Help I'm turning into Barbara Royle

[zimmyzammyzoom]

I have DS 2.11 and 11 week old twins hence my appearance has taken somewhat of a back seat recently. I'm now getting fed up of looking and feeling frumpy, stressed and fat! All I seem to wear are ill fitting leggings and horrible breastfeeding tops. Is there any hope for me? I was a size 12 but am a 14-16 atm (prob more of a 16!) and am sporting rather enormous 38F boobs! I have an attractive belly overhang which means jeans are pretty uncomfy but I'm so blimmin' sick of leggings. I bought some maternity red skinny jeans from Mothercare last week which are pretty comfy so I've taken a step in the right direction but as far as tops go I'm a bit limited due to BFing. The one top up one top down thing doesn't seem to work with my massive norks without exposing vast acres of flab! I'm painting a pretty picture I know! Any ideas as to how I can sort myself out?!

You have a 2.11yo and 11wo twins?

You can go out in a bin bag with your head held high.

What about some nice drapy scarves,£4 from Primark.

Oh god, please don't start wearing scarves unless you are a 'scarf person' already, if you're not they just shout MUMSY. I don't have anything very helpful to add, I feel your pain as I am still a big fat breastfeeder (32K anyone?) and it's hard to find anything to wear that looks presentable.

Thanks Tether I'm not far short of that some days! Do you mean scarves just to dress up the BF tops Georgina? Do Primark do online? There isn't one near me and getting out shopping is a bit of a mission to say the least

I'm not a scarf person :( I was when I was slim though. I'm not against scarves per se.

These jeggings are very popular and brilliant half way house between leggings and skinny jeans Here. A few pairs of those and a few printed scarves as Georgina suggests will really brighten you up. I like warehouse or river island for scarves.

Hi Gilly the link doesn't seem to work but I think I know what you mean. I was loathe to spend money on 'interim' clothes while I lost weight but think I'm going to have to!

I'm in total awe of you for being with it and awake enough to type, never mind worry about how you look! Huge congratulations on the twins, and never underestimate the transformative power of lipstick...

Dorothy Perkins have a sale on, have a look at their skinnies, lovely and comfortable.

I think it remarkable you are wearing any clothing at all and not just lying on the sofa with a baby attached to each nork tbh.

Oh bugger, if you search for denim 5 pocket jeggings they come up. Loads of colours, some reduced to 9 quid so great for interim buys?

And yy to what Minty said. A compact foundation and a lippy kept me sane and stopped me scaring the neighbours

What tethers and minty said.
Congratulations!
I lived in supermarket clothes whilst my two were babies (including 'smart' work trousers and tops). When the youngest got to about two, I binned most of it and (ruthlessly) purged the wardrobe of everything preDC that was too out of date or too small. Also started reading S&B threads on here and ventured into dresses and other looks that I hadn't tried before because my body shape, lifestyle and so much else had changed since I became a parent.
Unlike minty I am not a make-up person - soaps/scents are my weakness, and a relatively cheap way to treat myself when the DCs were very small.
Go easy on yourself and take care.
HTH

Thanks ladies, feeling better that it is remotely acceptable to slum it a bit in my situation! But I know some shopping will cheer me up no end, have ordered the jeggings (thanks Gilly) and will look at DP too. Supermarket clothes is a genius idea too and agree a full wardrobe change is on the cards. I will try and put a bit of make up on every day (although getting a shower and dressed is sometimes my limit!)

Sorry late to reply,no Primark online but try the supermarkets,River Island,New Look,Marks.
Don't agree scarves mumsy at all,if worn stylishly.(lots of info online re this)
I akways wear make up,accept you haven't got much time to spare but good foundation/tinted moisturiser,blusher,mascara and lipstick takes 5 mins and makes all the difference.

I know the make-up thing sounds ludicrous when you're lucky if you get 30 seconds to pee in peace, but I just found there was nothing like it for kidding myself I wasn't as death's-door knackered as I felt. Mind you, I've only got one baby. The kind of knackered that comes with two and a toddler I don't even want to think about... Better make the lipstick ultra red!

Wow, I am also amazed you are together enough to be thinking about your appearance, I am in awe!!

I felt similar when I was bf my DD, tops designed to bf in are horrendous (yes I am looking at you Mothercare), and because I thought of myself as quite stylish pre DC, I knew that if I looked a bit more put together it would make me feel so much better too.

I found that H&M were surprisingly good for normal tops that just happened to be suitable for bf in. Most of them were wrap over at the front, I got cotton tops and a few dresses too all with wrap at the front. Then I wore a vest top underneath and kept a scarf with me at all times. When I was out I would use the scarf to cover my collarbone/chest area so I felt less exposed, then pull the wrap over bit to the side, pull the vest top down a bit so my boob was accessible. Then when baby was attached I could adjust the scarf slightly so that there was no skin showing at all.
I'm not sure if it would be as easy with bigger breasts (mine were DD), but I felt it helped that I was wearing 'normal' clothes so I felt pretty stylish.
You could also get some lightweight knitted wrap over jumpers for the cold weather and do a similar thing.
I second the Dorothy Perkins jeggings, they are so comfy and look ok too, at least until you are ready for your new wardrobe! Or, as you can wear anything on your bottom half seeing as it is your top half/access that is causing the most problems, focus on wearing things you really like on the bottom. Eg skirts, tights, 'nice' trousers etc. then once you find a top half solution, buy loads of the same style and stick to a 'uniform' until you are ready to stop bf.

I also agree that the smallest amount of make up makes a massive difference too, if I took 5 minutes to try to disguise my black under eyes it made me feel so much more socially acceptable

Thanks always, that's really useful advice. Lol at idea of a BF 'uniform' ! Will get looking on h&m website - I had a lot of their maternity stuff actually. And yes! I wore make up today! Felt much better like you all said - even when I was struggling to load the massive double buggy into the car in the pouring rain while they were both crying!