What to wear when nothing fits: creating a maternity wardrobe without buying 1000 new pieces.

me, with less than 10 weeks until birth realizing 99% of the pictures I have from this pregnancy are mirror selfies. I guess this is my reminder to have someone take some hopefully cute, non self photos of me asap!

Of course during pregnancy (and often postpartum!) you’ll need some new clothes to support your changing body along the way. But, before you know it, pregnancy is over and you’re left with a bunch of close that become pretty impractical pretty quickly. So, there’s a balance between buying a handful of practical clothing items that are definitely necessary, using some things you might already have, buying versatile pieces, looking cute/feeling good/comfortable….and accepting you might repeat the same outfits much more frequently than you normally would.

I’ve tried my best to be conscious when it comes to getting some maternity clothing for my two pregnancies so far. With my first I was showing during the summer months into early fall (October baby.) With our second, I’ve been showing from fall into winter to early spring (baby due in April!) So some of my stuff from my first pregnancy worked this time around, some of it was totally out of season.

TIPS:

1) try not to buy a zillion pregnancy specific items. You’ll likely need some, but in my experience it’s been helpful to buy more versatile items that can be worn before pregnancy/postpartum/etc. Luckily for us, we live in a time where oversized clothing is in. Think oversized sweatshirts/tshirts/sweaters, loose flowy dresses, oversized button downs, etc.

2) cottons and linens are great options for breathability if you tend to get warm during pregnancy.

3) I haven’t had much success with pants extenders later in pregnancy, but in that earlier stage where you aren’t quite ready for over the belly maternity jeans but your regular pants are feeling uncomfortable, pants extenders can be a great, affordable option.

4) ask friends/family if they would be willing to share any of their maternity wear with you!

5) thrifiting/poshmark/kidizen can be a great way to take a more sustainable approach to maternity clothing and can be a bit cheaper as well!

KEY PIECES (that’ll keep you comfortable the whole 40ish weeks & potentially beyond!)

SUPPORTIVE SHOES: wearing shoes that are relatively flat but offer good arch support can make a huge difference in your comfort level during pregnancy.

ADJUSTABLE/STRAPPY SHOES: your feet may or may not change in size/swell during pregnancy so it can be helpful to have some adjustable shoes that of course can be worn before/after pregnancy. Both chacos and birkenstocks check off both the supportive and adjustable boxes. Birkenstocks are obviously a little more trendy but I wore chacos a lot while hiking/walking during my first pregnancy, which was over the summer.

STRETCHY BASICS: think a couple stretchy simple shirts, a pair of over the belly supportive maternity leggings and/or bike shorts. These things can be dressed up a bit or worn casually. My favorites are these leggings (great support!),

FLOWY DRESSES: these might be less practical if you’re from the midwest and pregnant over the winter months, but flowy dresses (that don’t even need to be maternity specific!) are in right now so they’re a great option that works for before/after/during pregnancy. While they don’t offer much in terms of support, a loose, flowy dress can be super comfortable and obviously not constrictive.

NURSING FRIENDLY PIECES: if you plan/hope to breastfeed once baby arrives, pregnancy is a good time to start thinking about nursing (and pregnancy) friendly pieces. I definitely don’t think you need a whole new wardrobe in order to breastfeed (I breastfed my first born for a little over two years and didn’t own a single breastfeeding specific shirt.) Of course I understand they can be helpful/easier/provide more privacy but there are lots of options that again be more versatile than shirts with zippers at the sides of the boobs. Think button down options, wrap style tops/dresses, nursing tanks/bras.

WIRELESS BRAS: It’s pretty common during pregnancy for your boobs to get bigger and your ribcage expands to make room for the baby (everything has to shift somewhere to make room for baby which causes a few organs to shove under your ribs a bit more and expand your ribcage.) So while you can definitely still wear underwire bras, they might not be very comfortable with your changing top half. I bought some nursing bras during pregnancy and started wearing them straight away since they’re supportive (but still comfortable!) and typically wireless. I’ve tried a few different brands but so far this is my favorite! Grabbing a couple more before baby number two gets here.

Of course there are other things you might need as well depending on your lifestyle (whether you work outside of the home, enjoy wearing jeans, have specific hobbies, etc.) but these are the basics I’ve gone to for both pregnancies! I do own a couple pairs of maternity jeans, a few nursing tanks, and some various other styles of maternity clothing (random hand me downs from my older sister.) but mostly this is it! For me, I want to be cute (sometimes lol) and comfortable during pregnancy but would rather get a few new things for my postpartum body and beyond.