Image overhaul required....but I'm preggers!

[TheLegendOfBeans]

Ladies of MN, help me dress myself.

I'm 35, with a DD of 14 months and another baby on the way (due November).

I'm usually a size 12-14 and classic pear shaped. I'm writing this post because I'm sick of my "mum" uniform of the usual jeans and stripey top. Sometime I'll vary with shirts but I think I look frumpy and old before my time.

I was happiest when I was in corporate wear, as I used to work in finance. The shirt tucked into a pencil skirt combo was flattering and even in boring court shoes I'd look pretty good.

I can't wear that anymore as I'll
A) look like someone who's pretending to have an office job
B) my waistline is going away due to baby bump.

Can anyone recommend anything that's a bit different? Trying to avoid jeans, trying to wear more dresses but also looking for something that's not got any kind of ageing patterns on it (I find FatFace and SeaSalt stuff quite fuddy duddy).

If it helps I'm 5'6" with blond hair and I'm quite booby and bummy.

Thanks hive mind. X

Bumping

I'm pear shaped and couldn't be arsed trying to find maternity jeans once I couldn't fit in my usual ones, and a pair of black jeans was always a major part of my uniform.

I was also extremely skint at the time, so ordered a longline stretchy tube skirt from missguided as they are only £10, I wasn't expecting great things but I barely took it off for the entire pregnancy and I am not exaggerating! It is in lots of colours but I got black and it looks good with shirts,blouses tshirt and jumpers so pretty versatile and I think it looked good as it emphasises the curve from waist to hip that pear shaped people usually try to hide.

It may verge a tad on the Kim kardashian side but I think I looked pretty sexy for a pregnant lady (as did the builder who wolf whistled at me from behind when I was walking to a midwife appointment at 36 weeks, he got a shock when I turned around not only was I pulling a cats bum face but I was sporting a beach ball sized bump!)

They are double lined thick good quality jersey and they have them in loads of colours and they don't go see through, get a size up from usual and they will just stretch as your bump gets bigger. You can wear them over or under the bump too depending on your preference. Only slight niggle is you can't take big steps in them, it didn't bother me too much but a slit cut in one side would sort it out.

Hey, I love you for this, I know what you mean about the KK look but I'm so pleased the first suggestion is budget as I'm looking for a few options and obviously need to spread the ££ x

Ha! I was just coming on to suggest a tube skirt instead of jeans. It would give you a similar silhouette to a pencil, which you like, but without the officey vibe. They're also comfy and I would have thought practical with babies and toddlers (although I've not been around any for a while myself). All that and an elasticated waistband too - what's not to like!

I'm living in yoga pants. They're so comfy and aren't skinny legged. I don't have the figure for skinny anything to do with legs. I think I'll be wearing these last bf after the baby is born!

I'm preg currently and I'm seconding the tube skirt. I have a full length one and a midi length one from asos maternity.

They look great with a denim shirt.

I'm thirding the tube skirt, I have lived in a black one and a grey one this pregnancy. They definitely need to be thick material, or as your front expands they will emphasise any VPL you have (or is that just me?).

Also have a look at Gap's maternity clothes (they have a sale on this weekend). Some of their tops were really well made and go well with tube skirts. Sadly, some of their tops are crappily made, you just have to order and return the crappy ones.

Robber do you have any links I can have a look at? I have a chequered history with Gap for the reasons you state!

emem can you recommend a denim shirt? I'm quite booby so don't want to risk a bust keyhole and I have a longggg torso so need something with some length

Teabag get this; when I was - I dunno - nine and a half stone I lived in my Indian Yoga pants. Now I really DO need them I've never thought about them...can you recommend any?

Once again, all of you thank you. Good to see VPL mentioned as I've got a bit of a problem wth that and tube skirts. Plus I've always worried that they were a bit too BOOTY but I'm ok with my bum little else though and all elastic is welcome.

Just to note - I'm at that stage of pregnancy where I'm not showing. So I am a little worried that elasticared stuff will show off my wobbly gut. Last time I "popped" at 21w. Hoping it's a wee bit earlier this time.

Boden do a fab ruched tube skirt which looks good with a longer, loose top if you don't want to show off your bump yet. I wore mine with the Hush star jumper and it successfully hid my bump expect I'm not pregnant and my child is 3

You might find fold top maxi skirts work well for the summer too.

Legend I'm 34w, so was getting big over the winter. I lived in their maternity 'modern boatneck tee' in plain block colours and in stripes. They wash well, they don't have ruching, and they are lovely thick and long cotton. I have a long body, so I really needed the length, but they might be a bit too long for a normal person. Annoyingly, they've now put up the prices - they were about £18, which with 40% off was an amazing bargain. However they are still good value at the new price.

www.gap.co.uk/browse/product.do?pid=000274358000&vid=1&preferredLocale=en_GB&kwid=1&sem=false&sdkw=modern-stripe-boatneck-tee-P000274358&sdReferer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gap.co.uk%2Fproducts%2Fmaternity-tops.jsp

PS pre pregnancy I was 8-10 in tops, and the XS fitted me perfectly and has stretched well. So you might need to size down slightly.

legend the mothercare maternity ones are really soft and comfy and you can fold down the belly and bit to wear them as normal yoga pants when you're not pregnant anymore. They're maybe slightly wider legged than the ones you'd buy in sports shops but that suits me fine.

legend I bought mine years ago in primark. £6 and still going strong.

Asos have loads though. I'm 16 weeks and am showing/not showing iyswim. I bought a maternity Denim one from H&M but an still wearing my fitted Primark one. I'm booby (34DD) and usually a 10 and this one is still ok. In a few weeks it'll be a bit snug so may have to wear it open. I tend to leave it unbuttoned to just below boobs anyway and wear a tshirt underneath.