Thoughtfully Selecting a Maternity Wardrobe
/This is not “The Be All End All on How to buy Maternity Wear” or “The ONLY maternity clothes you’ll ever need”. This article is inspired by my own experience as a first-time-mom, trying to figure out WHAT I’ll need, WHEN I’ll need it, WHERE to get it, and WHICH kind I’ll want. It’s easy to get lost in the marketing and lists of must-haves when really, you can get by with much less than you think.
Rather, this post will offer some “ideas” to help you think through, and maybe discover, some maternity items, to best customize a new little wardrobe for yourself, with an emphasis on comfort, affordability, and choosing items you can get the most use out of. A minimalist maternity wardrobe, if you will.
For starters, you’ll want to get a clear picture of where and when you’ll be wearing your maternity wardrobe:
Depending on your due date, what season(s) will your second and third trimester be in?
You may need to buy a bit more clothes for a winter baby, since you might want a bigger coat or a coat extender, and may wear more pants in the winter. On the flip side, summer dresses and skirts can be more forgiving, so you may not need to buy as much as you might think!
My first baby was born in September in Italy (it was still 90°F), and I got away with buying just 2 maternity dresses. I was surprised that several of my summer dresses and skirts and shirts fit all the way through! But being my first baby, and my smallest, I also didn’t get as big as with my other 2. When it was the hottest peak of the Florentine summer, and Covid was still keeping us mostly at home, I bought a few (non-maternity) t-shirts and a pair of comfy shorts in a size bigger than I normally wear just to lounge in at home in our non-air conditioned apartment. I still have some of those and wear them for pajamas and even in my other 2 pregnancies.
If you work, do you plan on working all the way up to your due date?
The answer to this will determine if you need to also buy work maternity clothes, depending on if you work in a more formal work setting, or if you work from home and may just want to invest in more of that wonderful maternity loungewear!
I teach dance, and got away with my buying some athletic wear from Target in a size larger than I normally wear as “work” clothes.
If your work is full-time mommy-ing, then your choice of clothes may also be different than if you work in an office or even if this is your first pregnancy. For example, with my first, I happily existed exclusively in dresses and skirts during the hot summer months in my third trimester. However, with my next pregnancies, dresses became increasingly impractical for running around after my other children, and I wore more shorts and pants.
Next, what do you already own that could be bump-friendly?
Before you buy anything, you may want to go through your closet and look for pieces that you might be able to wear through part, most, or maybe even all of your pregnancy. Maxi dresses, mid or long flowy skirts with elastic waist bands, sweatpants or joggers with very stretchy waistbands, oversized shirts and sweaters, long tops, are all promising pieces.
Now, take a look at some of the maternity options that you’ll come across:
Under-the-Bump Vs. Over-the-Bump Maternity bottoms
Under-the-bump is best for versatility, as they can be worn before, during, and after pregnancy. Their main disadvantage is they leave your belly exposed if you’re not wearing an adequately long sweater. Any low-rise stretchy pants you own currently have the potential of being a part of your maternity wardrobe as “under-the-bump”. I have several stretchy pants/joggers/sweatpants; a couple of them I can wear all the way through, and others become uncomfortable around the waistband by 5 months pregnant. A pair of under-the-bump pants I really enjoyed (and still am!) is this pair by Motherhood Maternity, that is sadly no longer available.
The main advantage to over-the-bump pants is offering a tiny bit of support to the belly while also keeping it covered, which in turn allows you to wear some shorter tops for longer into your pregnancy. The main disadvantage is that there is really a short period in which the over-the-bump pants fit, since they’re often too big in the first part of the pregnancy and soon after baby is born. Also, I’ve found that not all over-the-bump pants fit my bump well. Some are too tight. Some are too loose. Some are too tight in some spots, while being too loose in other spots.
Maternity Tops
Sometimes they having ruching, sometimes slits, sometimes they’re made of extra stretchy material, sometimes they’re flowy…what they all have in common is room for a growing tummy. I bought a few key maternity tops, but with tops it’s also quite easy to find non-maternity wear that fits a bump, just select longer, looser styles, maybe in a larger size or two. It’s especially easy to do when long and over-sized is in.
One of my favorite maternity tops is an Ingrid and Isabel cowl neck sweater. It fits just as well when I’m not pregnant as when I’m 9 months. It’s form fitting, but not tight, with flattering ruched sides and it’s long enough to cover my bum.
Maternity/Nursing Bras
These can be tricky to know your size if you’ve never had a baby before. Some women increase a band size or two, and several cups bigger. Some barely grow.
Nursing bras come in two general styles: the clasp kind, and the criss cross kind. I’ve tried both, but prefer the clasp kind. The criss cross you merely pull down, which is super easy to use, but I often found with that style that the material would start riding back up and get in the way of baby latching. After a while they tended to stretch out.
For your first baby, I’d recommend starting with some of the comfy, stretchy, “quintessential” nursing bra. They basically look like a sports bra. Just about every brand that makes nursing bras has some of this style, to the point where I wish sometimes there was more variety, specifically more feminine and pretty styles! These often have at least 4 sets of clasps and some come with an extender for your growing rib cage and bust. They also stretch with you, so you shouldn’t have to buy multiple sizes, and will work through pregnancy and even those first few days/weeks of engorgement when your milk is first coming in and regulating! They’re sized in S/M/L etc. rather than band and cup sizes, which is much easier to guess your size.
Here are some very affordable ones on Amazon, I got something similar for my first and they lasted and held up with daily wear and washing.
As I’m now nursing my third baby, some of my nursing bras need a refresh and I’ve been looking for “pretty” nursing bras. So many are comfortable and practical, which is great, but I do miss me some lace! If you, too, would like some prettier nursing bras, check out some of these, several of which can also be found on Amazon (easier to return):
Maternity Underwear
When I was first pregnant, I rolled my eyes at maternity underwear. I thought that having to buy special underwear, when it’s your belly, not your butt that’s growing, was silly. Joke’s on me! Your abdomen most definitely grows, right where most underwear sits. And let me tell you, I hate the feeling of underwear or pants being the least bit tight on my low abdomen when I’m pregnant.
Since I have now been brought down off of my high horse, I will be the first one to sing the praises of maternity underwear and how comfortable it is! Seriously, I love it so much I actually now buy maternity underwear when I’m not pregnant. It usually covers your rear-end better, doesn’t give you love handles, and is just plain super comfy.
I originally bought a pack of super cheap maternity underwear form Amazon, which did their job, but I found the leg holes strangely un-elastic and a bit too small once I got to the last trimester.
I highly recommend H&M’s maternity underwear, whether you’re pregnant or not, ha! They’re inexpensive and cute, sometimes with bits of lace so not overly boring.
Pregnancy Support Belt
There are a couple different styles of pregnancy support belts, which mainly fall into three categories in my mind:
The over / under support belt (highest level of support) - these are best for someone who would anticipate spending good chunks of time on their feet. They offer the highest level of support, but aren’t meant to be used while sitting. They take a minute to get on, which can be annoying if you want the higher level of support but spend most of your days going back forth between standing and sitting. Can be worn without the “over” band, so it’s almost like a two-in-one.
This is the kind I got for my third pregnancy, and while there were certain key moments I was very grateful to have it, overall I didn’t wear it as much as I thought I would. My lifestyle with 2 other littles was a lot of sitting, standing, crouching, crawling, etc. and I just didn’t have the time to take it off and put it back on repeatedly.
The under support belt (medium support) - quicker to get on while still providing decent support. However, they’re still not meant to be used while sitting and are uncomfortable if you try, so that’s where I think the over/under option might make more sense. I had a similar band that I would use sometimes while dancing or teaching, and while not technically meant for pregnancy, it got me by while teaching dance in my second pregnancy.
The support band (lightest support) - a stretchy band that can ideally be used all during pregnancy and even postpartum. It provides the lightest support of these three options, but if that’s all you need, it’s the cheapest option and also the easiest to get on, off, and wash. Honestly, if I were to have another baby, I would probably just use one of these. Actually, I would get 2-3 so I would always have one clean! I got one after my third was born, and it was great even postpartum and helped keep my tummy covered while nursing, double win.
This can also help you transition between pants in pregnancy and postpartum. It can keep your pre-pregnancy pants up unbuttoned before your maternity clothes start to fit, and keep your maternity pants up when they start to get loose but before you’re able to fit back into your pre-pregnancy pants.
I purchased the Bellaband postpartum after seeing some women on social media with similar bands, and doing some research on the better liked belly bands. I didn’t want compression, just support.
Due to my own confusion of whether this band was really what I wanted, since it’s primarily marketed as a maternity band, I ordered it alongside the Ingrid & Isabel postpartum band.
Trying them on side by side, they are very similar but with different compression. The postpartum band was much tighter, but comfy and reassuring to a jiggly postpartum belly, and also harder to get on. The postpartum wrap has the “No slip” silicone at both the top and bottom, where the maternity band has it only at the bottom. Another reason the maternity band is easier to get on.
I honestly liked both, but I ultimately kept the maternity band since it was what I was looking for with light support, not too tight, and I didn’t feel I needed two.
You can find the Ingrid & Isabel postpartum band here. I liked this band because it was much easier to get on and off, easier to wash, and not as bulky as the wrap/velcro kind.
Pregnancy Pillow
This is not a pregnancy “must have” but simply a “nice to have”. You can get by with pillows, rolled up blankets, etc. to stay comfortable. It might be a hassle sometimes when you’re just trying to roll over in bed, but it’s free!
Full body support
I never had a pregnancy pillow, but I really, really, wanted one with my third. That was my most uncomfortable pregnancy (my midwife later told me the third pregnancy is usually the hardest. You’re running around after 2 other kids and often start showing sooner and get just a little bit bigger than your first 2. By the time you get to a 4th, you’re just just accepted it is how it is and roll with the punches) and I just really wanted one pillow rather than always having to arrange 2-3 pillows or blankets to be able to rest. I considered getting one second hand, but the prices I saw weren’t that much cheaper than brand new and a pillow didn’t seem the most hygienic thing to be buying used.
velvet Full body support
I was looking at these full body styles on Amazon, they look comfy and check all my boxes:
support for top arm while side lying
support for hips
support for knees
support for ankles
back support to help keep everything (hips, knees, ankles) stacked while side lying, which is important in the Spinning Babies “Rest Smart” idea
You can also get full body ones with luxurious velvety covering, great for cooler months but maybe not so much for sweaty summer preggo bodies.
There are also the smaller “wedge” style pillows, smaller and easier to carry around, but they only provide support for belly or belly and back. Not as appealing to me, especially since they’re almost the same price as the full body pillows, but preferable for others if that’s all they need, and easier to tote around.
What are some of your favorite maternity items, or least favorite? Let me know in the comments below or send me a message through the contact form!
