It's getting harder and harder to find cute clothes that offer enough coverage for the non-pregger lady. It's even harder to find modest maternity clothes! BUT...it CAN be done. You just have to get creative. And layer. Layering will be your best friend.
Here's an example... (all pics are clickable if you need to see them larger)
Black top - Old Navy Maternity
Pink Top - Two Hearts Maternity from K-Mart
White Skirt - Old Navy Maternity
White Layering Tee - Christopher and Banks
Both pairs of flip flops - Yellow Box (I'm SOOO addicted to these...)
Let me just start off by saying that all those non stretchy button up blouses that are supposedly maternity, don't last me past the first 5 months. I finally packed those all away, and got smart. I bought only stretchy tops. Veeeeery stretchy ones, and once my belly got really big, I liked the kind with the elastic on the bottom. They're just not quite as tent-like. I mean, you already feel huge, why make it worse?! But it seems like today's maternity tops are made to be super form fitting, and I'm not comfortable with that, so I found that buying larger sizes was the solution. The black old navy top is a large! But it has plenty of room, is very comfortable and not binding, and doesn't feel so form fitting.
I really like the feminine almost romantic touches on these tops. Maternity wear doesn't have to be ugly or frumpy. Make it fun! Find things with pretty details.
Turquoise Maternity Tank - Ebay
I only wore this black dress once - the length felt weird on me, but I thought the dress was really cute on the hanger. I added the black ruffled cardigan and the black "cami-secret" to make it more modest. The green top is not even a maternity piece! If you know what to look for, and buy a bigger size, you can find regular clothes that work just as well. But then, my sweet grandmother told me I looked like a huge green watermelon in it. Gotta love her...
Black and White Floral Dress - Motherhood
Black Cardigan - Ross
Black Flower Slides - Payless
Green Peasant Top - Cato (size large!)
White Maternity Skirt - Motherhood (I got it from Ebay)
White Flower Flip-flops - K-Mart
My lifesaver with this baby has been the maxi dress - where have they been all my life?! They are so comfortable and last the entire pregnancy. I'll just be honest with ya, if it isn't comfortable, I'll never even get it back out of the closet. Comfort is more important to me than whether or not it's trendy. I've never been one to sacrifice my comfort for style. The black dress was especially comfortable. I almost felt like I was wearing my jammies in public. And it was a super bargain at $17.
Black Maxi Dress - Walmart.com
Black Flip Flops - Yellow Box
Turquoise Maxi Dress - Old Navy Maternity
White ruffled wedges - The Shoe Dept. (look for them in the kiddie section...)
Blue Maxi Dress - Liz Lange for Target (I got it on Ebay)
I'm thinking these will work well post-partum, too.
I've already told you how much I LOVE the GAP denim maternity skirt. It has definitely been the most worn item in my maternity wardrobe! I love the big wide under belly band - it's almost like wearing a support belt. And I love that it has kept it's dark color through many washings. I'm starting to sound like an advertisement for GAP... Trust me, they haven't paid me a thing to say that. But it wouldn't be a bad idea...
Here's one outfit two different ways...
Cream Vest - JC Penny
Coral Maternity Top - Motherhood
Denim Skirt - GAP
Flip flops - Yellow Box
Denim Jacket - Christopher and Banks
Here are 2 of my favorite tops with the same denim skirt (of course..)
Pink Striped Top - Old Navy Maternity (from Ebay for $3)
Pink Plaid Peasant Top - Walmart
The Walmart top is a regular size (another large), and has been well worth the 10 bucks I paid for it. I still have plenty of room in it, when I've already outgrown most of my "maternity" clothes. Now that I'm almost to the end, I've learned what kinds of things to look for. If only I'd been so smart from the very beginning...
Here's hoping that the next clothing post will be about BABY clothes!! I'm Soooooo ready to meet this little guy. We're counting down the days.
Oh and the nursery? It's *almost* done! Pics coming soon!
