It's all over but the Hemming

So I spent Tuesday afternoon working on this dress. I cut it out about 8 years ago, when I had fewer mature curves and pregnancy wasn't even on the horizon (for one thing, I was about to break up with my long-time boyfriend... but that's another story). I don't really remember why I didn't sew this up immediately - it can't have taken me more than 3 hours to put it together now - but I suspect heat (I remember it being late summer when I cut it out) and laziness factored in. Anyway, it's been on the edges of my crafting mind ever since, and I was reminded of its existence when I went through my fabric stash the other day. Since my adventures with the mei tai reminded me of how much I enjoy sewing for its own sake, I decided to pull this out and get it sewn. I have no clue when I might be able to wear this; for one thing, I seldom attend occasions when its formality would be appropriate, and for another, I have no idea when my body might be this shape again, if ever. Still, on the off chance I might be able to wear it while still nursing, I left the slit at the front bodice (a design feature present when I bought the pattern) open a bit further than it's supposed to be. I suppose that when I get to the finishing (I also need to tack the lining down to the zipper in back) I'll put a hook and eye at the front so it doesn't gape so badly.


At the time I bought the fabric and lining for the dress (I think I was working at JoAnn's at the time - all hail craft store employee discounts!), I also found this lovely sheer. I think it was a remnant, which is why there isn't quite as much of it as I would prefer in a scarf of its type, but it went so well with the dress fabric that I couldn't resist. It, too, needs work; I'm thinking that I won't bother rolling its hems by hand, as I would with silk. I'll probably follow a thread so that the edges are absolutely on the straight grain, and then zigzag. But all of the finishing will have to wait for a day I'm feeling like handsewing, which I'm not, at present. ;P Maybe in the next few weeks, as I feel less and less like sitting in hard wooden chairs...


And finally, the inevitable belly picture. 35w, 2d, and I feel like I've exploded in the last week and a half. Of course, this is the period in which Igor should be pretty much just finishing up, gathering minerals, and adding weight, so I'll be getting bigger by the day, but it's still startling. Josh looked at me the other night and said something about how weird it'll be for me not to have this great belly any more, and it will be, but I'm ready for it! I don't want Igor to come before s/he's ready, but *I'm* ready to be done.