Pleiades, If You Please

After my success with my first Pleiades dress, I was determined to make another one. By the time I got around to it, there was a baby on the way -- no problem, the Pleiades is quite maternity friendly! But I still made a few alterations to ensure that I'd get as much wear out of it as possible.

Sixteen weeks with our rainbow in this photo 

I had quite a bit of blue tencel blend left over from my Brumby skirt, and with some careful placement I was able to eke out all of the pattern pieces. Granted, even though I lengthened the skirt pieces, this Pleiades ended up a bit shorter than my last one. I typically prefer longer skirts, and it does feel strange to have my knees showing! It doesn't help that it's insanely windy here, an issue that I'm looking forward to leaving behind when we move in a few weeks. The night before I wore this dress I hacked a pair of nylons by cutting off a few inches from the top and sewing on a bit of salvaged maternity panel -- it took all of five minutes to do, and was far cheaper than buying maternity-specific nylons. Somehow wearing sheer nylons makes me feel more covered? Anyway.

I sized up a bit for this dress, as my original Pleiades -- which fit perfectly when I made it -- is a bit snug around my ribcage now due to pregnancy (I already have a "generous" ribcage, but pregnancy expands it even further!). Not unwearable, but why not make this one a bit roomier if I had the option? Besides that, I made few alterations:

1. I shortened the bodice, to allow more room for the bump. 
2. I added a few inches of width to the skirt front, also for the bump! 
3. I raised the neckline, a carryover from my original dress.
4. I transferred the invisible zipper to the center front seam, making this dress nursing friendly. I was concerned about how this would work, but it turned out beautifully! 
5. I needed a way to conceal the zipper tab, so I added a bow to the neckline. It's essentially a long rectangle of fabric sewn into the neckline, and wasn't too difficult to work out (similar to sewing a sash into a waistband, just around the neck instead!). I like how it echoes the ties on the sleeves. Actually, I just noticed that there's a similar option on the Pleiades 2 pattern.

I almost always add ties to the sides of dresses, whether they are in the pattern or not! I don't have to tie them tightly, but if I need some extra shaping they're invaluable. 

We took these photos on Easter, the day after our gender scan for little Kit, as an announcement for family (it's hard to believe that's over four weeks ago...). Actually, this dress had been hanging unworn in my closet all spring due to unseasonably cold weather, and it just so happened that I also had a new pink dress in my closet -- I decided I'd wear whichever dress corresponded to our baby's gender for Easter. Obviously, we're team blue!

Brothers!

Apparently spring is (still) having a bit of an identity crisis, so I've not been able to wear this dress since Easter (and that pink dress hasn't been worn at all yet!). But once the weather cooperates, I'm hopeful this will be a closet staple in the coming months/years. What a blessing and joy to have a "bump" to dress again, and lovely fabrics and patterns to dress it with!