April 2023 - We’re nearly half way! ✨ 🍼

[Cuppasoupmonster]

New thread! Hopefully this one will see us through 20 week scans and crossing the halfway point! 💕

As ever if you’re missing from the list give me a shout and I will add you:

Cuppasoupmonster second baby 7th (induction 37w) 💖
Milkandfenty third baby 1st 💛
Searchingtheskies second baby 2nd 💛
Biscuitsplease first baby 2nd 💖
Chocolat first baby 3rd 💛
Bluebubbles12 second baby 4th 💛
Erber third baby 4th 💛
CariadBB first baby 5th 💛
Skylark1990 second baby 7th 💛
Melissa2023 first baby 8th 💙
Tubbytele second baby 14th (CS 39w) 💛
Alwaysseeingstars first baby 9th 💛
Lj2022 first baby 10th 💖
Emeal123 second baby 11th 💙
DBS94 first baby 11th 💙
tattlytote second baby 12th 💛
Bernesemum first baby 12th 💛
Lid88 second baby 13th 💛
Ncbn first baby 14th 💙
Kennadams fourth baby 16th 💛
Margo34 second baby 16th💛
Aliceinslumberland first baby 16th (CS 39w) 💙
Appleandcheese first baby 18th 💛
Xalexandra first baby 20th 💛
Piggybean first baby 20th 💛
Tropicana1 second baby 20th 💛
Puddingbear 27th (CS 39w) 💛
Springblooms08 first baby 21st 💛
Hannah223344 first baby 21st 💙
Gilm0reGirl second baby 21st 💛
Pommy1 first baby 22nd 💖
Deek88 second baby 24th 💛
Marshmallowmountain first baby 25th 💖
LauraA31 first baby 26th 💛
Peachesthecat third baby 26th 💛
Allfurcoatnoknickers second baby 28th 💖
Limoncelloo 29th March second baby 💖
MamaMenna second baby 30th 💖

I have found that I manage to find better maternity clothes if I buy secondhand and look at a wide range of sizes. I find the sizes don't make that much difference as if it's too big I'll wear it at the end of the third trimester and just have it loose, if it's pretty small I'll wear it for a few weeks now and then resell.

Club L London have a lot of dresses which seem nice for an event but I haven't tried them, I just tend to go in something that resembles a sack!

Those of you looking at maternity wear…UNIQLO!!! Just bought some brilliant maternity “jeans” for a tenner! Stretchy as anything. And an adjustable waist band that grows with bump. Very pleased!

I hate maternity clothes for a myriad of reasons, so I'm just doing flowy dresses and stretchy trousers a size up.

For the few maternity things I did buy, I found H&M to be the best by far. It's also great for the size up sack/flowy dress.

I hate maternity clothes!! I just want my normal clothes with extra room. I don’t want endless Breton stripes, Snoopy, tunics etc.

For maternity clothes I found Asda jeans a surprising win! They have some maternity but the non maternity have an elasticated but at the back of the waist and their sizes are quite generous.

@Cuppasoupmonster YES, why do they all look like they're for toddlers or frumpy 80 year olds?! And why are they all either stripes or pastels? Any why is everything polyester?

I love clothes and fashion, during my first pregnancy I ordered a bunch of maternity clothes and they were all so horrible that I cried and cried and cried and then sent them all back. I also didn't get a massive bump and found that loads of maternity clothes were just too big and swamped me. And I'm 5'4 and a curvy size 10 so not a teeny-tiny fragile waif by any means.

I have a whole other rant about how shit maternity clothes are infantilizing and patronizing and symptomatic of society treating pregnant women as vessels rather than people, but I'll save it for another day.

Vinted has been a winner for me since being pregnant tbh! Not spending a fortune on clothes that don't fit for too long either!

@allfurcoatnoknickers I think part of it is that toddlers generally dress for comfort. And when you're pregnant, some women also want to dress for comfort. So things like dungarees suit both. I cannot wear anything tight around my stomach at the minute or it makes my acid reflux worse.

Maternity clothing does seem to be limited in style though, unless you're prepared to pay more money.

My usual clothes are generally quite loose as I don't feel comfy in very tailored things, unless I've sewn them myself and they fit perfectly. I managed to go to about 8.5 months pregnant in normal clothes last time. I only bought 2 maternity things and some leggings. I've bought a couple more maternity things this time because it might be the last time I'm pregnant, but I'm still mostly in my normal clothes.

@ancienthouse Can't roll up to the office in a pair of dungarees or leggings though 😫. Which is part of the infantilizing thing that pisses me off, since there seems to be a wide assumption that pregnant women are staying at home being cutesy and adorable, not striding the halls of Goldman Sachs or wherever.

Honestly, maternity clothes give me the absolute rage, which is why I avoid them at all costs. I made it all the way through on a couple of pairs of maternity trousers and a non-maternity clothing rental subscription last time and I'm trying my best to avoid them this time too.

@allfurcoatnoknickers@allfurcoatnoknickersI can, because my office is full of professional people wearing cargo shorts and jumpers with holes in! I work in science/environment.

But yeah, I've never really seen maternity business wear. It must exist but perhaps it's really expensive or hard to find.
A lot of industries are now OK with more casual office wear so maybe there's less demand for it.
As someone who sews, I imagine it's more difficult to come up with a pattern for adjusting two-piece things for a pregnant belly. One piece is much simpler, hence all the maternity jumper dresses!

@allfurcoatnoknickers 100% agree with you about the maternity clothes out there, they all look the same and so uninspiring 😂😅

Ugh I hate maternity clothes shopping. I borrowed some from my friend with DC1, brought a handful of 2nd hand tops myself but mostly lived in leggings and my DH t-shirts or my dressing gown as it was lockdown and I was put off-rota so just WFH and rarely left the house. This time, I can't borrow from my friend as she's pregnant too, I'm regularly out with the toddler, it's a different season so the tops I bought aren't suitable and I actually need some workwear too.

I even scoured local charity shops at the weekend and none of them had any Mat wear in, sadly.

I don't want joggers and 'Mama' slogan sweatshirts!!

@bluebubbles12 I bought a tankini from Sainsbury's TU maternity that is perfectly adequate but not a pattern I'd have chosen if there had been a better choice!

@Hannah223344 @ancienthouse I'm prone to stalking around snarling 'I'm having a baby, not a personality transplant!" which goes for all aspects of being pregnant and having kids, not just maternity clothes.

My office is business casual, but we're no jeans/denim, no trainers and no leggings etc. plus I do a lot of meetings at big banks, law and consulting firms, so I need to be dressy and have business attire and it's so hard to find. I've also got two black tie gala dinners to get through before this baby arrives, so god knows what I'm going to wear to those.

@allfurcoatnoknickers i would recommend ASOS or Next for maternity business wear. In your position I would buy 2 shift dresses then alternate them (you can leave your current blazers open over the top). Also maternity tights. Full suits will be mega bucks!

@allfurcoatnoknickers I hope you find something nice for the black tie events, that must be really tricky. Celebs seem to manage it but they have lots of money to throw at the problem, and usually designer friends!
If you don't have a huge bump could you buy a normal outfit one size up, or find a style that has more room in the stomach area?

@ancienthouse One's on Thursday and work still don't know I'm pregnant! It's cold here, so I think I'll do a velvet nap dress with either my sequined blazer, or a sequined cropped jacket thing I got from Zara. Hopefully everyone will think I just look a bit chunky...

@allfurcoatnoknickers i work in a similar setting to you with lots of external meetings with banks, city firms etc, and I’m finding a fitted knitted dress with maternity tights, boots and a smart coat to be working really well at the moment. I stocked up on a few pairs of long sleeve knitted dresses from new look in dark colours and they look really smart depending on how you style them. Have also worn them to friend’s birthdays etc.

I don’t have much of a bump yet but these dresses are great because they are so stretchy and soft and I reckon I’ll be able to wear them all the way through.

@allfurcoatnoknickers I've heard multiple times that Kim K's Skims range is great for a baby bump...I've been looking at a long sleeved dress for a Christmas event, but there are lots of dressier options too

@allfurcoatnoknickers I totally agree with you and feel the same about maternity wear (and pyjamas - why are they all twee and cutesy? That really bothers me)

The common maternity brands are so twee and outdated and the ones geared for a trendy crowd are really expensive.

I love good quality, breathable fabrics and truly comfortable loungewear. In normal times I shop at COS, ARKET, Uniqlo, Jigsaw mainly and can wear some bigger sizes for now but because I'm FTM and don't know how I'll grow, I don't want to spend loads and then it doesn't fit for long!

Frances and Henry have nice bra/knickers sets but they work out at £60/set which I can't justify at all.

Any tips gratefully received

@Hannah223344 @Springblooms08 Thank you for the suggestions! I'll def be going for the stretchy dresses when I'm not desperately trying to hide this burgeoning bump. Trying to make it to the end of December without telling anyone at work or having them guess 😭.

@IvyAurora I'm doing a lot of Cos right now! One size up, but it's all so drapey it looks fine. Shove a longline blazer over and it and looks fit for the office. When I was pregnant with DS1 my uniform was a 60s style a-line dress with maternity tights OR a stretchy dress with a light jacket or pregnancy jeans with oversize silk shirts I got second hand/off ebay. I was able to wear a lot of it post-baby too, so it never went to waste.

20 week scan went well and we’re having a BOY 💙 @Cuppasoupmonster you were right!

Congrats Chocolat 💙 🎉 another little boy for our group! Good thing because there’s a lot of girls at the moment!

I'm taking in the fashion tips... currently rocking leggings / joggers / jeans and enjoying my 'mama' sweatshirt 🤣
But completely agree with you about how limited the choice is and it must be hard working out what to wear to the office / smart events. Also agree that it's really weird women's nightwear is all plastered in kids' cartoon characters 🙄

@allfurcoatnoknickers I actually love buying maternity clothes 😅 but I've never bought a mama sweatshirt or cutesy patterned thing... I do love a jumper dress and leggings on the weekend though so that makes it easier. like you I love fashion so any excuse to get something new I go with! I only like to wear natural fabric if I can help it.

I also work in a pretty intense job where you need to dress well in the office at times and I've found Seraphine to be great for office appropriate maternity clothes. It's got loads of really chic dresses which can be paired well with a blazer, maternity tights and boots for example. They even do black tie event dresses like this amazing black squinted dress which I saw recently which I want! But no where to wear it to 😂 and it's £100 so ... No. But do you have Seraphine in the states?

Ofc if you're trying to hide your bump for now totally get just wearing floaty stuff - why are you trying to hide it if you don't mind me asking?

Also I would totally echo that h&m is good I've found lots of their dresses nice and they do good jumpers too. Plus great nursing stuff.

*black sequined dress 🖤✴️