neckline and under the belt.



There's a 3/4 sleeve top version of this pattern included in the magazine that I may make as well. I'm due the first part of October, though, and it's usually just beginning to cool off around here at that time.

Oh, and it's a boy. We were really surprised by that news - had gotten it into our minds that it was sure to be a girl so Rachel could have a sister. Poor thing, now she'll have three brothers. ;)

59 comments:

  1. Congratulations! That Burda pattern was my absolute favorite when I was pregnant, I made it up in t-shirts and dresses in 5-6 different colors and it actually fit me until the end of my pregnancy, even in the bust!! It's wonderful!

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    1. Thanks Stacey! I'm thinking of trying the top version. You're right, it's super versatile.

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  2. Congratulations! We have three boys and a girl, tho our girl is the oldest. Your dress is lovely too. :)

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    1. Thank you Melissa! Coming from a family with just one other girl and no brothers, I've definitely had to learn a lot. I have to ask my husband questions like, "Why do they enjoy smelling eachother's stinky feet so much?", etc.

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  3. Congratulations!! I hope you feel better soon, though it must be an incredible challenge with three kids to run after! At least you have a lovely dress to do it in :)

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    1. Thanks Kelly! Come the end of August the older two will be in school and I'll only have the littles home with me. We've always homeschooled so this will be a first. Babies keep you busy but not as busy as teaching several grades and trying to manage household tasks at the same time. I'm hoping to squeeze in some sewing time when everyone at home is napping.

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  4. Congrats. She will be adored by 3 brothers!
    I don't quite understandabout the belt and am very curious. Did you somehow attach it to the dress?

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    1. Thanks sdBev. I should have taken a better picture with it untied so y'all could see it better. It is attached between the bodice and skirt seam at the overlapping front only. I'll post a picture of it in the next day or two for clarification.

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  5. Oh, congratulations! I did wonder what you were up to ... now there's irrefutable evidence, tee hee. I like the bright, bold pattern on this dress. And you're right, there's not much to get excited about by current maternity pattern offerings. In the early 90s, Vogue had some interesting shapes and sophisticated office wear in their maternity stuff. (Well, sophisticated for maternity wear. I have recently been eyeing my few patterns in case Darling Daughter's current beau asks her to marry him and/or to bear his children. The times, they are a-changing.) Perhaps you can sniff out some of them in a local thrift store or on-line. Or, start a new fashion craze for Big Shirts under jumpers.

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    1. Haha, big shirts under jumpers. Please, just say no to 90's maternity making a comeback! I did buy a vintage maternity pattern off Etsy, and also a recent Vogue that has a dressier look to it. So they are out there, and those vintage ones are super cute.

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  6. You look great!
    Best wishes from Germany,
    Kathrin :-)

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  7. Congratulations! The dress is lovely.

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  8. That print is so gorgeous! And what a lovely dress. Perfect for a bump. Congrats!

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  9. Wow, you look adorable. Your dress is beautiful too.

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  10. Congratulations, Amanda! Wonderful news! I love this fabric and the pattern showcases the print so nicely. You look great! I imagine Rachel and the boys are very excited for their new little brother to make his debut. :)

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    1. Thanks Almeda! We are all excited to have a new baby around, although the boys are not excited for the crying and I'm not sure Rachel really gets it yet. That girl adores babies, though, so I can just imagine her wide eyes and big grin when we walk through the door with him.

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  11. Well, congratulations!!!!!!! A new addition to a family is such a blessing! I wish you all the best with your pregnancy. Your dress is beautiful, and you look wonderful.

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  12. Congratulations! You are looking well :) Cute dress.

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  13. Congratulations on your news. Love the dress.

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  14. I wondered if your absence might be pregnancy related! Beautiful dress...you look great! Congratulations!

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  15. Oh my! What wonderful news! So hope you enjoy all the months left, you look so pretty and happy.

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  16. Cute Maternity Dress! Congrats on the new baby. Yay!

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  17. That dress is magnificent! Go, pretty mama!

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  18. Congratulations on the baby news. Beautiful dress and you look wonderful.

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  19. Congratulations on the next boy! You look wonderful.Dress is lovely too.

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  20. Hi Amanda! What a darling dress! Congratulations on your baby boy! I have been reading your blog for some time, but feel too cyber-shy to comment, for some reason. I told my husband this week that I was concerned about you and hoped you are all right. So glad you are! I am a Texan seamstress, SAHM, Christian homeschooler too! :)

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    1. Thanks for being concerned, it's nice to be missed! :)

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  21. Congrats Amanda! You look great. Best wishes for your pregnancy.

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  22. Congratulations! You look great in your new dress, and you also look so happy!

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  23. Amanda, I was worried about you. I am a Texas girl too, and missed seeing your fashion creations. I love the wrap dress on you. A style that is has made a come back. Congratulations to you and your family on your baby boy!!

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  24. I was wondering why you were gone so long. Take care of yourself and ask for help with the other kiddos.
    This is a gorgeous maternity dress.

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  25. Congratulations! I've had the day off work and have just made Kwiksew K3486 and Simplicity 1469. I liked the Kwiksew dress (view B) as it was not made of jersey! I don't want to spend the next few months dressed in very figure hugging clothes! I've also been going through my Burda magazines and looking for dresses with an empire line that can be made up with little or no alteration... However I'm not finding my sewing chair too comfortable at the moment and there is no other chair to use (stealing the office chair from work would probably be frowned upon!) so may try for quick projects or resign myself to slow-sewing (I'm impatient!).

    I'm also slighlty envious of your fabric; it's very distinctive (in a good way). There is no big fabric shop near me in North London and the good shops about Soho open office hours so I can't get there.... :-(

    Hope all goes well with Buba#4; this is my first and is due at Christmas.

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  26. Congrats on your pregnancy. When I saw the picture, I was like is she pregnant, but did not want to ask. Glad I read the good news first. Again congrats and the dress looks great.

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    1. Haha! I get a little irritated that pregnant ladies always take pictures with their hands under their bellies. It makes for a more flattering picture, but who really walks around all day doing that? I like to show the garment how it really looks, kwim? Thanks for your comment!

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  27. Looks great! Stay cool summer pregnancy's are never easy.

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  28. Congratulations! That fabric is so lovely that whatever you made with it would look good I'm sure, but I love your dress. Is it designed as a maternity dress, will you be able to wear it afterwards? I can't find my Burda issue at the moment, it must be bundled up with a ufo somewhere!

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    1. Nope, there's too much extra fabric in the front under the belt to ever hope to wear it after pregnancy. That's okay, I have TONS of knits. I'm okay with using some of them up, even if they have a fairly short closet life. Thanks Allison!

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  29. Congratulations Amanda, what exciting news! :) The dress is beautiful too - that print is really striking. Take it easy and stay cool!

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  30. Congratulations on your pregnancy! What a neat blessing to read about. I am so happy for you. Funny, I thought my second child was sure to be a girl, but he was a boy too! Rachel at least gets to be the BIG sister to one of her brothers! The dress you made is fantastic as well.

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  31. Congratulations...I had wondered where you were:-)
    At 36 Im still trying to make one so seeing you have the 4th on the way - what a blessing.
    Looks like the perfect maternity dress too. Lovely.

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