Plain Pregnancy

After having gone to a great deal of time and effort to develop a style of plain dress that was both comfortable and felt uniquely (enough) Quaker, I had to throw it all out the window when I became pregnant. Below I picture some of the options I explored in plain maternity wear.

Examples

Photo of me three days before giving birth. Whew! This dress lasted the pregnancy.


Photo of me at 7 months, wearing the drawstring dress I made using "The Elegant Lady's Closet" pattern from Sense and Sensibility (scroll down page). I am wearing the Laura Day 'Frill Cap' from Rachel's Seamstress Services.	Same pattern, different fabric. The neckline and the waist are drawstring, allowing for my ever-expanding belly and for nursing the baby after it is born. For more modesty, I wear it with a kerchief. Homemade raw muslin drawstring dress with kerchief.	Sebastian and I went hiking at Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp.

This is me at 3 months, having already outgrown my wardrobe. Ruby and Dora Roth made some lovely maternity dresses for me. They offer their plain dress-making services at Anabaptist Bookstore.com. I sent my non-pregnant measurements and they sent me dresses.	Observant readers will notice I am wearing a different cap. During my first pregnancy I gained enough weight that my usual favorites were no longer comfortable, so I opted for a different cap from PrayerCoverings.com: Vintage Style	Ruby and Dora also offer a separate vest that can be worn for additional modesty. Their website does not advertize the maternity option, so when ordering place the request for a maternity-style dress in the special instructions. They also offer a nursing cape dress.	Photo of me at 6 months. This dress still fits, but is not as comfortable as the Regency drawstring dress I made (see above). I have gained more weight and girth than we anticipated.

I made this two-piece maternity dress using Candle on the Hill's Mama's Maternity Dress. It was fairly easy to make, but I did reference a sewing book I have for some details. The instruction to "insert zipper" was not adequate for my experience.	If thee doesn't want to sew thy own, King's Daughters have a version. I have to admit, it is not my favorite maternity solution, the one I made is just not very comfortable, which could be my skill and not the pattern, though it is very modest and, for winter months, toasty warm.	This dress also appears to be available from the King's Daughters' extensive maternity-wear sewn-to-order collection (scroll to the bottom of the page). They call it Mother's Bodice Smock and underdress. King's Daughters also sell maternity/nursing sleepwear and undergarments.