Pretty Maternity Wear

I adore the yellow striped shirt in your post, am currently pregnant and definitely need to find one like it! The link doesn’t work, do you know the brand?

Thank you for these posts! I work as a gardener in North Carolina and am getting ready for a hot outdoor pregnant summer ahead. New post idea… best maternity overalls? Best maternity clothes to stay cool in the heat? Oooh! Best maternity swimsuits! (Anticipating needing to jump in the river every day after work). Thank you for all you do- I’ve read every day for years as I’ve grown up from my 20s through marriage and now motherhood- this community is like my big sister and cool older friend :)

Hi there, I’m a long-term cup of jo reader and I love coming here for inspiration and advice. On my search for maternity clothing this was a natural first stop for inspiration. I noticed that you’ve done many posts about Hatch over the years. I really love their options, but they’re also very pricey. I wonder if you could point readers in additional (and more budget friendly) directions?
Also, as many others I’m tempted to try to avoid buying maternity-specific clothing. I’d love to hear from other (expecting) moms about how they managed their pregnancy wardrobes and maintained a sense of personal fashion!

I have a 3 week old and I purchased 2 pairs of leggings (Pact and Storq), 1 pair of overalls (Asos), and 2 maternity shirts (Target). There were a handful of nonmaternity things I made work and I borrowed a jumpsuit for my Zoom baby shower (why invest in something only visible from the waist up?). I may have ended up buying a few more things if the pandemic hadn’t resulted in me living in PJ’s for the last few months. What’s been far more difficult is finding clothes to wear now– nothing in my closet fits as I’ve always been super good about not holding on to clothes in sizes I can’t wear.

This hilarious article immediately popped into mind: https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/an-extremely-pregnant-woman-has-a-few-questions-for-the-motherhood-maternity-customer-service-desk

I’m currently 6 months pregnant. Pre-covid, I ordered a pair of maternity jeans. And then COVID hit, and I have been working from home since early March. As a result, I have shopped for 0 maternity clothes since then, wearing PJs/leggings/shorts at home and a few go to dresses when I head out. Continue to wear Lululemon Align pants and they are supportive and so comfortable for more than just workout! Too hot to wear the jeans I bought in my first tri but if I need to dress up or have not waxed my legs (more the latter), I pull on the jeans and manage with existing tops. These outfits look great, but I did not want to spend money on things I would only be using for the year, and wanted to spend money on the ‘more investment’ type pieces on my wishlist. Will have to buy a few nursing tops and bras at some point in the next few months, but since I’m not really going anywhere (thanks Covid!), I’m not in a hurry to spend money :)

I’m 7 months pregnant right now, and in the first trimester I had some maternity clothes from my first pregnancy but decided to spent a little bit of money on some more modern pieces to supplement for work attire (corporate). This was right when covid was happening in Europe and we were all just starting to be careful / stay home. Now I’m working from home every day (no business attire needed) and staying at home on the weekends, and it feels like a complete waste of money. Just some advice if you are newly pregnant and not sure what to buy – get a very limited wardrobe for now unless you think you’ll really be out and about. It’s just a different world and our wardrobe needs in general are a bit different.

I already have 2 summer babies but am currently 9 weeks pregnant and due end of January! So it’ll be a totally different maternity wardrobe this time! Jo, please do a winter version of this soon :)

I had babies 18 months apart so I practically lived in maternity clothes for 2 years straight. My best bets: Madewell maternity jeans are spendy but worth it. I instantly felt more like myself every time I got dressed. I splurged on a few pieces from Hatch and the rest from from Asos Maternity and Target. Jumpsuits were (and still are) my go to! Also check out IG accounts like noihsaf_bazaar for Hatch and other more expensive brands.

I have a three-month old, and when I was pregnant, I knew I didn’t want to spend lots of money on clothes I would only wear for a couple months. With that said, I have a job where I need to dress professionally most days (and I love wearing clothes I love!). So, I did a subscription to Nuuly (a recent start up from Anthro parent company URBAN) where I got six rented pieces each month (with an option to buy at major discount at the end of the month). They even started carrying maternity brands, which I found particularly useful once I started needing maternity jeans, etc. Because lots of the brands they carry err more on the side boho, loose-fitting, there was so much to choose from that fit great even at 9 months pregnant. I would highly recommend as a fun way to keep wearing clothes that make you happy, but don’t require spending an arm and a leg.

Motherhood Maternity has some great seamless (super supportive) nursing bras that I just received and love at 19 wks. I knew I wanted an affordable maternity bathing suit for beach/lakes and (maybe) water aerobics if that comes back anytime soon- H&M has some cute ones that will work post pregnancy too. Gap, Old Navy & H&M have been good for basics/dresses and I snagged some cute Target tanks. With sweaters for cooler weather I feel like my pregnancy wardrobe is set. Pact also has a few items and they are all organic which I love. I splurged on one Rachel Pally dress :) One day all of a sudden nothing fit and I had to scramble! It’s been a hard time to figure out just what is needed but I feel much more like myself w/ some cute options that could lean professional-ish if need be.

Loft is the best for petite maternity! I’m 5 foot 1 and I could wear their pants without alterations.

Such great outfits! I wish I had worn better maternity clothes. Although I was massively pregnant on my wedding and I loved the dress I wore. Celebrated both of us.

Currently 34 weeks pregnant and have loved Seraphine; it’s a UK brand but their stuff arrives in a few days so they must have US distribution. I got a great tankini from them that is still hanging in there and 3 dresses I basically live in (one of which zips down the middle so will double as a nursing/maternity dress.) I can’t recommend them enough. I also bought a handful of navy and black tanks and tees from a Gap maternity super sale (they’ve made mail in returns insanely easy too, FWIW) and pair them with my 2 pairs of maternity pants when I can think of wearing pants. Working from home in the pandemic has it’s perks, certainly!

I’m 25 weeks and love the Blanqi SportSupport Hipster Contour leggings. They’re super comfortable.

Before I got pregnant, I expected to live in dresses. I have plenty that could still fit over a belly. Now, at 6 months pregnant, I need the support panel of jeans or leggings to feel comfortable! And I’m having a tough time finding tops that are cool enough for summer that will allow for nursing as well. Most of the available maternity clothes on Poshmark are jeans and bathing suits. If anyone knows of cute maternity/nursing tanks and tees that are inexpensive, I’d love to hear tips on where to look.

I would like to see more pregnant body size diversity featured in the images here – we often see maternity clothing styled on thin/able-bodied/model types, which is not reflective of the wide range of pregnant bodies.

There are companies who are doing more to show diversity in body types for maternity clothing — Universal Standard comes to mind — you’ve featured a dress from US, but chosen a thin model. Would love to see more inclusion of all sizes.

I’m 8 weeks pregnant and nobody knows yet apart from my husband. Last week we had a scan and saw a little fluttering heartbeat, something so special after an early miscarriage at the start of the year.

I wrote a comment back when lockdown was beginning about the difficulties of being in this situation when childless and desperately wanting not to be that Joanna sweetly replied to. I just wanted you to know that things are now so different. So grateful for this precious time at home with my husband without the pressure of trying to hide my bloating and fatigue from colleagues! It’s so exciting to think about the next stage where the bloat will become a bump and the clothes I’ll need!

Every pregnant person needs a pair of those Storq leggings. My kid is 2 years old, and I still wear mine! I’ve searched high and low for non-maternity leggings that are equally comfortable, and I have yet to find any!

I agree with all of the Uniqlo recommendations. I’ve also found some luck with COS if you’re going for the minimalist pregnancy look!

At this point in my pregnancy (37 weeks) I’ve purchased more maternity active wear than regular maternity clothing! With that said, it’s surprisingly SO hard to find decent active wear for us pregnant women, especially if you’re not looking to break the bank on something you’ll wear for such a short period of time. (Would love to see a mix of maternity active wear in future posts!) I’ve found some luck with Target, especially their Isabel Maternity line. Have been running in their bike shorts all throughout my pregnancy!

I went through the link to the post of 2013 and was amazed that it’s really a thing to cat call pregnant women. I could hardly imagine now that men can make jokes about a stranger woman belly!

I’m 34 weeks now and while thankfully I didn’t have to worry about buying much work appropriate wear (I’ve been teaching from home since before the bump was really noticeable and now the kids just see my shoulders), it’s been fun to splurge on a few things. I’m obsessed with the Storq overalls in black…. SOOO comfortable (my husband hates them) and I recently got a few really pretty dresses from Seraphine on sale that will work for nursing and maybe I can resell at some point, as well as underwear and bras from Kindred Bravely. Also a couple very cute Old Navy dresses (I love the maternity side-slit maxi tank dress). Otherwise I wear the same 5 loose black dresses/nightgowns/beach coverups that are not maternity wear.

Pregnancy in the heat of summer is tough but at least it is cheaper in terms of clothing!

19 weeks here! Since my bump has been entirely during lockdown (we found out I was pregnant on the first day of lockdown!), I’ve missed the dressing up since I work from home and I haven’t seen anyone apart from my partner the entire time! I was so looking forward to raiding my wardrobe and figuring out which of my dresses work for my creative office.
Sadly I’ve been confined to leggings and t-shirts! I’ll have to have another one in a couple of years so I can experience a ‘normal’ pregnancy!

If you are thinking about nursing, look for clothes that can do double duty for both pregnancy and nursing. Boob and Seraphine are great for this (although on the pricier side). I didn’t realize this trick until after my pregnancy, but since nursing can last much longer than an obvious bump, buying different clothes for each phase can add up quickly!

One thing I’ve noticed about the maternity clothing situation, now that I’m pregnant, is the real lack of activewear in plus sizes! There are lots of options for plus size clothing in general, but it’s surprised me (and saddened me) to see a lack of options here. Fablethics has amazing maternity leggings in a great range of sizes, Gap and Old Navy try too, but still. Not even comparable when you look at the larger activewear options across the board.