Maternity Dresses

Annie234567

I'm currently in my fifth month and going to a friend's semi-formal wedding (and rehearsal dinner) in a couple of weeks.  Most of the maternity dresses I've found seem to be thinner and more cheaply made than my most casual summer dresses.  I'm at that awkward stage where if I wear something form-fitting I just look like I've let myself go, but this also means I can potentially wear non-maternity dresses if they have the right cut.  I'm trying to find a dress that is fitted on the top and/or has a deep V-neck, and flows loosely over my belly so that I feel appropriately dressed up and also not fat at this wedding.  Any suggestions for stores or brands that have a lot of these sorts of dresses, or another cut that would accomplish the same goal?  If you've had to go to a wedding while pregnant, what did you wear?

lawright

I went to a bar mitvah a week or two ago (around 16 weeks.)  The dress I had been planning to wear was a 3/4-sleeved jersey material knee-length A-line with an empress waistline.  There's a belt right below the boobs.  Unfortunately, when I put it on, it seriously looked like I was 9 months pregnant.  I think this is mostly because the dress was so form-fitting above the belt and so loose below the belt, that all you saw were fit arms, legs, nice boobs, and a disproportionately large abdomen.

At the last minute, I decided that I did NOT want to look THAT pregnant, and ended up switching to a billowy ruffled blouse and a knee-length a-line skirt.  The people at the table were actually surprised that I was pregnant at all.

mjsweetgirl

I have a maternity dress from motherhood maternity that fits great and has worked for several formal events. It was $40, and I've worn it about 3 times and have loaned it to a few of my friends. Have you tried reaching out to your girlfriends who have had babies? Maybe they have a dress you can borrow for your event. There is also a website called mine for nine and you can rent maternity dresses for a specific length of time.

katcarls

J. Crew has a lot of nice dresses that might work.  They are a little pricey though and I'm not sure what your budget is.  Rental is a good option too.  Some sites will give you two sizes of the same dress to make sure you get a good fit.  Just google maternity dress rental and see what comes up.

JLG95

You're pregnant, it's ok to look it.  But if you insist on not looking the part, you probably want something with an empire waist, maybe try plus sizes.  One of my co-workers hated maternity shirts and dresses, so she just bought plus size clothes instead.   

Also, the Pea in the Pod website appears to have actual maternity evening, BTW.

AliW220

I went to a wedding a couple weeks ago.  I gave up on trying to find a maternity dress. Like you said, they're cheaply made, but expensive, and alot of them have very strange cuts and did not flatter my body at all.

I ended up getting a non-maternity dress in the junior department. It was a size 11, when I'm usually a size 4 or 6. But thanks to humungo boobs, a size 6 was nowhere close to fitting. There's alot of styles out there with empire waists, the only problem for me is that alot of the dresses were too short. I suggest going to a large department store, and I'm sure you'll find something!

Wipz

Kohls have some empire waist line dresses that are very comfortable.  I think the brand was Chaps.  You can dress them up with accessories or a jacket or cardigan. They are fitted up top and make the most of the girls with a nice (almost crossover) V neckline and flare out from the high waistline. 

... they have more now that the winter clothes are coming in