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!