Maternity clothes?? Indispensable item? Where did you buy?

[gypsymoon]

Pregnant with DC3 and showing much earlier....can't help with all the rubbish I'm eating....but that's not why I'm posting! (mmm...fried fast food....)

I'm from OZ and maternity clothes over there were either HIDEOUS or ridiculously expensive - I just bought clothes a wee bit bigger and flowing tops. I looked a bit of a mess to be honest and did nothing to enhance the beauty of pregnancy but just managed to look like a walking kaftan.

So...from a purely superficial and vain perspective where can I get all those lovely maternity clothes I see women in the UK wearing? That obviously won't cost me a bundle...

And what was your most live in item and where did you get it? bear in mind that comfort is a big thing for me and I don't work so I don't need suits etc.

T - it's just a stretchy elastic tube of fabric that holds up your normal pants with the zipper down. Or maternity pants up, if they're still too big. (I love mine.) See here for example: www.ingridandisabel.com/bellaband.html

I was really impressed with the quality of the Next maternity trousers I bought... great service too - our local shop doesn't keep the stuff on site but if you order online they get it to you next day, and you can return anything to the store. They're cheap, too! Lots of discounted stuff online right now.

Agree mamas & papas is good. Also blooming marvellous. Gap is okay for the odd thing, top shop also okay. Next has some things for work. M&S is rubbish. You will prob be best online as there is very little on the high street. New Look is about the only one that carries a decent range on the high street- fairly cheap too. I'd be reticent to buy stuff from ebay due to ability to return items.

Black jersey wide leg trousers with a turnover top. Really really comfy and quite smart. Wore them for 5 months straight. And I confess, I bought a pair 4 sizes smaller than my usual size and I wear them now to work! £17 from Next.

Eyeballsinthesky Do you mean you went up 4 dress sizes during pregnancy, or you just lots lots of weight after the birth?

Just wondering...

No, I'm pretty big anyway so I didn't gain very much when pg. I bought maternity trousers in my usual size which were ok when pg but fell down 5 days after the birth in Sainsbury's car park . Recently looking for work trousers I remembered them and ordered some. I just kept going down a size till I got ones that fit. Very odd but it works for me I think it's because they're stretchy.

I swam every day when pregnant so bought a fabulous swimming costume from Formes.

H&M for long, stretchy vests/ tee shirts.

Top Shop for jeans, leggings and a couple of great dresses.

Isabella Oliver for wraparound tops/dresses.

New Look for bump bands.

I'll add my vote for New Look for cheap 'n cheerful. Go online as they've got way, way more stuff there than in the shops (was recommended by a lovely sales assistant in the shop). Topshop good for jean - though good to order online (their returns policy is good) as have wider range of leg lengths available. Also found some great smart work trousers in the Gap at the weekend (seems to be tricky to find anything that isn't black and I like the variety!) and their jeans are super comfy.
H&M range depends where you look - ironically the central London store had less that my local one out in commuter-ville. Good for cheap-ish funky t-shirts and tops, though trousers are all a bit long for me (but then I am stunted!).

Sorry I haven't read all the replies so sorry if I'm repeating but here are my opinions, for what they are worth!

Under bump is great at the start but there comes a point where only over the bump (with stretchy but supportive panels) trousers/skirts are comfortable. On the bump, imho, never works - they just fall down.

Bump bands are great - aside from their avowed purpose, can also provide a bit of extra support on those achey bump days.

Moda from Mothercare despite all my snobbish prejudices is actually a very good range - they cut tops long enough unlike many ranges. Long is vital in mat wear. I actually have loads of stuff from Mothercare & it's some of my most worn stuff.

I personally find Mamas & Papas overpriced & am not sure they are good enough to be worth paying the extra for. (And again I start grumbling to myself about the M & P on the bump linen trousers that I should have known better than to buy ...)

Isabella Oliver, on the other hand, is worth spending money on, if you feel the need to invest in one special item, for example. The long, jersey, black skirt with the over the bump panel which is usually in their range is without a doubt my most comfortable/worn item.

M & S normal clothes I find cut quite generously around the waistline - I think their target customer is a post partum mum!) - both times I have found one of my most comfortable/respectable items once I get to about 7 months, is a pair of their normal, non maternity, smartish jersey wide legged trousers. The waistline is cut generously & stretchy enough to come up all the way over my bump - I didn't even need an enormous size. I got this pair last pregnancy (2 years ago) and wore them loads in the last 3 months, but they still look smart enough to be my stalwarts for the last 3 months this time too. Obviously you need bum covering tops to wear with jersey trousers, but if you bear in mind my previous point about long tops you'll be OK!

I bought my bump bands from ebay (brand new)
only £10 for 3.
come in black/grey & white

used to go over your trousers or jeans....
so you can wear "normal" jeans for longer with the buttons/zips undone...
they were fab

Also treated myself to a dress from Isabella oliver...
everyone commented on how beautiful & blooming I looked in it....
looked like a grecian godess

was bought for special occasion though (nieces wedding) ....& I only wore it twice so far....

but they have beautiful pg wear in isabella Oliver....
and they sometimes have sales on too......so worth checking out !!

oh that's interesting mogend, my under bump ones were faves and lasted the whole time, but i've only been pregnant once and it was a relatively petite bump - perhaps wont be so lucky if there's a next time!

However, what I had been going to recommend were these trousers from Serafine www.seraphine.com/Scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=44&idcategory=49&title=Bootleg+maternity+trousers%2 C+Maternity+Trousers

I am still wearing them now and the baby is nine months old! So well fitting and comfortable and versatile. Not the cheapest but I have worn them practically to death! Serafine also do bump bandss but expensive for what they are, I found mine a bit too loose, though still used it endlessly - it definitely extends the pregnancy life of your non-pregnancy clothes, so saves a fortune anyway.

If you're really on a budget...

I bought 2 pairs of the biggest yoga pants tesco did (£8 each I think) and wore them almost every day for the last few weeks, washed one while I wore the other. They had a drawstring waist so were great for the first few weeks post-birth too. Probably wouldn't go out in public much in them tho

NEXT maternity i couldnt have lived without my over the bump jeans this pregnancy, and they look so nice so many people remarked on how normal they looked unlike lots of maternity clothes. They do a lovely range of maternity at next and also peacocks maternity cropped cotten drill trousers have been a god send in this hot weather.

search.next.co.uk/shopping/Maternity?gclid=CNG6xKGhvJwCFUxs4wodYh0PoA

Try this:

www.very.co.uk/rf/vry/navigation/searchthumbs.do/women/maternity?N=4294894316+151+85+4294955416&Np=1 &Nu=thisproduct&seo=t&Ns=prodinstock|1||prodminbaseprice|0||scu_id|1

HUGE maternity sale on at Very at the moment - there must something that appeals there!

Good home delivery BTW, and free returns - so order a few and return the ones where you aren't so keen.

My favourite maternity thing was a pair of trousers from Next - wide leg brown linen with a big elasticated waist. They fit early on but were comfortable right until the end, unlike most trousers with a button fastening waist.

H&M were good for tops (really cheap!) but their trousers were all too small for me.

The Red Herring range at Debenhams was quite good too, I got a nice dressy top for a wedding there.

I hate Mamas and Papas. My SIL got me a voucher for my birthday with the instructions to treat myself to something, rather than buying something for the baby but they never had anything that I liked. Everything seemed to be man-made fibres, even t-shirts, and I was pregnant during the summer so anything other than cotton made me feel really hot and grim. I ended up using the voucher to buy a plain white vest and a bath support for the baby!

a more specific question - where can I get a nice nightie for taking into hospital to have baby? I can't find any non flannelette ones which open at front for feeding?

I have 3 bump bands and I love them!! not just because they allow you to carry on wearing your normal tops longer - but also i love the slightly added support you get from them - and if you have a strange up like mine (at 29 weeks i still seem to have a slight waist!) it makes the bump look a much nicer shape. I got a black one and a white one from isabella oliver £29 for 2 and have worn them to death!! .. but all places seem to do them - i also have a black and white stripped one from blooming marvellous which is quite nice under a black top with either black trousers or a skirt. Other invaluables have been my isabella oliver long sleeved ts ive been wearing these since about week 14 and they still fit wonderfully and are v flattering. Also for work the isabella oliver black pencil skirt and a line skirts are great. Finally I have a great pair of belly button combat trousers that are sooo comfortable from beelybutton.co.uk .. and the seraphine jean a line skirt from seraphine. Worst buy was a pair of true religion mat jeans - at £185 they were (to put it mildly) expensive - and they seem to cut into me now - all in all ive only worn them about 3 times so NOT a good buy!!

Seraphine for jeans and trousers.
Jojo Maman Bebe, Blooming Marvellous and Mamas and Papas for other stuff.

Worst were Gap jeans which fell down constantly.

M&S doesn't have much but I'm living in my cropped linen trousers from there at the mo - they are really comfortable in hot weather.

I lived in a pair of mothercare dungarees (they were the only dungs I could find) and a pair of blooming marvelous jeans, plus topshop, gap and hennes maternity tops, my husbands jumpers and a few non-maternity, 1-sized too big, 'empire' line t-shirts from tescos.

TLC I got topshop bump bands, one black and one white, that I wore under non-maternity things to cover the inch-or-so of flesh when I had a tiny bump. Also used as a support band when I got bigger.

lal for the nightie, I went to Primark and they had cotton nighties with five buttons down the front (at the top) which I, and 4 other woman on my ward, wore!

My over the bump jeans and white linen trousers, both from Debenhams.

www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/category_10001_10001_18685_-1

I have lived in these with long line vests (regular ones, not maternity) teamed with my normal cardigans and some nice jewelery.

I have avoided baggy tops as they make me feel huge, so prefer to have comfy trousers and fitted tops that show off my bump instead of trying to hide it.

I've really loved the blooming marvellous cami tops with ruched sides in both pgs - I wear them under everything. They are comfy and go right to the bottom of your bump.

Over bump troos are a must (later on), bump bands and normal troos until then.

I had jeans with a soft under bump band from Mothercare last time and hated them. I'm getting on much better with dorothy perkins under bump jeans (with the stretchy panels in pockets) this time but still have yet to find the perfect pair.

I've spent the pregnancy in H&M vest tops (just normal, non-maternity ones, but longer length).

I'm always going on about ASOS maternity clothes ( no I don't work for them!) but they're pretty fashionable compared to the 'anything you like as long as it's black' offerings you find in some places - plus they have a sale on at the moment and actually, most of the time. here

Dorothy Perkins for smart tops, H and M for other stuff. Would second comments about 'under the bump' trousers and skirts - I had to give up wearing those at about 25 weeks as my bump is too low down and they'd just cut into me. However at 38 weeks it's all about tent-like dresses - my failsafe outfit is from Topshop.