Where to find comfortable clothes- "early" maternity friendly

[Notanother0nee]

I'm 10 weeks pregnant and I'm struggling with my wardrobe- I dont have a bump yet, which rules out traditional maternity clothes, but suddenly can't bear to wear anything tight.
I just feel like I'm suddenly wider everywhere, my skin is sensitive and any pressure on my torso makes the morning sickness and indigestion worse. Bras are out which I'm also feeling self conscious about. I also can't deal with having anything tight near my neck which has ruled out my usual layered shirts and jumpers/sweatshirts, turtlenecks, slim knit polos etc.

I've managed to find a couple of pairs of comfortable trousers (elastic and lower waisted, wide leg, soft material) but tops are stumping me. What did you wear during in this stage?! Preferably without having to buy new clothes every month.

I don't do patterns other than stripes, and ideally would like something I can wear at work too. I like preppy, androgynous, classic styles. Not usually a dress wearer because its not practical for work. I did get this dress as a panic buy which is comfortable but doesn't quite feel like me.

This no mans land of waiting until second trimester to tell people, plus my body already changing a lot but not wanting to draw any attention is really difficult 😫

Have a look here - not cheap but will probably last until you’re looking for a school gate wardrobe:

https://beyondnine.co.uk

I had existing loose dresses from Boohoo which I used in the beginning and then once I had a pump I got clothes mostly from Asda. I randomly found some maternity clothes in Peacocks too but not sure if they make those nowadays.

Think ahead to clothes which will be useful after birth.

Especially if you're planning to breastfeed for any length of time, now is a good time to pick clothes which will be useful for the first 6 months post partum. Baggy shirts and T shirts will come in handy: dresses maybe not so much.

You can buy elastic things to bridge the flies of your regular jeans. I wore oversized cotton t shirts and loose jumpers, oversized cardigan with a v neck, loose knit dress with maternity tights. But I like the oversized look anyway so I already had most of these. For work I wore a loose 80s style blazer over silk shirts that hid a small bump well, with Uniqlo maternity work trousers that stayed up right from the start.

If you don't usually wear looser fitting clothes you may find it handy to have a few outfits to wear again post-partum, I certainly appreciated them and didn't wear anything close fitting again for months after the baby arrived!

70% of my wardrobe is from Cos and I could wear it from before pregnancy right up until I gave birth and again after! All I bought were some maternity tights and leggings. Very androgynous looking work and casual wear!

I used an elastic hair tie between the button and buttonhole of my normal skirts and trousers, and didn't tuck in my tops. In a few weeks, you will be getting a more pregnant shape and telling people, so don't waste your money now. Buy decent stuff a bit later.

And look in the men's department. A nice M&S men's lambswool V neck is very handy at this time of year (charity shops are good for this at this time of year), or a boxy short sleeve men's shirt in Small.

I keep seeing this brand on instagram- good to hear an actual recommendation!

It's my first so knowing what will be useful/practical is something I'm not sure on and sort of why I'm here 😊

I do intend to breastfeed.

Maybe it is as simple as sizing up.

I think I'm struggling a little bit with all the changes and how I'm perceiving my body and accepting getting bigger. I know it's doing an amazing thing. I've been the same proportions for nearly 20 years. It's a bit of a shock.

Thanks all

I bought non-wired pull-on super soft nursing bras from h&m because my breasts were so sore, everything made me itch and I was going up a cup size a week. No point buying fancy bras because they wouldn't fit for more than 10 minutes. Now I've got a big bump they're great because the bump starts where my band normally sits so the stretch is appreciated.

Otherwise I just wore my normal January fat after Christmas and lazy holiday wardrobe items until I was big enough for maternity clothes. I got a selection on Vinted. None of it is really to my taste, but it's fine for a few months.