Maternity shirt... not intentional

Having recently been pregnant (my littlest man is almost 2 months old), I consider myself a bit of an expert on maternity wear...  I definitely should have made this 4 months ago!  I don't think it's the pattern's fault so much as my modification - namely, making a top instead of a dress.

Here's the pattern.

Cute dress, right?  I think maybe the weight of the skirt keeps it from looking too maternity when worn, despite the empire gathers.  I need a few cute, easy-to-wear tops, though, not any more dresses, so I shortened it.  So anyway, without further ado, here it is:

not too bad from the front, right?  Within the realm of the fashion of the day.  Heres the back:
not bad... maybe a little funny looking with the V with no skirt.  But, wait for it... wait for it...  Side view:
Yikes!  Not the look I want.  Hubby was a bit confused as well when I wore the new top.  Like "why are you wearing a maternity shirt now?" but phrased a little nicer.  He knows my sewing projects are like my babies.

As an aside, I did attache a modesty panel inside.  I wanted to be able to throw this top in without dealing with a cami on a hot day with no air conditioning.  Here's a look at the inside of the panel.  It's just a piece of fabric doubled so the fold is at the top (no edge finish needed) and stitched to the seam allowances of the collar band facing.

So the saga continues...  All day, I'm messing with this shirt and trying to figure out how to fix it.  For a while, I thought it looked kind of cute tucked in like this:

When the hubbs came home from work, though, he said "umm, no."  That comment wasn't phrased any nicer.  :-)  Now, I'm thinking I can take the sides of the top in so it's closer fitting.  I don't want to scrap the top.  I think it's cute.  I love the gathered details and I think if I just redrafted the bottom front panel without the gathers, it would look "off" with the rest of the top.  Any thoughts?

To be continued at a later date...

Here's the pattern review I did:

attern Description: Mid-knee or mid-calf dress with fitted bodice, has self-faced neck band and midriff, sleeve variations and center back zipper. A: contrast neck band and midriff. D: contrast neck band, sleeve bands and midriff.

Pattern Sizing: 8-24

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, except mine is a top.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes. I decided to do a few things differently, though.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? The style is really cute. The way I made it, though (shortened to a top) looks a bit "maternity). I don't think the dress version looks that way, though. The weight of the skirt must fix that.

Fabric Used: rayon jersey purchased at a local fabric market in Germany

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: No alterations. Design changes were many: First and most obvious, I shortened it to make a top. I also added a modesty panel so I wouldn't need to wear a cami underneath. I'm not sure how the model in the photo is wearing the dress with nothing underneath. Finally, I didn't interface anything. I don't think it's necessary, and without the interfacing, I didn't need a zipper and cut the back pieces on a fold I also finished the inside differently, eliminating the need for hand stitching. The inside isn't as clean this way, but it's how RTW does it anyway. If I had a serger, I would have been even happier with the inside.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I may sew the dress as intended, or I may try to make a top again, changing the bottom somehow so it's not so maternity-looking. I think it makes a cute top! 
I do recommend it - you will need to wear something under it, though. It's super low cut. I think that's accurately shown on the pattern photo, though. The dress reviews I've read on here look really cute.

Conclusion: Glad I tried to make the top since I need new tops more than new dresses, but I need to revise this one a bit.