Nursing Cami vs. Regular Cami

Maries1987 · November 2014

I'm a FTM due in January and have seen a lot of nursing camis (store bought or dit) that you can wear under your regular shirts to not expose your belly while breastfeeding in public. My question is why you can't just pull down the neck of a regular cami to get the same effect? Or can you? I tried on a forever 21 cami with a nursing bra I have and it seems to work okwl when I pull it down (it's stretchy), but I am wondering why people don't just do this? Thanks for the advice!

opheliainwaders · November 2014

I find that the neckline of most regular camis isn't as stretchy, but if it is, it'd probably be ok. One thing is that you may want to wait and see how big your boobs get, and whether a cami provides enough support. I'm pretty small-chested, so I wear them a lot, but I know some moms on here need to do a nursing bra, not just a cami.

Aliki · November 2014

My regular camis were not stretchy enough to pull down. I could stretch it a little to expose a little nipple, but never enough to expose the whole breast, which is what my daughter likes. She doesn't like when the "lip" of the cami starts to inch up, and is near her mouth.

If it works for you, go for it!

eggmankate · November 2014

I don't see why not....I personally like the convenience of just unclipping and pulling one side down, but I can't think of any reason why not to use a regular cami. I did once try to use a regular bra v. a nursing bra (my nursing bra was in the wash) and I saw how inconvenient it really was. A regular cami is a lot looser though so I think it would work.

Abenedict2011 · November 2014

I have a large chest and regular Camis with the built in bra has never worked for me. I don't like the look if a regular cami with the thick nursing bra straps underneath so I enjoy the nursing Camis that are sized for me. They give support, and don't need the nursing bra in addition.y problem with mine are they are too low cut IMO for the size if my chest, but good for layering to nurse discreetly.

RachelCA29 · November 2014

The nice thing with nursing tanks is you don't need s nursing bra with them, and I really don't like nursing bras (I find it uncomfortable to have to cup part folded and bunched down while nursing.) I love nursing tanks in that I can basically wear anything and still nuse easily.

That said, I do also have a few camis with built in shelf bras that I also use for nursing (sans nursing bra). They work well and I can even put cloth breast pads in for leaks. But if you have really large breasts that might not be enough support.

2ndGeneration · November 2014

What's a good place to buy nursing camis? Inexpensive if possible! They sound good, I'd like to cover my stomach and with winter coming...another new invention since I had my last baby

or if they had them I never saw them.

nunzchucks · November 2014

2ndGeneration said:
What's a good place to buy nursing camis? Inexpensive if possible! They sound good, I'd like to cover my stomach and with winter coming...another new invention since I had my last baby or if they had them I never saw them.

I got all mine at Motherhood during one of their nursing sales.

RachelCA29 · November 2014

2ndGeneration said:

What's a good place to buy nursing camis? Inexpensive if possible! They sound good, I'd like to cover my stomach and with winter coming...another new invention since I had my last baby or if they had them I never saw them.

Target has nice ones, $20 each.

flcl · November 2014

2ndGeneration said:

What's a good place to buy nursing camis? Inexpensive if possible! They sound good, I'd like to cover my stomach and with winter coming...another new invention since I had my last baby or if they had them I never saw them.

I got a 2-pack for $30 from h&m that were pretty decent. Some moms really like having the option to lift up a layer while still covering their bellies but I found pulling down the neckline so much easier. If I NIP, I wore LO so pulling down was also easier than pulling up.

melaport · November 2014

I do the nursing bra with regular cami. Love the 2 packs of camis from Costco. I have a few nursing tanks which I used early on and liked but have always been more comfortable in a bra with some padding which just isn't possible with a shelf bra like in the nursing tanks.

harmonicbabe26 · November 2014

Maybe it's just the types of regular camis I personally wear, but i just don't see how you would ever get good access to a boob in a regular cami... I guess if you wear really loose fitting or super stretchy ones you can do it, or if your boobs are big enough to pop them over the edge...
My boobs never got big enough to do that even with BFing so to have any sort of access to a boob I have to unclip the top of the nursing cami.
IMO it's SOOO convenient! I would never want to mess around with a regular cami like that. Target and Walmart sell some really great, cheap ass nursing camis. I would go with those.

BethanyAnn27 · November 2014

I use regular camis. I found several on end-of-season clearance for $1-3 each and just bought them one size bigger than I typically wear. On those with adjustable straps, I just leave the straps slightly longer than normal and wear a nursing bra underneath. I just couldn't justify spending $20 on one nursing cami!

fivetoparty · November 2014

I'm big chested so built in cami's don't work for me in public however I wear them to bed at night so its easy access and I don't have to mess with a bra. During the daytime I do a nursing bra with my regular cami's. I always wear a cami underneath whatever I'm wearing even if its a t-shirt!!

[Deleted User] · November 2014

My favorite are from Undercover Mama. They run sales sometimes and you can also check Amazon. They are strapless and clip on to your bra. Love!

Maries1987 · November 2014

Thanks for all the tips ladies!

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