Breastfeeding clothes (on a budget)

[AwkwardPaws27]

I'm struggling with my postpartum body.
I'm trying to be grateful to it as we've got a healthy baby after 3 MCs but honestly I've shed tears over it.

DS is a month old, & I have very few clothes that fit, what does is mostly maternity wear which I don't think is helping as I think the extra fabric is making me look bigger.

I did find a jumpsuit with a button front in a charity shop for £2.50 which actually works & looks OK though (image attached, originally from New Look). I have a size 14 black dungaree dress from Tu that works with a tshirt underneath.

I'm 5'6", currently 13st 4lb, 34J bra (!), I think about a size 16? Although depends on the shop.

I need some staples I can breastfeed in. I spent three hours traipsing round Primark, H&M, River Island & New Look yesterday with no luck.

Wrap dresses never seem to work for me, due to my cup size they always look way more revealing than I'm aiming for! A lot of items I'd seen online that looked promising turned out to have fake button fronts (the buttons were just sewn on) when I looked at them in store. I've been trawling through Vinted but most nursing clothes seem to also be maternity wear.

Any suggestions/good finds?

Oops, I'll try the image again!

I’ve actually got some great button jumpsuits from asda recrntly

wrap dresses with a modesty panel (hate the word but basically a boob tube) underneath work

vest tops from primark are fine

any shirred top dress with straps that you can pull down works

look at seraphine on ebay

there is a fb group for normal clothes which are BF friendly that I can’t remember the name of but hopefully someone here will

Have a look at the ‘can I breastfeed in it’ Facebook group - it’s really active.

I didn’t like the fit of any bf specific clothes I had. I just wore a cheap vest top under my normal clothes - pull the normal top up and the vest top down.

Or wear high waisted bottoms and don’t bother with the vest.

Just buy supermarket vest tops, maybe a size up and wear normal clothes. You can pull the vest top down to get boob out but leave belly covered and lift the normal top up. Minimal exposure, minimal expenditure, job done.

I bought a bundle of nursing clothes not maternity from eBay. Try searching Vinted for nursing tops etc too instead of breastfeeding. Can I breastfeed in it is also really good. I love Juno Jacks stuff too.

I used my pregnancy bump bands under my top in a similar way to the vests described above. They covered the tummy and bridged the gap between top and trousers when lifting the outer top to feed but didn’t cover the boobs. I just bought tops that were boxier in shaper or tunic style rather than close fitting.

Cardigans, especially drapy ones. (If you still get that sort of thing, I last breastfed 7 years ago!) Helps with any exposure worries for public breastfeeding is you are self conscious. The one up, one down method on tops is useful too.

Make sure you have well fitting bras though. I was getting repeated blocked ducts until I worked out it only happened on the days I wore a particular bra.

Came on to say exactly this. I spent very little on breastfeeding clothes, a couple of nice dresses for weddings and that was it. Just a load of vest tops to go under normal tops and job done.

JoJo Maman bebe maternity/breastfeeding stuff on ebay, doesn’t look obviously maternity ( a thread on here recently and people were buying maternity stuff if they had large stomach ) really nice styles and fabrics.

I’ve actually got some great button jumpsuits from asda recrntly

Thank you - I haven't tried Asda but will look in our local store

Have a look at the ‘can I breastfeed in it’ Facebook group - it’s really active

I was looking at their website & Instagram but they haven't been updated for months. I'll try Facebook, thanks!

I've been doing the one up, one down method with a vest and a tshirt but I'm struggling with the heat!

I'll have a look for a nice light cardigan or wrap to cover up - I feel too uncomfortable in just a vest top, I look so hideous and flabby.

Make sure you have well fitting bras though. I was getting repeated blocked ducts until I worked out it only happened on the days I wore a particular bra

I think I've cracked it with the 34J Panache Sophie bra now. Measured myself & managed to get a couple on Vinted. I should go and get professionally fitted but I don't know where to go now Debenhams has closed. M&S are terrible at measuring larger sizes.

Any suggestions for spanx / shareware that isn't too constricting? My abdomen is very jelly-like
I'dquite happily live in maternity jeans forever but it's just too hot!

I just wore normal clothes

Honestly, give yourself a break. Your baby is one month old, it takes at least a year for your body to recover and you're still in very early days. It took your body nine months to get this way, it takes time to adjust after birth as well.

Breastfeeding clothes are a bit of a waste of money, you can breastfeed in anything if you hoik it up. Lots of people I know also found they lost weight rapidly when breastfeeding, especially as the baby got a bit bigger and developed more of an appetite - so you might find clothes you buy now that are fitted don't fit for long.

Thank you. I am trying to be kind to myself, its just difficult having nothing that fits right. I went to belt a dress the other day thinking it might look better, only to realise that none of my belts actually meet round my waist, let alone do up.

I agree re "proper" breastfeeding clothes - but I'm struggling to find anything on the high street that I like, that works. Part of the issue is that the cheaper shops stock mostly fast fashion & the latest trends, & I'm not really into it!

I've got a few family birthday, BBQs etc coming up but the charity shop jumpsuit will look nice enough for those I think.

Plan of action:

• Buy some more vest tops, & a lightweight cardigan.
• Keep an eye out for button front jumpsuits / dresses (with real buttons, not fake ones 😂)
• Buy a belt that actually fits!

I'm also going to get a secondhand pair of maternity shorts with a big stretchy waist panel, so I don't have to torture myself by trying on a dozen pairs that don't fit. That will also cover up the worst bits if I'm lifting up a top to feed on hot days.

H and m breastfeeding vest tops. They were really reasonable and I used overnight also.

boden - not often cheap, but I found two dresses in the sale 2 years ago for £30 each. One button down, one crossover type. Both loose cotton for coolness ( I Had May baby and live south Europe, so Hot that first few months). They are normal dresses, not breastfeeding. But means I have now just had both taken in as I bought a size bigger and can now continue to wear

How about loose dungaree/overall type things - Turtledove London do really comfy ones. I’ve been wearing them all through pregnancy and plan on using them for breastfeeding too.

Matalan do a longline vest top and they are very stretchy so you don't need to size up much. As pps have said, vest top and a normal top, pull one up and the vest down, super discreet and not expensive.

I have a pair of black denim maternity Moto dungarees I lived in while pregnant but they look/fit weird now I don't have a bump. I'll definitely look for a new non-maternity pair for the Autumn.

The Turtledove ones look lovely for summer. Do they have a drawstring/ adjustable waist?
I think I need something that creates a waist (as even though mine is far bigger than it was, it's still quite a lot smaller than my bust - so anything too boxy / unstructured makes me look bigger).

I second the h&m nursing tops (they do vest tops and also t shirt type ones that have a flap you can pop a boob through). New Look also do some. Both aren't often in stock though and only available online even when they are in stock.

B shirt also do some nice stuff although sizes are small and it's not cheap.

Currently I'm loving high waisted jeans (hold the tummy in) with a nursing top.