It's a....

 

I know what you're thinking, "I thought they weren't going to find out the sex." Correct. We were not. But we had our ultrasound & our technician neglected to ask us if we were going to find out, and well also, our little boy is anything but shy (he's also healthy as far as we can tell...which, as we all know, is the REALLY important part). :)  

I'm so excited to know the sex & I'm thrilled to be adding another little guy to our family.  I don't know if I've mentioned it, but I'm planning on making  baby's coming home outfit. Originally, I was going to make one for a boy & one for a girl. Which, now is unnecessary. I bought OOP Kwik Sew 2246 for just the occasion. So now we're on to fabric.  I'm loving stripes, but they are so easily found in RTW that it seems silly to go that route. I've been perusing Spoonflower instead & I've found some lovelies.  This one, so far, is my favorite (click the image to go to the source).  

And I also love this one....

And I'm only getting started in my perusing. :) The knit fabric from Spoonflower is nearly $30/yard (GULP!) so I really need to be sure about my choice. 

Next week I should have at least 3 maternity wardrobe pieces to share, too, so stay tuned. :)

Making Progress

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I don't have any pictures yet, but I've successfully drafted & finished one knit skirt from a fabric in my stash that wasn't listed in the original plan. It is a funky print that includes red, white, blue & brown, which means all but my planned yellow top will match it.  

I've also muslined a woven skirt with a fold over elastic waistband. It went well other than the fact that I applied the FOE to the hem of the skirt instead of the waist the first time around. That made me giggle. Which is good, these days it could just have easily made me cry.

Aaaand I have 2 maternity top patterns all cut up & ready to sew. New wardrobe here I come. Now if only it would stop snowing so I could wear it!

Maternity SWAP: Skirt 1: Fail.

I stumbled upon this tutorial on Pinterest & thought it would be perfect for my black linen skirt. It should have turned out like the above skirt. Did it?

Negative. It did not.  In fact, I removed...prepare yourself...THIRTY inches from the side seams. Thirty inches PLUS tapering it in at the bottom. I mean, I realize that I'm a "pear" and that I gain weight in my hips/thighs...but I am no where as big as this skirt would have you believe.

 To top it off, I expected it to be an "afternoon project". It's turned into more like a 5 afternoon project (2 of those afternoons were wasted when my serger LITERALLY fell apart...more on that later) And I just can't figure out where it went so wrong. For a moment, I thought, "Maybe my fabric is too heavy" but it's just linen. It was light enough to require a lining (from Bemberg Rayon....what a pain!)

I keep going back & fourth as to whether to just declare this one a wadder & move on. But GOSH. What a waste of fabric that would be. Not to mention time. I'm starting to feel like this skirt must be conquered. At all costs.

 I was kind of depending on this "pattern" to be a jumping off point for future skirts. Sigh. At least now I know what won't work, right?? Back to the drawing board, I guess.

Also, I ordered (& received) my other skirt fabric...only to discover I only ordered 1 yard of each. Sheesh!! I don't know WHAT I was thinking. Guess I'll order another yard & have some nice sized scraps.

Finished! Vogue 8581

Well, Vogue 8581came together somewhat quickly.  It really is a very straightforward design, and it lends itself quite nicely to "maternity", but I didn't like the gathering & I was a little surprised to find that it recommended 3/4" elastic at the waist.

It's been finished for over a week & I've worn it a number of times, so that's a good sign.  I do find myself adjusting the waist gathers a lot, but I think that  can mostly be attributed to the fact that I used 1/4" elastic in a 3/4" tunnel.  I just couldn't bring myself to rip it out & re-do it.

I totally blew the neck gathering, too.  I spent all this time meticulously gathering only to find that I didn't gather it enough for the neckband to be properly stretched, thus causing a won't-lie-flat neckband. So, I ripped it out & used an elastic casing instead. Next time I'll do that the first time around. :)  

I also decided to leave the sleeves as flutter sleeves, because I like them :) and also because it was faster.  However, I think that they could stand to be a tad longer.

All in all I though this was a good pattern. I'm happy with how it turned out. I should be able to churn the next one out in an afternoon (famous last words, right??) You can see my official review with less ramblings on Pattern Review.

And here's the obligatory "belly shot" It was hard getting a good silhouette with all that extra fabric. :) And since we're on the subject, I'm 19 weeks along now. The morning sickness is long gone & I'm feeling great.  So great, in fact, that I'm behind on my sewing but ahead on housework. :) Oh well, you can't do it all.

SWAP: The Maternity Edition

I'll admit; sewing with a plan isn't something I'm good at sticking to. There's always another project that gets thrown in the rotation, but this time I've even shopped my stash. I've tried to find a color scheme that will mix & match nicely. And by golly, I think I've got it.

 

Swatches 1-6 are for skirts. I'm going to try to see if quilting cottons will work. Two of the six fabrics are already in my stash. :) I'm not completely sold on #4...we'll see. Number 2 is my favorite as it matches virtually all the tops I have in mind. :)

1. Dena Designs Dream Right 

2. Summer Totem in Tart by Anna Maria Horner

3. Stashed floral linen

4. Joel Dewberry Blockprint Blossom

5. Lightweight stretch twill

6. Stashed solid black linen

Swatches 7-11 are solid knits for tops.  I already have 8,10, & 11 in my stash. In fact, the light blue is already sewn up (but not photographed/blogged/reviewed)! 

So that's the plan. The skirts should all be fast projects. Like an afternoon each. What I really need to get sewing is the tops. :)

Instant Gratification project

That's right, ladies (and any gents who may have stumbled upon this blog), I have a FINISHED project to share! And...wait for it...it only took me ONE nap time to complete!! And that's INCLUDING taking a break to make brownies with my little guy (not from scratch...from a box, obviously...I had a dress to sew!)

After searching high & low for a dress pattern/tutorial with long sleeves to no avail (actually Ottobre has them, but I have yet to decide on just one issue to order), I finally found this tutorial from Prudent Baby (ah--I love them!)

The tutorial included the sizing for 2T & I hemmed & hawed over what measurements to use for my Little, I did measure some of her current dresses but in the end decided to just go with their recommended dimensions.  (I had started this dress before, in flannel, but had decided to use my own measurements. It was AFTER cutting out the sleeves that I realized that they were Raglan, not set in like I measured. Yeah. I probably could have salvaged it, but I just threw my hands up & walked away)

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I don't like the way it balloons out at the bottom, I should have went with my instinct & took some of the width out, but other than that it is pretty cute.

I bought the corduroy from Joanne Fabrics, despite my hesitation. the last time I bought corduroy from them it was so off grain that it was un-useable. Ridiculous. But this particular corduroy seems to be good quality & it made me wish I had bought a bit more yardage.

So there we have it. Next up on my to do list is to trace a couple of patterns for knit tops for maternity. I'm also compiling a list of fabrics to order once payday hits ;)

Maternity Sewing Plan

So, my "maternity sewing plan". (Subject to change, as usual, of course). Since I didn't start sewing until late in my pregnancy with my daughter, this is an exciting endeavor for me. And, surprise, surprise there seems to be more & more "maternity sewing" tutorials & patterns cropping up every day (thank you, Pinterest!)

So, here's what I'll need.

Stick with knit tops. Wovens hang funny & ALWAYS include a bow or sash of some kind. For my first pregnancy, I kind of liked the bows. But now, well...I am NOT a present. Also, knit tops tend to flatter all the way through pregnancy. So, here's my plan.

Vogue 8581

Already in my stash, rated "very easy" and has a number of positive reviews!! Bonus--my FAVORITE maternity top from my last pregnancy was very, very similar in design. There's a good chance I won't need to do any maternity alterations on this one.

Wrapped Maternity Top by Megan Nielson

Images courtesy of Megan Nielsen

I swear, the first time I saw this pattern my heart went pitter-patter. I LOVE the design! It is by Megan Nielson, an independant designer who ALSO designs & sells non-maternity wear. Her blog diymaternity.com has INVALUABLE tutorials & tips. You MUST check it out if you ever find yourself needing some maternity sewing inspiration.

The only downside to this design is the fact that it requires 4 yards (FOUR) of fabric. But no matter. I love it anyway. Also, the pattern is $15 which is expensive when you're used to buying the Big 4 for .99, but honestly I'm MORE than happy to support her business :)

Ruched Maternity Tshirt by Megan Nielsen

Also by Miss Megan, the Ruched top. With a variety of sleeve length options. This design can be a staple in any wardrobe--with or without baby bump :) Megan offers a slew of other maternity patterns, but for now I'm sticking with just these 2 with the option of going back for more, of course. :)

As for pants-well, I'm hoping to thrift any new jeans that I'll need & I have plenty of comfy pants that never see beyond the 4 walls of our home :) I also have a few pairs of adorable shorts for this summer. Which brings me to...

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Skirts. Ah, maternity skirts. They are SO HARD to find RTW. Can you believe that?? Also, a frightening new trend is MINI maternity skirts. Like, MID THIGH. Uhm....no. Honestly, how does one chase after not one, but TWO toddlers WITH giant belly in a mini skirt...better yet...who would want to?!?

So, no. No thank you to mini maternity skirts. Also, just barely skimming the knee is not quite long enough. Again, thanks to Pinterest, I have a variety of other options. There's a ton of tutorials on adding knit belly panels to existing skirts & also, I'm pretty comfortable drafting my own basic skirt. Typically, I prefer everything to "under the belly" so that should make it a bit easier. Again, I'll likely be sticking to knit fabrics for their ease of wear & stretchability...which means no zippers necessary! :)

So, in short, I'll be sticking to 4-5 basic patterns in various solid colored fabrics. Maybe in a future post, I'll go over some of my favorite places to find knit fabrics.

Just for fun, I'll leave you with my most loyal maternity top. It lasted me through 2 pregnancies & is still going strong. I have yet to put it on, but it will be great for when I'm...huge.

The first was taken on my due date with my son...he didn't arrive for another FOUR days (and I happened to wear this top on the way to the hospital) and the second was about 6 weeks before my due date with Laila.