"Maternity" clothes

simu

Does anyone have tips on what to buy and wear during pregnancy? Is it worth shelling out for specialist maternity clothes or would larger sizes from normal stores do the job? Any money-saving tips?

Thanks!

hepcat

You're in luck Simu cos all the smocky type tops are in fashion and are great for pregnant women. If you're not too big, don't for the love of jebus buy special maternity trousers until you really have to as they can be way too big and come up to under your chest, a la Noddy. You can get decent work trousers in M & S with elasticated waist (yeah sounds gross!) There's also a thing called the belly belt which allows you to wear your normal jeans (but with zipper undone). "Next" maternity jeans are around Eur30 and aren't half bad. Actually they do a nice enough selection of maternity wear.Finally don'r forget size 16 to 18 in Penneys!

Nevyn

Larges sizes won't do, You may gain some weight all over but buying a size up will mean the clothes will hang oddly off you and not be comforible esp as your pregancy advances.

The best buys I made clothes wise was 3 pair of maternity trousers from Dorthy Perkins. Each had the soft comfy tummy expander with a drawstring but one was black formal, and the other two looked like green and black combats with pockets. The pockets on the legs were great as well you can't use ordinary pockets as the bump grows.

I didn't get them until I was heading towards 5 mnths and it took a while to get used to the 'waistband' being above my bellybutton but I wore them right up to the end of the pregancy. From behind in them and a t shirt it was hard to tell I was expecting even when I had two weeks to go.

You may well be able to get away with a lot of the tops you have if they are long enough and not to clingy.

Your bust size may also increase so investing in a good fit bra at 5/6 mtns is important one black one and one white, I did buy feeding bras at that stage as I was intending on breast feeding anyway and they are damn supportive.

I also abought 1 dress to wear out to ocassions got to wear it several times and it was classy and still stylish when I was expecting a second time arround.

Don't forget your feet, they will swell as you prenancy progresses and they be carrying you and your baby arround I bough a comfy sturdy pair of boots that were easy to take off when you get to the stage bending over is tricky.

Basically you need clothes that are comfortble, practical and that you feel happy wearing nothing worse then things that make you feel like your wearing a tent or a flower bed.

Yes it is an expense but you will be wearing the same mix and match seperates for at least 5 mnhts from about 5/6 expecting to 2 mnths after the delievery.

ArthurDent

Thaedydal wrote:

Yes it is an expense but you will be wearing the same mix and match seperates for at least 5 mnhts from about 5/6 expecting to 2 mnths after the delievery.

Had to laugh when I saw this, I'm not quite 10 weeks yet on number 3 and need to go into maternity clothes already. I only have one pair of "work" trousers that look anyway decent still.
On number 1 didn't wear anything maternity like until about 22 weeks, number 2 14 weeks or so, but number 3 and I now look 5 months gone at 10 weeks (I'm still in denial that no-one has noticed at work!).

Just praying that my scan in 3 weeks doesn't show twins:eek:

Also H&M have some nice and reasonable priced maternity clothes. Worth buying a couple of things that make you feel ok in - cos by the end of nine months you are going to have worn them all about 50 times each!

samo

Just to second Thaedyal and Arthur Dents reccommendations....

I got 2 pairs of maternity jeans from Dorothy Perkins when I was approx 24 weeks and even now at 37 weeks they are still dead comfy but dont give the external world the impression you are a blimp!!!! Best 40 euro per pair I ever spent and much better than trying to squeeze into clothes or wearing really oversized stuff!!! I'm actually going to miss my maternity jeans I think when this babies born!!!

Also Mothercare have some lovely tops so dont rule them out ...if your buying at the moment they have a half price sale on. (As did Mama's and papa's funnily enough in the Dundrum/blanch stores!)

The advice about the bra is also spot on as your chest will dramatically increase - on my 1st I went from a 34c to a 38c!!

Good luck

Shabadu

Because I'm quite tall, I actually got away with my normal trousers until almost six and a half months. I had a quite small bump up until then, then all of a sudden BAM, a massive bump in a two week space.* It was a really nice summer so I just lived in some long skirts I had, which I wore under the bump, and some really long soft vests from M&S, which covered the bumb nicely. I had a lovely linen shirt that just had a tie and some buttons at the boob area, so my bump poked through. I'd just wear a normal longsleeve top w/ one of my Maternity vests over it if, or a nice shirt over them.


*Ironically, I was petrified he was going to be a tiny baby because of this. He ended up being just under 10lbs 5oz!

Ickle Magoo

Would deffo invest in a couple of pairs of maternity trousers and a few tops.....I found over-sized clothing looked tent like & hung off me in some places & clung in others making a generally completely unflattering look - not to mention the fact that normal length tops ride up when you have an enormous bump....the trousers dug into my bump but hung off my backside, á la builders site, whenever I bent over....yuck!

I invested in some proper maternity clothes & never regretted it....I felt/feel more comfortable & stylish as they are cut to fit a woman sized X with a bump rather than a woman who is size X all over.....

I got some clothes from Dorothy Perkins, some from Blooming Marvelous, some from E-bay & some from Mothercare.....I also second getting a really good supportive bra - best investment ever - M&S do some lovely matrnity/nursing bras at the mo....best of luck

ArthurDent

I'll second Ickle Magoo on the maternity bra thing - defo worth investing in. M&S are doing 2 for €28 at the moment. Not the sexiest things you've ever seen but v comfortable and they also do a measuring service(In liffey valley anyway) - again very worth doing. You don't need to book ahead, but don't turn up at very busy times.

Femelade

yeah dorothy perkins do nice maternity clothes, that were i shopped, they fit at the right places. i also got a few things in mothercare which were quiet good. its worth spending the money on them cos you will get plenty wear out of them and they will have to last.

simu

Well - went to Dorothy Perkins in Cork and all their stuff was truly vile - I got a pair of mantenity jeans for €20 but they're too big from behind so I can only wear them with long jumpers. I then tried a specialist pregnancy store but all their stuff was too big - maybe I'll go back in a month or two when I'm larger. In the meanwhile, I'm sticking to empire-line dresses etc in my normal size.

brown*eyed*girl

I never bought maternity clothes for both my pregnancies. I was a late shower and my bump wasn't noticable really until I was nearly 7 months. I just bought clothes in a size or two bigger and wore my jeans or trousers under my bump with a nice loose top coving the bump. I couldn't get used to wearing clothes over my bump but that's just me. Also don't worry if you are the type to show later on in the pregnancy. Some women just don't show until the third trimester. I remember getting my 20 week scan and you'd think I wasn't pregant but all was ok. My kids were a decent sizes too weighing 7lb 11oz and 6lb 12oz and thankfully very healthy. I think it depends on how much fluid you carry too so as long as you're scans are ok try not to worry if you don't have a big bump. As long as you follow a healthy diet the baby will be ok. I remember being concerned on my last child that my bump wasn't that big and the midwife said even if I was to eat 10 burgers a day the baby would still only take what they want from me. Gypsy tops are ideal if they are still around. They were in fashion on my last pregnancy and were a godsend as they were so comfy and covered the bump perfectly.

Shabadu 10lb 5oz WOW! My Mam's friend was 14lb exactly. Also when my Grandmother was in hospital having one of babies she says one baby was born with a tooth already!

gibo_ie

Hi all,
My sister started Irelands first (and hopefully best!) online maternity clothing store. She has appeared on TV3 numerous times due to the realistic and resonable pricing she has. You can see all her wares at www.bumpbasics.com she ships same day where possible by courier anywhere in Ireland and has also started shipping to the UK.

Just tell her Martin sent you

Best of luck and congrats to all you mums to be!

Ickle Magoo

brown*eyed*girl wrote:

Also when my Grandmother was in hospital having one of babies she says one baby was born with a tooth already!

I was born with two teeth......I was, incidentally, bottle fed!

Miss Judy

Bumpbasics is very good. I got lovely stuff there when I was pregnant and very reasonable. The long denim skirt was just a god send. I got my jeans in Dorothy Perkins as they did a tall range for maternity and they looked really good, as another poster said from behind nobody though I was pregnant, nice shape and nice leg on them. The Dunnes maternity range is not that great, mind you the short sleeved polo shirts were nice. H&M is great value, Next is nice but some of the tops are expensive, same for mothercare. As the others said though it is well worth it as you really do get the wear out of them. I did buy the nice stuff and it was worth it coz it's nice to feel good when your belly is massive. I had a 9lb5oz and a 9lb9oz babies so I was huge when I hit 7 months.Mind you, Formes is a bloody rip off. I got done in there and they do not do refunds. Just so you know. Where do you live coz my friend lives in Limerick and she got some really nice stuff.

Khannie

Simu: I've heard that dungarees are excellent during pregnancy.owing to being able to let them out a bit when your bump gets bigger.

Shabadu wrote:

He ended up being just under 10lbs 5oz!

One word: Ouch!

gerrycollins

Hi im under my husbands login. Im 24 weeks now and have been in maternity clothes for about a month now I found it difficult to find nice maternity clothes I went to D. Perkins, Mothercare and H & M and I found them all to be quite vile. But I ordered quite a few items from Family Album which were very nice and comfortable even their dress wear. I have also ordered evening wear and t- shirts from bump basics which I also found very comfortable.
Joanne Collins

parsi

The missus got some of hers in Formes (Princes St or similar) and they did have the advantage of not immediately screaming "pregnant woman". The bump took care of that..

ST*

simu wrote:

Does anyone have tips on what to buy and wear during pregnancy? Is it worth shelling out for specialist maternity clothes or would larger sizes from normal stores do the job? Any money-saving tips?
Thanks!

Congrats on the pregnancy firstly Simu.

When I was pregnant with my boys I really wished Dunnes had a maternity section because I felt that the like of Mothercare etc were extremely over-priced. A few months after I had my last boy, low and behold Dunnes starts to stock maternity wear :rolleyes:

If you have a wander through, you will find some of the clothes are quite stylish too. Spend as little as you can I say, except for a good support bra because you will be dying to shed those clothes once baby is born

g/l