Fit of Maternity Clothes

mtusnow

Ok, so I know that in general you buy maternity clothes in the same size as your regular clothes. It seems like I fall somewhere between a small and a medium. Those who have been pregnant before, how much room do I need to leave to grow? Do you need a set of clothes for early on and then another for near the end or do they typically last the whole time. I tried on a couple of things, the smalls fit now and I'm swimming in the mediums. I'm 11 weeks and regular clothes are still working (for the moment), but I started to look at swimsuits (don't want them to be all sold out or slim pickings when I need one) and tried on a couple other things because I was curious. I realized I don't really know what I'm doing. Maybe I'm just trying to jump ahead too quickly. Love some advice. Thanks.

wendyld

If you are swimming in mediums, I would go with small. If you are truly in between, I would go for medium. I swelled a lot with my first pregnancy and did need bigger stuff at the very end. Maybe go with a mix?

mb314

It's a hard call.  Last time, I bought most of my clothes from Old Navy (online).  I am a medium in their clothes normally (but I find their clothes sizes to run big, so I may be a large in other stores).  I gained 40 pounds - and gained all over, not just in my belly.  I didn't have any problem wearing those dresses throughout the entire pregnancy. 

I would stick with the smalls if you are already swimming in the mediums. 

MrsDL

From my experience, it's better to buy things as you need them because you never know how your body is going to change as the pregnancy progresses. With my son (who was 9 lbs), I didn't need maternity clothes until about 16 or 18 weeks, and I could still fit into my other clothes they were just a little tight. I never had a huge bump and didn't have to buy too much. I have friends who stayed small but got huge bumps early on and others who gained a lot of weight all over. Every pregnancy is different.

You do bring up a good point about bathing suits though - I wonder if maternity bathing suits sell out as quickly as regular bathing suits? This another thing where I guess it would be hard to guess how your body is going to change.  I had my son in May so was never pregnant over the summer.

mtusnow

@MrsDL I feel like it's hard enough to find a regular swimsuit, so I thought I'd get a start with maternity one wince all the stores are flooded with swim suits right now. You can return to Kohl's at anytime, so figure if I keep one that ends up working, I'm ahead of the game, and if it doesn't work, I'm no worse off than I otherwise would have been and I'll just return.

runningmama14

Yeah, the swimsuit thing has me nervous too.  We have a family vacation in August, so I'll be 6 months and the entire week is a live in your swimsuit kind of trip.  I want to make sure I have one I can stand!

Celticlass6

Is a maternity swimsuit a must have? My parents have a pool, and the in-laws have a plac down the shore, so I'm going to be swimming a bit. I was thinking of just making do with my existing two pieces and letting the bump speak for itself. But I guess it depends on where I put on the weight?

momtojad

It is more like you can fit into you maternity clothes and then the last week you are just suppose to sit around naked in a bath tub because your so huge.

jf198400

I would go with clothes that fit you now and/or have a little growth room, but nothing that is obviously swimming on you. Most of my maternity clothes just kind of stretched with me as I grew. I have a maternity bathing suit from DD who was born in August. I was so big at the end that the small wouldn't cover my belly so I bought a medium. I don't think you will have that problem with a November due date.

Am I the only one who thinks all the maternity bathing suits are ugly this season? I am also seriously confused as to how a 1 piece could work. I highly recommend the flowy tankini type.

runningmama14

Celticlass6 said:

Is a maternity swimsuit a must have? My parents have a pool, and the in-laws have a plac down the shore, so I'm going to be swimming a bit. I was thinking of just making do with my existing two pieces and letting the bump speak for itself. But I guess it depends on where I put on the weight?

It is for me.  No desire to bare my belly in my pre-pregnancy bikini!

mtusnow

jf198400 said:

I have a maternity bathing suit from DD who was born in August. I was so big at the end that the small wouldn't cover my belly so I bought a medium. I don't think you will have that problem with a November due date.  

BTW - when it comes to swim wear, I'll totally need something that lasts until I give birth as I try to exercise regularly at the indoor pool.

abbyful

Celticlass6 said:

Is a maternity swimsuit a must have? My parents have a pool, and the in-laws have a plac down the shore, so I'm going to be swimming a bit. I was thinking of just making do with my existing two pieces and letting the bump speak for itself. But I guess it depends on where I put on the weight?

I rocked my bikini when pregnant with DS, plan to do the same thing again.

jf198400

abbyful said:

Celticlass6 said:

Is a maternity swimsuit a must have? My parents have a pool, and the in-laws have a plac down the shore, so I'm going to be swimming a bit. I was thinking of just making do with my existing two pieces and letting the bump speak for itself. But I guess it depends on where I put on the weight?

I rocked my bikini when pregnant with DS, plan to do the same thing again.

It's not just the bump itself though. I had a dark linea negra all the way up my belly, I was very embarrassed by that. Also depends if you get stretch marks. For me personally I prefer to cover up.

mtusnow

@flutterbuggie pretty sure I saw some at Kohls.com

jf198400

flutterbuggie said:

What id like to know is where to find plus size maternity stuff. Obviously now the maternity stuff would fit but I'm worried about once I'm farther along what the heck I am going to wear aside from a potato sack. Anyone else have experience with this??

Motherhood has some plus size, unfortunately it's selection is limited.

Kitty Holland

jf198400 said:

abbyful said:

Celticlass6 said:

Is a maternity swimsuit a must have? My parents have a pool, and the in-laws have a plac down the shore, so I'm going to be swimming a bit. I was thinking of just making do with my existing two pieces and letting the bump speak for itself. But I guess it depends on where I put on the weight?

I rocked my bikini when pregnant with DS, plan to do the same thing again.

It's not just the bump itself though. I had a dark linea negra all the way up my belly, I was very embarrassed by that. Also depends if you get stretch marks. For me personally I prefer to cover up.

You can rock the stretch marks and linea negra too if you want! Nothing to be embarrased of. I wore a 2 piece but not my pre-pregnancy one because my tatas grew lke wildfire.

mtusnow

@Emnob28 Kohls.com had about a dozen styles online, mostly tankinis for $36 for the set. More of a fassion suit than somthing something like a Speedo, but I felt like it was one of the better prices out there. It's still kind of early for me at 11 weeks to buy one, but I'm hoping the one I kept will work well in a month or two.Kohls also has a smaller selection in the store. Time will tell how it holds up for the pregnancy.

mtusnow

Love that the weather warmed up for a few days, but I'm realizing that my clothes for cooler weather hid things more and had more room to accomidate for expanding chest and waist. All of my short sleeve stuff has a tighter fit. Anyone else finding the same thing? Looks like I'll be needing to figure out shopping for maternity earlier than I thought.

MrsDL

mtusnow said:

@MrsDL I feel like it's hard enough to find a regular swimsuit, so I thought I'd get a start with maternity one wince all the stores are flooded with swim suits right now. You can return to Kohl's at anytime, so figure if I keep one that ends up working, I'm ahead of the game, and if it doesn't work, I'm no worse off than I otherwise would have been and I'll just return.

Not a bad idea. The issue I run into with pre-preg swimsuits is I'm a 34DD normally, and between a size 4 and 6.  I can't do suits that come in sizes or S, M, L because I like my breasts to be really supported - particularly chasing after my toddler - don't need the girls knocking me out or making an unwelcome appearance for all to see. I'm not a bikini while pregnant girl and a regular cup-sized tankini top isn't going to stretch correctly with my bump.

The maternity ones I'm seeing are by sizes.  I love my Athleta suits that are sold by cup-size. I've always been willing to pay more to get the support, but I'm not seeing maternity suits sold by cup size (which is kind of surprising given most women's breasts increase with pregnancy, so even if you could wear a size 4 or 6 suit and it's supportive pre-pregnancy, chances are you'll be busting out a bit while pregnant, especially further along).  Love to hear if anyone knows of maternity brands sold in separates by cup-size.

wallygirl

MrsDL said:

From my experience, it's better to buy things as you need them ecause you never know how your body is going to change as the pregnancy progresses. With my son (who was 9 lbs), I didn't need maternity clothes until about 16 or 18 weeks, and I could still fit into my other clothes they were just a little tight. I never had a huge bump and didn't have to buy too much. I have friends who stayed small but got huge bumps early on and others who gained a lot of weight all over. Every pregnancy is different.

You do bring up a good point about bathing suits though - I wonder if maternity bathing suits sell out as quickly as regular bathing suits? This another thing where I guess it would be hard to guess how your body is going to change.  I had my son in May so was never pregnant over the summer.

Yes they sell out just as fast if not more so. I was due with my DD in September and took a beach vacay in June. My parents have a pool so I just wore a regular swimsuit there but I waited too late to get a swimsuit for vacay and had a terrible time finding one.

wallygirl

flutterbuggie said:

What id like to know is where to find plus size maternity stuff. Obviously now the maternity stuff would fit but I'm worried abouwatche I'm farther along what the heck I am going to wear aside from a potato sack. Anyone else have experience with this??

If you have a Motherhood close by I would go and try things on. I think some of their clothes run larger and some run small. Some of Old Navy's maternity goes up to XXL. Also watch zulily I see pluz size maternity on there.

ShelleyElla22

I bought a maternity swimsuit from kohls during my last pregnancy and it held up really well. I was at the pool everyday in the summer with the kids I nanny for so it definitely got a lot of use. @MrsDL‌ I am a 36 DD regularly and wear between 6 and 8 so I understand your problem but I found the swimsuit to work pretty well.

wallygirl

@MrsDL‌ I've never seen maternity swimsuits by cup size but target had separate pieces so maybe you could size up on top?! Good luck

mtusnow

lol-totally turned into a swimsuit discussion. Feeling like I should have named it swimsuits instead.

nonoemily

As far as maternity sizes go- I started out a 0-2 pre-pregnancy. I gained 85lbs and ended up wearing XL maternity sizes at the end.

I lost the weight after about nine months, but I have a new appreciation for what plus size ladies go through to find clothes that fit and are cute.

stacyslo

There is no way in hell my boobs will fit into a pre-pregnancy bikini top, and I'm a 34 D to begin with. I plan to try a post baby bikini I wore when ds was 12 weeks and I was breastfeeding. I can't buy any thing until right before our June beach vacation bc there's no telling how big my boobs will be by then!