Any reason why I shouldn't just buy clothes a size bigger instead of "maternity" clothes

[KatieWatie]

This might be a really stupid question but I am rapidly outgrowing all my clothes, and not really ready to admit - even at 15 weeks - that I'm pregnant (not sure I ever will be, to be honest, that's just the way I roll). I went into Mothercare to price things up generally and saw their maternity section which I had a mooch round - whilst sweating the coldest sweat... It really wasn't "me" and it was all dead pricy for stuff I might only wear for a couple of months.

Why can't I just buy a size up from my normal size? And then do some hardcore washing to try and shrink it down to my normal size afterwards perhaps

Or am I being really naive?

Works with tops, I have never brought maternity tops, and have got away with one size bigger throughout my pregnancy.

As for trouser, it might work with elasticated waistes, but it didn't work with jeans which I tend to wear all the time. I don't wear dresses either but I think you could get away with this too, depends on your chest I suppose, I have no bust even when pregnant so if I buy a size bigger in a dress (if I ever wore one) I think I would have saggy chest look.

My trousers have been used plenty as this is my 3rd. I do only tend to buy jeans though nothing fancy.

I think everyone's different in terms of how big they get. At around 14/15 weeks I bought some work tops a size bigger, but now at 19 weeks I'm filling them and wish I'd gone for maternity. But then not everyone grows the same

I've gone on eBay and bought a couple of maternity bundles and have found the fit more comfortable and flattering - and cheap :)

I'm 28 weeks and still in my regular clothes - ok, not trousers, but dresses are fine. I am also very reluctant to shell out for something that I won't use much, but have bought a couple of things off eBay which have been great and which I will probably just sell on afterwards for close to what I paid for them.

For tops, the most important thing is to make sure they are long enough. A lot of them, even in bigger sizes will still be too short and your bump will stick out at the bottom. Primark do a range of stretchy v-neck t-shirts that I've found pretty useful - have bought the same size as normal and they're still covering my bump at 40 weeks because they are very long.

I couldn't have managed without maternity trousers. I also wear jeans a lot and jeans that are sizes bigger are baggy on the legs and still don't do up, or if they do then the button digs into my bump.

For the early days, bump bands are very useful for allowing you to wear your normal trousers undone or held together with hair bobbles.

Like nunnie, I'm not really into dresses so can't help you there.

I had a couple of second hand proper maternity T shirts and the difference in fit was really noticeable. Unlike bigger normal ones, they still fitted at the shoulders, cleared the bump without hugging it, didn't ride up weirdly and the hem stayed more or less level. Same for other shirts and tops (did borrow a lot of DH's for a while, but large normal ones always ended up only just clearing the bump whilst being baggy elsewhere).

I did have an ordinary jersey dress a couple of sizes up which had enough give in it to be wearable until late on - it was navy Nd kept me going at work with regular jackets.

Don't buy ahead - you don't know which bits of you will grow how much - and only get the minimum.

And if you do end up wearing the same couple of "least bad" maternity outfits non stop for the third trimester, you won't feel like wearing them again afterwards. Trust me.

I only have 1 pair of maternity trousers from H&M and one maternity top. I only bought these because I had a smart event to go to. The rest has been charirty shop stuff in a bigger size, or maybe same size but a different cut. I'm not normally one for those floaty hippy tops but they work in your usual size because there's a lot of gathered fabric in front and they tend to be tunic length. Also got a few long t-shirts from DP... same size as usual because they stretch a lot. I'm 35 weeks btw.

I'm 22 weeks now and theres no way I'd fit into normal stuff, even stuff a few sizes bigger than my usual size 10!
All the extra size is on your belly, so something in a size 16 say would still be really stretched around my stomach now but huge on my shoulders and probably too short to go all the way down over my bump
Trousers you really need the stretchy bits to fit properly.

The only exceptions I think are things like tracksuit bottoms which are stretchy and low slung and things like tunic tops in stretchy jersey material, which are longer due to being tunic style and can stretch over bump!

I did buy a few things that were either bigger or very loose fitting. But it definitely didn't work with everything. I found this was easier with tops. I did have a big bump relative to my size so tops and dresses would lift up at the front exposing my belly.

I'd definitely buy maternity jeans. I found my old jeans very uncomfortable. I had some old ones from when I was a size bigger but they didn't fit right either. Mamas and Papas have some reduced jeans and other clothes are reduced too.

I wore lots of dresses during my pregnancy. I didn't wear them much before pregnancy but found them far more comfy as there was then nothing pressing on the bump or lower down which was uncomfortable in the late stages when DD's head engaged.

Try Pumpkin Patch more sale stuff here. , Topshop Maternity , lots of cheap stuff at H&M , basics at New Look , all sorts at www.asos.com/Women/Asos-Maternity/Cat/pgecategory.aspx?cid=5813#parentID=-1&pge=0&pgeSize=-1&sort=3 ASOS.]] It doesn't need to be too expensive, especially if you take advantage of the sales!

That last one was supposed to be ASOS

You can make do with a really small 'capsule' wardrobe - a couple of pair of trousers/leggings etc and a handful of tops. Maternity wear does fit better, but a chum of mine just bought some bigger clothes from cheap shops and supermarkets. You can get trouser expander things which gives you a bit more wear out of your usual clothes.
I had one pair of jeans, 2 pair of trousers for work, one pair of maternity jog pants and one other pair of trousers, about 4 t-shirts, and a couple of smarter tops, wore my non-maternity cardis - just not buttoned. Was sick to death of them by the time it was over, but they all co-ordinated and I looked smart and presentable.

Its not somewhere I usually shop, but I got some nice stuff from Dorothy Perkins maternity range - not expensive either.

I think maternity trousers are essential, but ordinary tops are fine. Asda have some lovely long stripey 3/4 length sleeve tops at the moment and I've bought one in each colour in a size up.

If this is your first pregnancy and you're planning on having any more kids then invest in a few good maternity staples this time round - maybe a pair of jeans, a pair of trousers and a couple of nice fitting tops. You'll feel even less like spending money on it next time!

I forgot to say, you will probably find that what you're wearing during your pregnancy won't fit you afterwards anyway so you may as well buy proper maternity things in sales or cheaper places. Then you can keep it for any subsequent pregnancies. I had to buy new stuff a week after giving birth because I wasn't my old size and also wasn't maternity shaped!

Why don't you see if any friends or family who've had children have any old maternity clothes you could borrow.

I tried this in my first pregnancy but it didn't really work. Normal clothes don't fit well they hang off your shoulders and are not flattering, in normal clothes even when I was about 6 months I looked fat rather than pregnant. Maternity clothes in your normal size are far more flattering.

I found buying maternity clothes was the thing that made me stop feeling fat and start feeling pg! It was a really good move for me and I am very glad I did it as it helped my head adjust to it. I got most of mine from Jojomamanbebe which was aboout the same price as DP. I got some tops from New Look too. Also be prepared to buy on line as not many stores carry the full maternity ranges if they have any of it at all. There are some good online only places too - have a look on amazon. I got the best leggings from hevenly bump on there. they fit really well and come in colors other than black!

I second Saoirse and Beamur: you don't need much (I bought tons, early, which was an error) and I got away with long, stretchy non-mat tops for a long time. It was 22 wks before I had to give up on my "fat trousers" and it was such a relief! I succumbed to maternity tights at about 26wks when I couldn't manouver my legs to get into my regular leg & body shapers (it helps if you wear a pair of pants over the top). Jeans (mamalicious from DP online worked for me) and if it's your style, a demin skirt, can cover for a lot of situations.

I found Mothercare's stuff a little frumpy and looser cut, so majored on Asos and Topshop, including jersey dresses for work where I have to be quite smart. With the mat ranges, sometimes it is the cut, eg now (at 36wks) I am finally flattered by slightly scoopier neckline. Whilst somewhat extravagant, I'm sick of the sight of the work dresses and they're a bit wintery for springtime round the house, so I just got some more summery casual tops to enjoy my mat leave in from DPs and New Look without breaking the bank - I assure myself that most will also be suitable for nursing!

It really depends how you like your clothes to fit. I generally wear fairly close fitting clothes and wanted to continue to do so during my pregnancies.

So my regular clothes became too snug pretty quickly - although with the longer line tunics etc I guess if I became pg now I'd have a few more bits in my wardrobe which would fit longer.

My breasts grew fairly early on so fitted tops looked bad. Really..there is nothing nicer that slipping on a pair of mat. trousers when you've been struggling with keeping your regular ones up with an elastic band around the button! It's like getting into bed after a long day.

I got some nice bits in H&M. I was big in the winter so had some long line stretch jumpers, a couple of trousers, some jeans and a skirt. It's actually really nice to have about 7 or 8 key bits you just mix and match. I wore mine to death for about 5 months and then bagged them up for the next sister to need them! You will probably not want to wear your mat. things once baby has arrived - really you'll probably be really keen to wear some of your old favorites.

The only thing I got in a bigger size which wasn't mat specific was knickers, and t.shirts (to wear under the jumpers so didn't matter if there was a gap between!)

I only bought maternity stuff right at the end - just carried on with loose fit dresses,elasticated crinkle skirts (which were in fashion then) and tops.

I went one size up between 16-32 weeks and then maternity clothes were my only option. I bought some great stretchy cotton dresses (LK Bennett),in my normal size, which worked well with bump nearly all the way to the end £10-£20 on ebay. I found empire line dresses worked best you'll struggle with trousers and skirts seem to creep higher and higher up your disappearing waist.

dizzy I had forgotten the tights issue. Every time I sat down or stood up they'd suddenly roll down. My colleagues got very used to finding me standing with my legs apart grabbing hold of the top of my tights and doing that kind of wiggly dance to get them back up. I was even caught a few times doing it whilst holding my dress in my mouth so I could get a good hold on the tights! God I was sexy!

If you wear tights, definitely buy maternity ones! I got mine from Dorothy Perkins but I can't see them now.

Thanks all for the tips, loads of really good ones.

I will be 'big' over the Summer and I'm a 'surfy' type when it comes to clothes (think Fat Face, Joe Browns) which don't tend to have maternity ranges lol. Spending the Summer mostly in the South of France in leggings and jeans doesn't really appeal, but I will check out your recommendations!

Thanks again :)

The only thing with buying elasticated waist skirts in a larger size, I found, was that the hem didn't hang straight towards the end because they weren't cut to fit over a bump. Trousers are more difficult to just go up a size certainly in the last trimester. The rise in normal trousers just isn't big enough.

T-shirts aren't an issue though, so long as they are long enough to start with. They have a certain amount of natural give.

But really it depends on so much like how tall you are, how big your bump is and the cut of the clothes - you have to do it on an item by item basis really.

Hi Katie, I'm also 15 weeks, with no.2. I remember that sinking feeling when looking at unsuitable mat wear with DC1, but then I found topshop maternitywear and thought it was great. I would say you definitely should get some mat jeans (unless you just never wear jeans), I wore them all the time I wasn't working, and a bump band or 2. I've found mat jeans do tend to be for about halfway through onwards, mine are still too big for me at the mo. Apart from that I hardly got any matwear, I've just remembered I did have to get a top near the end when the weather warmed up. The problem with only getting normal tops a bit bigger is that you will stretch them as time goes on so you won't wear them later anyway, as someone else has said. The same goes for trousers - my tip here would be if you're going to try to wear normal trousers wear them under the bump with a bump band. It's very easy to think 'they still fit me' when actually you're stretching them gradually. I've now got quite a few pairs of trousers I really liked that are now too big for me. So I think it's best to invest in more matwear that I did first time around.

KatieWatie

...because a pg body is not just a big body and maternity clothes are different shape to normal clothes. As your bump gets bigger, it'll probably get lower and it will get proportionally much bigger than anywhere else (even boobs).

I am surfy too, just got these board shorts from Jojo as I spend all summer in this type of thing.

In my last pg, I wore normal clothes to 5 months, then got lots of stretchy Primark Ts, some mat jeans, a dress and some work trousers and a white shirt. Was summer so everything washed and dried quickly. Most of my stuff was hand me downs from Freecycle or friends.

This time I was in mat clothes at 9 weeks - can not stand anything tight on my waist - so I have treated myself to a few new things.

Towards the end I got some boob tubes from Primark (£1!) and wore them as bump bands as bump got bigger and tops got shorter.

Katiewatie - there's quite a lot of cheap maxi dresses around at the moment that might work if they're empire line or only fitted around the bust. Most proper mat maxi dresses are a) expensive and b) black (yawn!) but places like H&M and Matalan have got some nice cheap patterned ones that might work if you're careful with the shape and sizing.