Breastfeeding Wear

[nellyonthetelly]

Just thought I'd set up a thread for swapping fashion tips! I really think its a terrible shame there is not more choice especially at the high street / fashiony end. It definately impacted on how long I fed my first daughter cos I was sick and tired of the same dowdy Jojo Maman top! And I'm 36 I'm sure for younger trendier Mums it must be a bigger factor in no t / stopping BF sooner. Anyway, shame on Topshop / Isabella Oliver / Seraphine - couldn't see any feeding wear there. What I could see in H&M, Dotty Ps and Jojo and Blooming marvellous was very casual and boring. Obviously I'm not looking for clubbing gear! But I'm due in Sept, have a wedding to go to (in a T-shirt!) a couple of weeks after, I'll definately be getting out to eat in the evenings with new babe and Xmas is only 4 months ... However,have just bought 2 glitzy T-shirts from Mamaway (online only) they were both in the sale, 18 and 15 quid, and they're really nice. So experiences and solutions pls!

I find ebay very good.
And Clevermummy, and Mamanana
Also in the States, motherwear and Expressiva though you will obviously pay more for postage.
I also got a nice Summer dress from Mamacocoon
But I do think you can improvise by wearing a vest top with support under another top. Don't like them without support as there's too much faffing with the top and then the bra as will so better to get one with a built in bra.
Also don't forget Hotmilk Lingerie, gorgeous and much nicer than the granny underwear you normally get if bfing.

I do the '2 top trick' as explained by chipmonkey, it gets bloody hot on a warm day though - but still not so hot that I'd be happy baring my midriff in public!

I had that problem in Portugal, MrsJ and I really hadn't thought of it beforehand. Was very relieved I had some Summery bfing tops!

www.scrummy-mummy.com has a good range of nursing clothing. I bought this www.scrummy-mummy.com/breastfeeding-dress-p-174.html and have worn it all summer. It is so flattering. Not bad prices either.

Thanks for that Maggie, another site for me to go and spend my money on!

If I'd have thought it through properly I would have known that I would have been still breastfeeding a lot this summer so it would have been worth it to buy at least one top that I could wear in the height of summer. 20/20 hindsight eh? That site looks really good.

Monsoon do nice floaty tops that I found good to breastfeed in - lots of extra material so keeps you mostly covered and really pretty.

I just bought this top www.coast-stores.com/fcp/product/-/ALLTops/Lidia-Ruched-Top/2374846828 from coast to go to a wedding in (coupled with black silk trousers from same shop) as the neckline is elasticated I tried doing what would be necessary to feed ds and it'll be fine - sometimes you just have to shop around a bit more - but I think this thread is a great idea!

How does the 'two top' idea work? My EDD is 3 days away and I haven't done anything re clothing for bf'ing. Do you just lift the top layer up from the bottom, and pull the bottom layer down from the top?

I like to wear buttoned-up dress tops over a pair of jeans - i unbutton the top 2 and feed away - if out i just stick a muslin cloth over my bare bits, but i don't like the blanket over the baby thing - just cover the majority of my bare breast (they are large so I wouldn't go without a muslin over them! lol)

Or I use a Tummy band (I have 2 from when i was pregnant) and i just use this under my top to stop my spare tummy hanging over my jeans and lift my top up to feed.

I agree with the dilemma though - i seem to find that most reasonably priced BFing tops cater for a pregnant bump aswell (WHY???) so they are ok for the first couple of weeks but then you really can't wear them out IYSWIM. I bought a lovely pair of pyjamas from MC and the top was a BFing top but the bottoms were maternity and FAR too big to wear after! I can't afford the tops for BFing and have to make do with what I've got. I'd love to have enough money to buy some nice BFing tops!

lollipopmother - yes - just a vest top on the bottom layer that is larger in size that you just stretch under your breast - or you could get a BFing vest to go under with drop straps.

Redhead - Thanks for the info, I've had a look on ebay and there seem to be quite a lot of tops with in=build support, so I'm going to get a couple of those and then just wear a normal top over it. Thanks.

you can get a belly band which is like a stretchy tube you can wear around your tummy under any top. that way when you pull your top up you dont see bear belly but a kind of tshirt material. that way you can wear any top

Like nellyonthetelly I was so fed up with the frumpy breastfeeding wear offered by the usual stores.

I found this store online and have ordered several things from there.
Bella Mama Breastfeeding Boutique They have a great range of clothing for nursing mums, and have Expressiva and Maternalove which are specially designed for breastfeeding, so avoid the baggy tummy look that RedHead81 pointed out. Yeay!

Loads of choice for fancier tops for nights out too. I love the look of this one Lace Top

Not sure if you can buy them in UK shops, but you can get them online, but Bonds do the absolute best bf vest tops with a built in bra that actually makes your boobs lok good and supported.
Other than that I never bought a specific bf top as I thought they were all too frumpy. Just wore smart shirts/blouses or wrap tops or wrap dresses of dresses with buttons. I got some of those oversized muslin squares, tucked a corner into my bra strap and hung the rest over the baby for a bit of privacy when bf in public (or in bright sun).
Def search out the bonds tops though- I still wear them and I haven't bf for 6 months!

www.zodee.com.au/womens/bonds-maternity/bumps-lingerie/15m50/

Here they are - the best items I bought including all the maternity stuff and nursing wear as well. Worth the wait for the shipping.

Thanks Bubbaluv for the recommendation, I've not come across Bonds before, or that site, but have checked it out and looks good.

When I was about 3 months into my pregnancy I found finding good maternity wear a big problem. There are a few good websites around. Why not try www.maternitywear4u.com I found that a good place to start.