pregnant sewing

In my spring-cleaning/nesting organizing rush, I sorted through all sorts of old clothes I'd saved to give to Goodwill or upcycle (use the fabric), and took a second look at a few in the discard pile. My body is shifting rapidly into full watermelon mode with nearly 4 months left to go, and I did my first sewing in awhile.

Project 1: I used 3" elastic and an old weird stretchy tan tee to make new, lower-cut waistbands for two pair of pants (one khaki, one linen capri) that I had discarded pre-accidental pregnancy because they were too short and too saggy-butted, respectively. The result is a bit wonky (that 3" stuff is hard), but perfectly acceptable when properly covered by prego-friendly long top. And I was able to solve the too-short and too-saggy butted problems with a bit of clever cutting and sheer good luck, too. I have more pants recently rescued from the discard pile to remake in a similar way, but some can wait for cooler weather and/or also need widening. My Alberta college roommate and her friends would put in fabric panels on the sides of their gloriously old 501s for the decor of it; I think I'll do the same for the hip-widening possibilities.

Project 2: I had purchased a girls' size XXL gauzy peasant dress from Old Navy for $2.97 last fall and found it in one of my piles. I immediately cued into the empire-waist styling (prego watermelon self) and light fabrics (prego overheating self) and focused on a rescue. All of the dimensions were good, when on, but the length a bit short. After draping several fabrics all over the dining room table and couch as extension possibilities and being seriously warned as to the frumpiness probability of the finished product by my ever-wary-of-post-project-breakdown husband, I decided on a low-contrast option, and tried to unify it all with a bit of cotton crochet trim and adding a bias strip over the elastic waist casing. I stitched the extension to the underskirt, which I think works better. I enjoyed sewing this project after the stretching and inventing of the wide elastic: mostly very careful, very perfect topstitching. I felt pretty pleased with the result, and was frumpiness vindicated when the teenage sister of one of Audrey's friends commented on the coolness of my dress twice, threatening a while-you-sleep robbery, while we watched movies at their house that night. No on-photos, but here it is drying in the sun on Tuesday:Project 3: A circus tent of a shirt. Even striped! I tried to modify a pattern by adding way too much length and breadth. Loved wearing it, but had to pin up the neckline. Unpicking done, pleats and resewing of FOE yet to come before photos appear. Too sensitive to think photos of circus tent on circus self very comical.