Preg Fashion 2
I find it hilarious that I’m writing about preg fashion while wearing sweatpants and an old T-shirt… they’re also the same sweatpants I put on when I got home from work last night. What can I say? I like them.
That’s why I’m writing this post- I need help!
In the first trimester, I made a vow to myself to still try to look nice most of the time as my body changed, and stay away from sweatpants as much as possible. It’s worked out really well for me, can you tell? 🙂
When I do have to get dressed to go out in public, I’ll usually wear the uniform. The uniform has changed along with the weather, and went from being a dress and sandals
to jean crops, flats and a maternity shirt
to now:
Wunder Under crops, a long maternity tank, a sweater and my Toms. Not Rachel Zoe maternity style in the least, but cute and comfy. I was shocked when I managed to find two normal outfits to wear last weekend for our Christmas pictures and the baby shower.
A burgundy dress from Nordstrom Rack:
and a grey sweater dress, also from Nordstrom Rack.
Now that my jeans no longer fit (and I’m riding around Tucson sans pants), it’s time to bite the bullet and buy a maternity pair. Part of me is thinking it’s a waste since I’ll be 33 weeks, but the other part of me is thinking 7 weeks is a long time to be fighting my closet. I’m hoping to find a good pair while we’re in San Diego- any recommendations?
Here are some of the things I’ve learned about preg fashion as my belly has continued to grow, and my fashion has become more awkward:
1) Maternity dresses don’t fit me. They’re made for very tall people and have a lot of extra fabric. The best bet is to buy stretchy non-maternity dresses, which don’t zip and have an A-line or Empire shape.
2. Belting works, but only if you have an obvious belly bump (belt above the bump). Otherwise, you’re not quite sure where to put it.
3. Things that still work: blazers, sweaters, fun jewelry.
4. Stripes aren’t my friend.
5. Neither are heels. Wedges and flats are the way to go.
6. Major points to lululemon for their luon fabric- those are the only clothes I can still wear, and I’m so thankful because I wear lulu to work everyday.
7. I should have bought maternity shirts sooner.. it’s amazing to have *real* shirts that fit. I have a feeling I’ll feel the same way about maternity jeans….
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I think you are doing great!!! You look beautiful and it won’t be like this for long!!!
Old Navy Maternity Jeans were my FRIEND! I loved the skinny jeans, I ordered mine online b/c the stores nearby didn’t have a maternity section. If yours don’t, order a size or two down b/c they run really big. They’re cheap so paying $25-35 for jeans that you’ll only wear for 7 weeks isn’t too bad. Also, I wore my maternity jeans for a few weeks after giving birth, you’ll have a little mini bump for a bit 😉
Oh and Jeggings too 😉
You are such a beautiful preggo woman!!! I think you are prettier now ,,than before.I can’t wait to meet your new little angel,,,well see pics anyways,,,lol 😉
Be Present drawstring pants. I love the Mobility pant. They are cropped with a slit, super lightweight and drawstring. Buy a size or two bigger than you are normally, and I’d say you’re good to go. I wore them when pregnant and I wear them daily, now. My best best best friend in pants. I have them in about 5 colors and with and without lotus embroidered flowers.
There is also a *really * nice maternity store at Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego so if you can hold out for that, it’s awesome. It’s pricey though. Like…hardly justifiable with only 5 weeks or so left by the time you’re here.
7 weeks? Didn’t realize you may have a Christmas baby!
Loved Old Navy and Target’s Liz Lange jeans will full belly panels — I wore them in my second trimester and beyond and then up to 2+ mths post-partum. I had a C-section and honestly they were my saving grace. I was able to wear them out of the hospital and didn’t feel frumpy. (I was also shocked at my post-preg stomach–I assumed it’d be huge and bloated still and it wasn’t. Doesn’t mean I didn’t have weight to lose, but I was pleasantly surprised by my belly).
Still I would recommend getting the maternity jeans now –even if you have a natural birth but especially in case you end up with a C. Because of my scar and how my stomach was, I couldn’t wear jeans that buttoned til I was almost 4-mths post-partum and back to my pre-preg weight. So the maternity jeans were obviously super-loose–but the panel was smooth and comfortable and didn’t irritate my scar and as long as I wore longer tops, they were comfy and just looked like looser jeans. The day I zipped up my Joe’s again was a miracle but to be honest, I haven’t worn them since. They were still too low-cut for my new shape.
So excited to meet your little one. I’m curious about her name — Liliana or Aliana? 🙂
Oh and you look gorgeous pregnant (and pre-preg).
I love the full panel too! I never thought I would want something that went all the way up under my boobs, but it gave my belly much needed support and I loved it!!
I found great stuff at Motherhood Maternity.
I agree Motherhood Maternity. They have cute stuff without being ridiculously expensive. Also I wore my maternity jeans after I had my babies too until my body went back to being normal again. So you might get a little more than 7 weeks use out of them. 🙂
Every friend of mine who has had a baby stayed in maternity jeans for a while – partly because they said the jeans were so darn comfortable and they didn’t want to give them up! 😉 Honestly I’m not even pregnant and have no immediate plans to be but I’m kinda tempted to go try some on and just wear them covertly, because I mean: cute jeans that have yoga-pant-comfy tops? Sold.
hehe my very pretty and thin girlfriend confessed to me when I was buying my maternity jeans, that she had been wearing them for years due to their comfort factor!
You look gorgeous! I am in love with the dress you wore for your Christmas card!
Maybe try a LOFT or Gap pair ordered online? Or both 🙂
Wow! I still can’t believe you aren’t in maternity jeans. I’m 17 weeks now and in full maternity pants/jeans, but I am also carrying pretty low. I think Maternity jeans are so hard to find a good fit for. The best I found were from Old Navy. You could also try gap and I’m sure SD will have a gap maternity somewhere. Keep in mind you’ll want to be in maternity pants for a bit after the baby comes to so it’s not a waste!
Forever 21 maternity jeans have been my everything for the last 3 months (I’m 2 weeks ahead of you). $15 bucks and I honestly like them so much I will probably wear them after I have the baby! Plus, you dont even have to think/mess around with new sizes – the size you wore before there is the size you wear for their maternity line as well.
oh also, F 21 has the most amazing maternity yoga pants too. They are super flattering and have a full panel that goes literally almost up to your boobs. Also $15. Amazing.
I’ve really liked Pea in the Pod, but I started in maternity clothes much sooner than you. I like all my pants from PIP a lot, but I have a few more winter months of needing pants. Hoping to stay in cardigans and jackets open the whole time. Just having trouble with exercise clothes. Lulu may fit a big longer, but not too much for me. I don’t like Bella bands or wearing regular pants way low.
I second Old Navy, they are cheap and look “normal.” I can’t stand Motherhood, last time I went there I was kind of put off by how expensive and not cute their stuff was. Have you tried Forever 21 maternity or even their Plus size section? My bestie is preggo and has gotten some cute fashionable stuff from Forever 21 Plus (she is not a plus sized girl in real life but they start at XL and thats perfect for her growing belly.) It’s pretty cheap too and I know you will find one in SD if they don’t have one where you are.
I know this stuff is expensive….but so chic!!!
http://hatchcollection.com/
Aww! It is so true, what do you do when your body is all of a sudden so different, but you know it isn’t permanent? Maybe it will help you invest in some maternity things if you tell yourself you will wear them again for the second baby?
I bought a pair of jeans from Motherhood, from Target, and from Gap. I found that the Motherhood jeans are the best and I have been wearing them since about week 16 (I’m 26 weeks now). Motherhood just knows how maternity jeans are supposed to fit. I highly recommend them.
you are glowwwwwing!! i’m sure a well fitting pair of jeans will help, so it’s probably worth the investment. plus you’ll probably (hopefully?) use them again in the future, so it’s all good. you’ve held out this long, so might as well go for it.
I busted down and bought a pair of maternity jeans at 34 weeks because my normal jeans no longer fit. I went to Motherhood. It was the only place where I could find maternity pants that fit me. I have always thought maternity clothes was made for short people because its alwys been to short for me. I wear a 36 in inseam though so maybe its just not made for people as tall as me.
Don’t have kids yet but was on a high dose of the evil predisone and had to get some maternity jeans because reg ones wear just too uncomfortable. I got some cute inexpensive ones at kohls, and they always have great sales!
ohh sweetness!! i understand your pain! I have had the best luck with Old Navy’s maternity skinny jeans/jeggings. I would steer clear of their boot cut jeans unless you have tried them on. They seem to be baggy in the legs and butt, which makes me crazy!
I have tried every other brand maternity pants from designer labels to motherhood maternity ( i am prego with my 4th kiddo) and so far (for the price) these fit the best. I always use some kind of coupon and only order on-line. I haven’t spent more than $30 on them.
Gap has some cute pants but they have weird adjustable waists like kids pants that bugged me and made me look like i had a bubble butt.
The other place I have had some luck is Forever 21. It’s a hit or miss though. Sometimes they fit and others…uuhhh not so much!
Good luck!
I would just pick up some cheap maternity pants from Target or Kohls. It’s not going to matter, it’s all stretchy. They’ll feel great after stuffing your poor self in regular pants and jury-rigging them shut! Wear them three months and throw them in the attic til next pregnancy, or til you decide to donate them to a pregnant friend.
Never been pregnant so can’t. Help w/ that but have been buying jeans from Old Navy for a while. They almost always have online discounts that tend to be announced Monday or Tuesdays and run to Thursdays. I’ve also found the size and length selection better than in-store. I have been loving their skinny cut.
What about a coat? Not to stress you out/not sure if you have something that will work but know December & January are coldest in Tucson. I am in Phoenix so comparatively speaking to the rest of the year I tend to pull out a warmer jacket for those two months.
Darling, if you get the right kind of maternity jeans (ones with an proper elasticised waistband) you will find you will wear them after the baby is born for some time too. I am post partum 8 months and I am still wearing my maternity jeans (ok ok I bought them only when I was 15 weeks preggy but still – the waistband is so forgiving and comfy) and I even bought them in skinny black and bootcut blue. Honestly, you will love them even postpartum for a while. BTW my gf who has the most amazing body and is a fashionista has secretly been wearing maternity jeans for ages anyway, as she loves the expandable waist – she also loves her food 😉 I don’t think you will regret it.
Also I thought you might like this article from one of our popular news/pop culture websites in Australia. I thought this article was spot on http://www.mamamia.com.au/parenting/enough-with-the-new-mummy-weight-loss-industry/
Jeggings, leggings with long sweaters? I think those look really cute on preggos 🙂
I hear maternity jeans are a godsend, as long as you make sure the belly band part is high enough. Too many lines going every which ways over the belly can’t be good!
You are going to cry happy tears once you find good maternity jeans. It is such a relief! I made it to about the same point as you and when I finally bought some I was so happy. I never had any success with Motherhood, either. Old Navy and Target were my best bets.
I couldn’t wear my maternity pants too long post-partum because they fell off, but I wanted to. I was sad when I had to put them away. There is something about your jeans feeling like pajamas that is hard to beat 🙂
I found some great maternity jeans at H&M – do you have that store? I tried Motherhood Maternity but none of their jeans fit very well. Plus, they are expensive. Even though you only have 7 weeks left, I’d recommend getting some maternity jeans. I LOVE mine and wore them a couple times a week. That’s at least 14 times for you. 14 times you don’t have to battle your closet. 🙂
You will definitely feel so much better when you wear maternity jeans! I remember I tired to wear normal skirts and pull them a little below my belly (?!) and then all I would see was skin because my shirt was too short! I bought a pair of maternity jeans with the full panel and wore them practically every day in the last trimester. This is the time where you will start to feel more uncomfortable so just get them. You will be so thankful! Have fun in San Diego 🙂
P.S. I forget to write this…but The Gap and Old Navy are your best bet!
I am 6 months and broke down and bought a pair of Secret Belly fit jeans from Motherhood >24.99 I still wear my regular jeans with the button undone but I feel SOOO great in my sexy maternity jeans:) and the secret belly kind are not TOO maternity-like.
Not to mention even if you only have 7 weeks left you still may want them for post baby for a little bit while your getting back in shape.
When I was pregnant I was in LOVE with my Motherhood Maternity Secret Belly Jeans!
I just bought 3 pair of maternity jeans and I’m so glad I did! My favorite are the Paige Laurel Canyon style. I’m not as far along as you are, so I like that the belly band sits lower on my belly. I also got a grey pair of Joe’s Jeans – my fav pre-preg jeans. And a pair of Juicy light brown cords – they feel like sweatpants, but look nice. I noticed ebay was a great resource for half the price, especially once you’ve had a chance to try some on in a store first. Good luck!
I wore maternity jeans fooorever postpartum. At least 4 months. I was loathe to give them up.
definitely go for the maternity jeans. 7 weeks is a long time to be struggling with finding pants to wear, especially in the winter! And who knows, maybe you’ll be needing them again in a couple years!
I love my gap skinny dark wash maternity jeans. I bought some and they look great and feel comfy
I thought I could hold out and not buy maternity jeans, but I ended up purchasing some this week, at 39 weeks. We have family pictures and other events to attend in December and if none of my regular pants fit, I will have nothing to wear. The only long maternity pants I had before was a pair of yoga pants from Gap. I snagged the jeans from the Motherhood line at Macy’s. Most of the ones I had tried on before either didn’t fit right or were just plain ugly. Good for you finding some stretchy regular dresses to wear, I’m a bit taller, so the maternity dresses actually work for me, though I only ended up buying one of them. Good luck in your search. Sacrificing my own personal style has been one of my biggest pregnancy struggles.
You should drive north a bit (30-45 minutes?) to the Carlsbad outlets! They have a bunch of stores and I know there’s a maternity store too 🙂 I used to go there all the time when I lived in southern California
http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=66
Another vote for the full belly panel. I thought they would be uncomfortable and annoying, but they were always the most comfortable for the last trimester. Maternity clothes do tend to run really large, so keep that in mind if you decide to order online. I got some really cheap stuff online from Old Navy and Gap, and you can return to stores if it doesn’t work out.
check some of these out!
http://aurajoon.blogspot.com/2011/02/dressing-bump-2nd-trimester.html
Hi!!! Im shorter than 5 feet and normally less than 100 lbs, so during preg it was so SO hard to find pants that fit me , I waited it out till the last 5-7 weeks each time too!
PLD NAVY! I was able to get zeros!
also if you can find a small size at old navy, the full panel is your friend! I thought it was so ugly, but my waiste wasstill tiny so the pants would fall w/o it!
good luck!
Pft I dress like that on a daily basis and I’m not even pregnant haha :)! I would probably be living off of leggings though and long tops.
Gap maternity is the way to go! You’re so close to delivering…get siomething inexpensive but still cute. Their materity jeans are great.
I LOVE my Victoria’s Secret boyfriend sweatpants 🙂 They are sooo comfy! Question about the lulu wear-does it go back to it’s normal size as it grows with you? Just curious!
it’s supposed to! i guess i’ll be finding out the hard way 😉
Keep us updated!
You look great Gina! BTW I think you meant to put this in the fashion section? Maybe not but just throwing that out there in case 🙂
thank you! i was going to, but since it was about preg fashion, i stuck it on the fam page
You’ll have maternity jeans for your next pregnancy!
For Jeans:
For sure the GAP Maternity. Buy them online if you don’t have a store near, but most GAP kids have the maternity clothes! 🙂 Or a cheaper pair from Old Navy.
Other pants:
I don’t even know the “brand” but I actually got some really comfy pregnancy pants in a stretchy courdoroy from JCPenney! (My mom suggested it! HA!) Seriously, they were awesome even in the days following the delivery because unlike jeans, they were really flexible and soft (and looked fancier than jeans).
Everyday dresses:
I bunch cheap cotton-y dresses (from Motherhood, Target, Old Navy, wherever) that would work as maternity and breastfeeding that had that “Crisscross” situation on the boobs. They worked great. Pop some leggings on to keep warm and some flat shoes and boom, pregnancy uniform!
You look fantastic and this too, shall pass. Remember it is temporary and its result is AWESOME! 🙂
Why are you so anti-maternity jeans? They are so comfy and you can get a cute pair for $40 or even less. If you plan on having more kids, I’m sure you’ll wear them again. Also they are good to wear after the baby comes for a little while for comfort.
I just broke down in week 17 and got these…I’ve worn them all weekend!
http://www.motherhood.com/Product.asp?Product_Id=987400050&MasterCategory_Id=MC6
I like my Pea in the Pod jeans much better than the Motherhood ones. Better quality and style choices. (Pea and the Pod also has all the name brand jeans.) I have both the full panel and half panel. I find myself adjusting and tugging at the full panel a lot less than the half. But both work. I never want to wear jeans with buttons again…maternity jeans are your friend!
good to know! i’ll probably splurge and get one nice pair, and one less expensive pair since chances are that i’ll wear them when i’m preg again