McCalls 6744 With Maternity Alteration

It just doesn't work.
I'm so bummed. I even cried for a little while after I put this dress on. It's SO horrible.

 

So this is a crossover, pullover, maxi dress. It's very loose and flowy, and the waist is easy to move up and down. So I decided to try moving the waist up above my big belly... and it just.. ugh.. so sadly did not work.

 

I think I just don't like that the waist is above my belly, then there's just nothing under... it makes me feel fat instead of pregnant, and I hate that. I didn't realize I would feel this way until I put this dress on this morning.
I was already a little anxious about the bodice on this, because I am desperately uncomfortable in crossover tops. I hate low cut tops, and my boobs ALWAYS fall out in crossovers.. I even have a safety pin in this one. I considered sewing the top to the bottom, but I wanted to figure out a way to be able to open it up for nursing once Octo gets here. So some kind of itty bitty sew on button or hook clasp is going to have to be in order... I'm not sure.

The shoulders remind me of the 1970's. -->

They have encased elastic on the top. I've never worn anything like that, so I do like that part.

I just threw on the belt because I made the elastic around the waist too loose, so it really needed SOMETHING to sinch it down a little more... cause without it, I just felt like a moo-moo wearing a mumu.

I don't believe a wide belt would work with this dress, even without the maternity fit, but definitely not with the maternity fit. There's just not enough room between my boobs and belly for a wide or stiff belt.





All in all the dress was fairly simple to make, 6 total pieces. It's a bit difficult working with BIG pieces, but the bodice was a piece of cake.
I'm disappointed in how much I don't like the way this dress looks on me, because I'm so in love with this fabric. The photos don't do it justice. It's such a vibrant pink.
Grand total I invested about $32 in this dress. 3 yards of pink fabric at $4.95/yard, 3 yards of lining fabric at $3.95/yard, and .99 for the pattern.. then add tax, elastic, and thread.

On a skinny girl it should look like this:
  McCalls website
or even this:
mimi g

But it just doesn't work with the maternity alteration :( So I'll probably put this one in the back of the closet until after Octo is born.
My other idea was to use a smaller waist elastic (like 3/8" instead of the 1" I used) remove the skirt, cut it to where it stops just a couple of inches under my belly, and make that a full circle instead of the 'wrap overlap', thereby transforming it into a maternity shirt I can still keep and wear as a nursing shirt.

It's so funny.. I made the majority of this last night, went to bed, then got up early to finish it. The finishing included attaching the skirt to the bodice. I just realized as I was taking these pics after wearing the dress ALL DAY that I put the wrong flap on top on the skirt!! LOL Ah well :)