Maternity clothes

adorebel

@manditchka24 I STRONGLY preferred the side panels more than the full panels with my first pregnancy. I found the full panel to be hot and sort of itchy, but not really supportive enough to help in that regard. I preferred to wear a maternity tank pulled down over the pants with side panels or just to wear maternity dresses. That said, my first kid was born in February... but in California, so it stayed warm throughout my pregnancy. I might change my mind about the full panel having a February baby in New England this time! 

juliebeannn

manditchka24 said:

As a newbie to maternity clothes can someone explain what the benefit would be of the side panels over full panel? You guys seem to be generally pro full panel and everything you say makes me wonder why one would ever consider side panels.

*lurking from March BMB*
I generally liked full panels better bc I feel like it made my bump look "nicer" haha.  But, also a plus for side panels is that they're great for postpartum life when regular clothes don't fit quite yet.

WildMagelet

So, I'm having tons of fun window shopping, but serious question for 2nd + time moms, how many maternity tops does someone *actually* need, before I go on a crazed shopping spree.

birdiejo

@WildMagelet good question! Especially because it’s still warm but it’ll get cooler to cold in a few months! Are you working from home or going in to the  office ? 

For me, I’ll be home almost my entire pregnancy due to kids and covid which sounds crazy so I’m only planning to have a rotation of 5-7 plain ish T-shirt’s and tanks with maybe 4-5 roomy sweaters. This is probably the minimum I’d do. 

But if you’re leaving the house for work I’d think you would want probably a handful of nicer shirts too! 

My blanqui leggings just arrived, I got two pairs of the workout leggings and one regular and I love the regular ones! I want another pair. I will be living in those in winter. 

szwill86

@WildMagelet I agree with @birdiejo on the more tops than bottoms statement, esp. if you will actually be going into a work place (even just a few days a wk). I found that with getting some nice maternity jeans in black and darker denim, I could follow the “rule” of regular jeans and not wash after every wear, therefore getting more wears out of them. Also I manage to always spill on my shirt, so more were necessary 😬

WildMagelet

@birdiejo @szwill86 - For now, I'm going to be working out of the office. Depending on how COVID is going and how this pregnancy progresses, I may ask to adjust to a 1/2-time WFH schedule. Some things I can't do from home, but there are plenty of things that I can.

Luckily we can wear jeans, but sadly no leggings as pants. The only time I have to "dress up" is if I'm going to another location as a representative so I shouldn't need a bunch of dress clothes (although I always try to go for nicer tops or basic fitted Ts versus baggy graphic Ts.

hannahbananas11

I forgot all about this maternity underwear and rediscovered them yesterday in my maternity clothes box in the closet. They’re really nice because they don’t dig into your pelvis. They sit low under the bump. They’re true to size.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWKDR5X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_2p-kFbAKZWCGP

knottie68a84c88b45e8e6b

I just ordered a ton from Shein.com and I am so impressed!  The quality seems nice and they have such a wide variety of colors and styles.  I pretty much got a full wardrobe for less than $150!

WildMagelet

Someone may need to save me from my slight obsession with thredup.   DH is going to be so tired of spotted bags, lol.

babybonnbonn

First timer here...what are you all wearing in the weird transition phase? I'm 12w2d, so basically just bloated, but my pants are getting quite snug around the waist. It feels far too early for maternity clothes, so just curious to know what you find most comfortable.

birdiejo

@babybonnbonn I’m struggling with this as well. Especially with the coming changes in temperature. I’m living in my three pairs of stretchy shorts and T-shirt’s and definitely shrinking them all from overuse haha! 

mdfarmchick

I just embrace the bloat/bump and wear full panel maternity so it shapes it into something cute and bump-like 🤷🏻‍♀️

birdiejo

@mdfarmchick this is true but I’m trying not to buy maternity shorts because I’d only need them for another month or two! Once it gets cooler I can live in leggings and maternity pants. 

szwill86

@babybonnbonn I’ve been doing the hair tie trick on my shorts with buttons- loop the hair tie around the button and thread it through the button opening, then loop it back on the button. It’s been working well, but not for much longer! 😩

WildMagelet

@babybonnbonn - I delved into full panel maternity pants, but I also picked up a wide elastic band on clearance at Target that you wear over unfastened pants or skirts or over too big maternity pants to keep things snug and smooth, but still comfortable in between sizes.

babybonnbonn

@szwill86 Very clever! I'll give that a try. Thanks! 

babybonnbonn

@WildMagelet Thank you! I'll check out the bands.

manditchka24

I’m in that phase too. I still fit my regular clothes but I don’t like how they look. I found one of those seamless belly bands at a consignment shop for $2.50. It fits over unbuttoned pants and smooths everything out and/or covers your stomach if your shirt no longer reaches. I’ve only tried it on at home so I can’t speak to the functionality of it, but it definitely improves the look of my current clothes. I’m hoping it will be a cost effective solution to this awkward phase.

aaimee

Walmart has a few maternity leggings for $8-$14. I finally caved and bought a pair of black leggings, especially with holidays coming. My first pregnancy, I had a friend give me her maternity clothes which was a godsend. I am a huge thrift store junky and will always check the local ones. 

mdfarmchick

@birdiejo I’m already just wearing the leggings and the jeans and sucking up that it’s still warm 😂 It’s not terrible with a tank top. 

tamalahoops

I just signed up for LeTote maternity rentals. I'm skeptical, but I anticipate this being my only pregnancy so I'm not interested in investing in an entire maternity wardrobe. I'll be happy to review when I get my first box if anyone is interested! 

mdfarmchick

@tamalahoops my bff did it for her second pregnancy when she was working an office job and she liked it. I hope you have a positive experience. 

WildMagelet

@tamalahoops - I'd love a review! 

birdiejo

I ordered maternity bike shorts on amazon. Where I live I have about 2.5 months of warm weather left so I couldn’t take it anymore. The first pair arrived and are super comfy except the itchy tag that I’m going to try and cut off. 

szwill86

I finally ordered the low rise maternity underwear that someone on here recommended- I can’t wait for them to get here! My regular underwear are starting to roll down on some or the elastic band is cutting into my belly on my VS ones. 

@birdiejo I’m jealous of your bike shorts! I totally would order some, but I go back to work next Friday and I’m sure they’d be frowned upon in a school setting 😆

kkfishy9

My mom gave me some maternity leggings from beyond yoga. They are SO soft and comfy! They are a little pricey, but you can get a 20% discount if you are a nurse (which my mom is) or other medical provider  

adorebel

Does anyone have recs for bras for people with larger busts? I'm a 34DD before pregnancy, and I feel like I'm already up a cup size, if not a band size as well. I'm so uncomfortable. It can be underwire or wireless, nursing or not, but it just needs to be supportive....

WildMagelet

@adorebel I've been living in the Auden seamless nursing bras from Target for weeks now. I outgrew my standard bras ages ago. They come in generic letter sizes and have been comfortable and supportive enough for me to wear all day. Most of me regular bras were a 38DD before we got pregnant.

manditchka24

@kkfishy9 thanks for the heads up about the discount for medical providers! I want to invest in a good pair of maternity leggings but I also don’t want to spend that much! I’ll check out those leggings!

WildMagelet

Let's talk dresses! Any ideas on where to get something cute for fall? There's so many maternity websites out there it's hard to know what's legit and what's going to get you an overpriced ill-fitted overseas knockoff.

birdiejo

I might just go H&M , ON or GAP for that? What kind of dresses are you looking for? Casual fall ? 

@WildMagelet

mdfarmchick

@WildMagelet I like Pinkblush 😁

WildMagelet

@birdiejo I don't know what I want, which is probably part of the problem    

travandas

I’m frustrated that most stores shut down their fitting rooms! The only store in my area that allows you to try clothes on is Old Navy. Are your stores allowing you to try clothes on?

tamalahoops

@travandas no fitting rooms open near me. I just put in an amazon prime wardrobe order for some pants so I can try them on before I buy them. All the pants I ordered from ON were too big and I'm getting frustrated with sizing.

manditchka24

@travandas no fitting rooms around here either ☹️.

travandas

@tamalahoops It’s so frustrating shopping online. You never know if the clothes run big or small and how good the quality is.
@manditchka24 It’s sad. I know my body has changed with every pregnancy and I have to try clothes on. I might have to resort to bubble wrap and duck tape 😂

manditchka24

@travandas one day I was wearing loose shorts so I just pulled a pant leg all the way up to my thigh to make sure my thighs fit! Unfortunately that doesn’t tell me if they will fit my butt which is usually where things go wrong but it was a start! 😅.

travandas

@manditchka24 That's hilarious and sounds like something I would totally do!

birdiejo

Update on blanqui leggings. I got the workout ones that were on sale and I feel like I’m not a huge fan. They compress so well that I feel like my bump is slightly suffocating and I’m only 17 weeks tomorrow. How am I supposed to wear them at 40 weeks? Did I get the wrong ones ? I’m pretty sure I ordered the maternity ones haha. The regular leggings on the other hand are super comfy. Maybe this is why the athletic ones were on sale? 

I also ordered a pair of leggings from amazon that were motherhood maternity and those are comfy.