My Fashionable Life

Wouldn't you wear the Mommy Snug for quite a lot longer? I mean, I have heard that you don't necessarily get your shape back right away and wouldn't it do you all through the winter? Even if you do skinny down right away, I've always thought it was a lovely sweater. Not that that answers your Biggy Print question but I'm just saying.

What about a one or two button sweater like Juliet?

Delurking here - have read you and bought your patterns for ages now. I've seen several French Girl patterns that use Big Wool - I'm sure you could substitute Biggy Print for it... good luck!

You could knit a really long duster style cardigan. I bought two balls at Liberty ages ago and knit a Dr. Who length scarf. For some reason, it struck me as right. I can't imagine a long cardi taking long with Biggy Print and you could get lots of use out of it after the bambino makes the grand appearance.

I've always felt that ponchos are only forgivable when worn by new mothers who are either nursing or carrying a baby in cold climates. I could see a very cool cape with a stand up-collar coming in handy...

I desperately needed a sweater at the end of my pregnancy so if I could have made one for myself, I would have. Could you use the biggie print to make yourself a top-down raglan cardigan? That way, you can wear it right away and still wear it later and it will be good for nursing (if you so choose). That's what I would do. Or, you say, "screw it" and go to the gap and buy yourself a man's sweater because it's the only one that is long enough to cover the bottom of your belly and you're sick of being cold and you're too damned tired to work on anything because you're so freaking stressed about a deadline and you no longer sleep at night and have terrible, terrible heartburn and just want to sleep but can't. That's what I did.

I was thinking along the same lines as Ava, a long cardi with a simple clasp fastening. Or you could use it to knit a wide scarf or blanket for the night time feeds, just to snuggle into when feeling tired and cold... that would be lovely in that yarn.

I think you need a good old fashioned cardigan, especially if you're planning on breastfeeding. 3/4 or bracelet length sleeves will also be a good idea as you're going to be washing your hands all the time what with changing nappies etc. No pokey buttons that will dig into the baby. Something snuggly that you can throw on around the house over whatever you're wearing will be great, I wear my Retro Prep all the time around the house over clothes and pyjamas in the middle of the night as it's comfortable, the sleeves don't get wet, I can open or close it depending how hot I am and whenever I get thrown up upon I just chuck it in the wash and it's ready to go again.

Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy!

I was going to suggest Juliet too - it could sit open around your bump and then gradually sit closer in as the baby shape moves on (after giving borth of course!).

How funny would it be to use the yarn you bought from me for a Mommy Snug?! I'm planning on making one too. That just so tickles me. Although - I would definitely swatch first. The yarn needs to be REALLY stretchy.

Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy!

10 33-yard skeins of yarn, huh? i'm not sure how far that'll get you, so top-down is a really good idea - that way you can knit until you run out of yarn! juliet is really cute - you'd have to adjust for the different gauge, but you could make something long enough to cover you and you might even have some left over to add sleeves if you want them. at that gauge it would look like something by Twinkle. There's also Twinkle's Tuxedo Jacket: http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-ig-diywebpattern18mar18,1,7418600.story?coll=la-headlines-lifestyle

Might I suggest a simple BOB-like cardigan that will accommodate your pregnant tummy but continue to be wearable post-pregnancy? Depending on how far the Biggie Print takes you, you can make long sleeves and make the body as long as you like.

A cardigan would be great -- I wish I'd knit one while I were pregnant, instead of (I feel) wasting my time on a pregnancy sweater. I don't have a specific pattern in mind, but I can tell you that it's nice to have wider or overlapping fronts on the cardigan if you want to give yourself more privacy while nursing in public.

I agree. Ponchos are not so good. But a cape with a stand up collar sounds divine. Especially since it wont be vampire black. ;)

hi,
at this moment i am doing a knitting-job for a pregnant friend- a big thing like your Flicca, but just st stitches, no specials ;)big wool, fast knit.
design from "hollywood knits" from suss cousins!
something for the "hugging-time".
best wishes, eva

No specific pattern comes to mind, but I think some sort of cardigan is ideal. Something that can be unbuttoned to fit over the bump and which can also be warn post pregnancy, possibly thrown over pyjamas to deal with those midnight feeds. 3/4 length sleeves are definitely a good idea - keep them out of the way during nappy changes!

What about a cardigan with "long (sideways)" front panels without buttons, maybe even shawl-like. So you can swing it closed, which would be super handy when breastfeeding.

How about a thick snuggly shawl. You can use it post partum for breast feeding, wrap both you and the baby in it. Shawls are great for wrapping yourself up in, curling up in a chair and reading a book/magazine/ laptop and or breast feeding. I did a of of this with my two. Especially in the first three months. The baby feeds a lot (small amounts) you are tired, stressed because of the huge change in your life, and happy all at once. It is great to have a chance to slow down and enjoy . Good luck with whatever you decide to knit.

theres a big snuggly almost blanketlike jacket/coat in the latest rowan, I like it and I think it would be perfect for pre and post baby...hang on I will look it up

hmm its cables, perhaps not best for biggy, I think I would go for a long, fairly classic open coat that could be pinned shut or left open, that or a big cosy throw to snuggle under with baby

I've been thinking about making this
[url=http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/en/visoppskrift.php?d_nr=103&d_id=1]Drops Jacket[/url]to wear this winter (I'm due Jan 7th). With a few modifications I think it'll be good for pregnancy and post delivery belly coverage :)

I used Rowan Biggy Print for Sally Melville's "Not Your Mother's Suit Coat" from "The Purl Stitch." I modified it considerably, as it was way too A-liney for me.

I'd say it was moderately successful. I think I'm too short to elegantly carry off such a bulky sweater, but it is warm.

My big complaint with this yarn, and I'd be interested to hear if your experience is the same, is that I had at least 1-2 knots in each 33 yard ball. This seems really unacceptable to me. As a result, I had a zillion bulky ends to weave in. (I've since become a spit-splicer, but can you do that with such a bulky yarn?)

Best wishes to you as you finish up your pregnancy and enter the next phase ...

I just finished Chantal by French Girl. It's on Ravelry (anniedriscoll) if you want to check it out. It's a nice cardigan/jacket, which is cutaway in the front--nice for pregnancy and post-baby wear. It's also knit from the top down, so you can make the most of your yarn--you should have PLENTY, and it's the right gauge. Have fun!

how about a shopping tunic from Twinkle's Big City Knits?
The design is super stretchy and long so should cover through pregnancy and post baby. and let's not forget that it's super stylish too!

My friend made me a prego sweater- Bump Sweater from Louisa Harding's Natural Knits. It is really simple, but I loooooooved it. It has short row shaping in the front. My tummy grew out of almost everything except this sweater when I was pregnant. It's very cozy. It also made me feel safe and well hidden post pregnancy. There is also a pattern for a nursing sweater that could be cute with some tweekings

Ooh- how did that Kate Gilbert design slip past me when I was pregnant?! Love Kate's comment above- ahh, yes, the joy of the final month or so..
I would have thought the Mummy Snug would work OK post pregnancy too (you never know what you're body shape is going to be afterwards).
Kate's Sunrise Circle would also be perfect in the Jo Sharp Aran, during and after (perhaps with some closure adjustments).
Alternatively with the Biggy Print, you could try something like this cardi I made: http://www.knitscene.com/knitsspotting/slides/djones.asp Pattern is very simple- you can probably make it up yourself for your gauge.
Essentially a big rectangle knitted sideways, with some slits for armhole openings (the sleeves are just tubes). A few short rows thrown into the back section to shape it in at your neck, and decrease along the neck edge on the left side to sit under the right side and pin in place. Of course, your belly would be on show, which may not be the kind of garment you're after.
Hope that helps!

21 skeins says big snuggly blanket to me!

I was pregnant in 2005-06 winter and I knit two sweaters both of which I sstill wear. The one I think might work is Rowan mag 32 - Raw. It is ribbed and cabled, but looks simple. I used an aran weight alpaca yarn, but the diagonal ribs on the side could give a bulkier garment some shape. When I wore it I did not look less pregnant (rather more so), but again the ribs give a nice shape to the bump. The garment then spings back after some rewashing and blocking. I knit my normal size (36 or medium) but I added extra length.

There is also the Jane Origami Pullover that you can see on the Fleece Artist website. I did not make it, but it looks like something you could adapt to make in Biggy print and wear quite nicely while pregnant. It looks quick to knit and imagine the convenience when nursing!

By the way, you may return to your pre-pregnancy size right away. It can happen because the first few weeks are a bit draining. Max

baby bloom by erika knight has a ribbed cardigan she calls the 'soft wrap jacket' which is fastened using kilt pins, and is knit in 'any chunky yarn such as jaeger chamonix' - it could probably be adapted for biggy print.

anyways you can see an image of it here: http://www.amazon.com/Knitting-Two-Designs-Expectant-Mommies/dp/customer-reviews/0823026132 (that is the US version), and if you can't get the pattern in the library, and don't own the book, let me know - i'd be happy to photocopy it and drop it in the post. :)

What about this?

http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/en/visoppskrift.php?d_nr=103&d_id=1&lang=en

I second the idea of a duster style coat?
http://www.englishyarns.co.uk/rowan_country_escape.html
Maeve from Rowan Country? I've been swithering whether to make it with some chunky print I have. Good for displaying the bump and then wrapping round you both afterwards!

What about something from the Rowan Ribbon Twist collection? The gauge is off, but close... There are a few cardigans in there that might be flexible - Honey or Jilly or some variation along those lines...

1) Let me start with the least lovliest option: there is the uber-ugly 'Hazel' in the RYC Mother and Baby book. Fundamentally, it is a big squarish garter jacket, with a collar, that is fastened with a kilt pin. The only reason that I mention this, is that somehow, in a nicer, bulkier yarn (losing the cables on the collar), it is not inspired but it might work?

Hmm, I doubt that you would ever feel proud of it though, a functional rather than an heirloom knit?

2) Then there is the 'Nancy' shape in the Ribbon Twist booklet. I think that this could be knitted up to be a big snuggly wraparound final months of pregnancy jacket that could carry you through afterwards? Just keep wrapping it round? But you have 21 balls? good grief, with that, you could knit this idea down to the floor and still have yarn left over? Plus Flicca is a far nicer pattern...so why would you?

3) Hmm, I cannot find my New Shapes Rowan Yarn book that I bought to accompany my summer sales purchases...but I do have a Burda Maglia magazine no 323 (if that helps) which has a couple of things that are knitted in a finer gauge yarn but possibly, the ideas could be ported up to a larger scale yarn with some aplomb? Simple enough to work but not so fussy that the Biggy Print would kill the idea? How is your italian...?!

I would like to second the suggestion made by reluctantmango about the Garnstudio Jacket. I just made one (finished it last night) and there are more on Ravelry--Flintknits' is the CUTEST ever!)

http://flintknits.blogspot.com/2007/09/drops-cardigan-done-and-dry.html

It's super fast (4 days--and I have 3 young boys at home!)

I am in LOVE with this sweater!! It would be perfect for the end of a winter pregnancy and post partum, nursing mum, kind of thing. I'm not sure what the gauge of the Rowan is, but it's a chunky knit (although they also have a pattern for a smaller gauge, too!)

I hope you do it, and I can't wait to see all your gorgeous baby knits, too.

I have no idea, but I'm sure you'll come up with something spectacular!

(Sorry, I appear to have left my useful suggestions somewhere completely inaccessible!)

Hi there - I am a bit of a lurker - isn't it great to get to the downhill slope of pregnancy - there was a pattern published in Canadian Living Magazine called Before and After Cardigan - it is a cardigan knit with and extra pie licse shape with button holes/buttons to connect into the cardigan to encompass the belly. (I have a pdf saved if you can't find it at www.canadianliving.ca let me know and I will e-mail the pdf)
I also have recently seen a pattern book with baby knits that includes some nursing sweaters - there is a whole realm about to open up to you! R

Have you thought about the diagonal stitch coat from the Vogue 25th anniversary issue? That calls for Twinkle yarn which is 76m per 200g skein - pretty much the same as chunky print. I love the shape and style of it, its not something that I could wear but it would look fab on you. Sorry if someone else has already suggested it, I only made it through half of the comments!

having been through 2 pregnancies, here's my advice. Only make a "big" garment out of your Biggie Print if you plan to wear it again on a subsequent pregnancy and post-partum. Otherwise, you can CELEBRATE wearing normal clothes again by making yourself a fabulous cardigan or other such sweater. Also a capelet/ wrap would also make a great prego & non-prego item.

good luck with your baby (and knitting)!

I don't know if anyone else has mentioned it, but I love this:
Beth by Kim Hargreaves.

I love this cardigan from glampyre:

http://www.glampyre.com/2007/08/19/photo-sunday-petal/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nate_and_stef_japel/sets/72157601558291517/

It has a great two-buttonhole design feature that means you can wear it pregnant or not.

I'm almost done with Marla. It's looking great so far.

Congratulations on the baby :)

Hope this finds you well...keep checking for baby-bump pictures!