Ebony Tee for Maternity

Now that I finally have some energy, I'm really excited to sew some maternity wear that I can hopefully continue to wear post-maternity. The Ebony Tee by Closet Case Patterns is popular both for people sewing for a bump and those not, so I thought I would give it a try. This was my first Closet Case Patterns pattern, and I was eager to discover what all the hype was about. I'm not going to lie, I was a bit skeptical. As soon as I put on the first burgundy shirt I made, it all made sense. I don't know what's so magical about it, but I'm sold.

I started off by making one in some leftover burgundy bamboo knit that I had. There is a seam down the back that is not in the pattern so that I could fit it on the fabric I had, and it's a length between the crop and dress versions of the non-raglan versions, and it's got the view B neckline and sleeve length. I love the length that it ended up being - long enough to wear as a tunic with leggings casually, and still a good shirt length to wear with jeans. Postpartum I will likely most often wear it with black jeans, for now it's good with maternity jeans because it's long enough to cover the elastic waist. I made this in a straight size 14, and I'm happy with the shoulder fit so I will likely continue with this size forever. Also, I didn't take any pictures of this because I kept forgetting, or it was in the laundry.

After my success with the first, I decided to take the plunge and cut into the royal blue bamboo knit that I bought ages ago but was too afraid to cut into. This is the dress length (View A) plus 2 inches with the view B neckline and sleeve length, and it also has a seam down the back because that was the only way I could figure out how to cut it out with the 2m of fabric I had. I've barely taken it off since I made it and keep making people feel how lovely the fabric is. For now I really like the length of the sleeves, but we will see how I feel about it once I no longer have a furnace inside me. Generally I prefer sleeveless or full length sleeves, but I have a feeling elbow length might now make the list.

I made an exact copy of the blue on in my purple bamboo from Mood Fabrics in New York, and I also love it. I know that it is now a matter of time before I buy the Kalle Shirt Dress from Closet Case as well. And probably the Ginger Jeans. Also, look at my beautiful rhododendron! I tried out the tripod and self timer for these photos, next I need to get a remote and figure out how to upload photos in a better resolution.

Details

Pattern: Ebony Tee by Closet Case Patterns
Material: Bamboo knit from Fabricville <3
Modifications: Cut a straight 14 and added some length for the blue dress
Learning: I'm so happy with the neckline on these, turns out basting first really does make a difference! I also learned I like elbow length sleeves, who knew?

Pony Tank Dress

My goal when sewing maternity dresses is to use patterns that aren't maternity but will still fit all the way through. The are obviously exceptions, but this is not one of them. I picked up the Pony Tank when it first came out and was free to newsletter subscribers, but only now got around to making any. I wasn't terribly worried about fit, because it's such a loose-fitting garment, so I jumped right in.

First up is a mint-coloured rayon slinky knit, the same fabric that I used for one of my Durango tanks. I'm pretty sure when I loaded up on these knits they were buy 1m, get 2 free, so I got 2m of 3 different colours to make shirts for my husband and stuff for me. He got 2 shirts (a purple and a green one) and I got 2 tanks and a dress. Not bad for $20 worth of fabric.

Moving on to the dress. This was my first time making a v-neck, and the instructions walking me through it were excellent. The fabric is a little sheer, which isn't the end of the world but will require me to make intelligent undergarment decisions. It also doesn't have a lot of body, so the neckline is a little lower than it would otherwise be, and so are the armholes. That doesn't matter to me, and I expect this will especially get a lot of wear around the house this summer when it's hot and I feel like I'm the size of a house.

The second one I made is out of a lovely vintage floral that I picked up at Mood fabrics when I was in New York this past February. A note about Mood Fabrics: it's as amazing as it seems on Project Runway. The longer I have this dress, the more I love it. I will admit that I waffled on what pattern to use for this fabric, because it is very precious to me (I don't intend to go back to NY anytime soon), but ultimately went with the Pony Tank Dress to best showcase the print and because it will likely always fit. It isn't as swingy as it's supposed to be because it's a directional print and I only had 1.5yds of fabric (silly Americans and getting their fabric in yards instead of metres).

I don't have plans for any more of these dresses in the near future, but I think this will be a frequent pattern for future knits and quick wins.

Details

Pattern: Pony Tank by Chalk and Notch
Material: Rayon/spandex lightweight knit and Mood Fabrics Floral Knit
Modifications: None at all!
Learning: First v-neck and happy with it!