I *thankfully* did not have to buy much to get through my pregnancy. I got really lucky as a few friends and coworkers were literally throwing stuff for me to wear. I also was able to make a lot of my non-maternity dresses & skirts work – yay frugal!
What I did Purchase
For the record I didn’t buy any maternity-specific things until the second trimester, because I could make it work in dresses and skirts. If you are someone who lives in pants, I am not, then you might have to acquire some maternity items earlier than I did. Once I needed some maternity items, I was gifted a bunch of stuff from two friends who just had babies in fall. I love buying clothing but I just could not justify spending all this money, that could be better spent elsewhere, on temporary clothing items that I would no longer wear in a few months.
| Store | Item(s) | Cost | My Notes |
| Jane.com |
|
$14.99 | The blue & white dress was a STUPID purchase! I bought this dressing thinking “oh this looks great for pregnancy & nursing” only to get it in and realize it could not serve in the function I was hoping. Plus, it looked terrible on me. Never wore it, it went to Goodwill. |
| TJ Maxx | Non-maternity wrap skirt | $14.99 | I thought this skirt could “grow” with me a little longer than it did, but it only looked great until the middle of the second trimester. However, I will wear after baby. |
| Motherhood Maternity |
|
$90.90 | The bra was a MUST (& actually this one got too small pretty quickly). I hated the jeans because they were more jeggings than jeans so I avoided wearinging them. But the bathing suit was super cute & the leggings a great staple for prenatal yoga. |
| Motherhood Maternity |
|
$102.37 | The workout leggings SUCK SUCK SUCK! I’m getting rid of them after this pregnancy; they are weirdly baggy/uncomfortable under my belly. I will stick with the traditional leggings from now on. |
| Old Navy |
|
$83.87 | I was lent a white shirt maternity shirt that I promptly ruined with coffee so I had to purchase a new one. I also ruined a grey muscle tee I already had (it got holes in it) so I bought a new one. I was gifted one pair of maternity shorts & quickly realized, with a summer pregnancy, I would *at least* need another pair. Then, I wanted free shipping so I tossed in the back nursing top that is actually super cute! |
| TJ Maxx |
|
$24.59 | I needed as strapless bra for a wedding and obviously none of my non-pregnant bras still fit. I also wanted some comfy non-sports bras but also not “regular” bras for around the house. None of these items are specifically “maternity.” |
| Target |
|
$80.02 | I wanted to buy a few new things for our 5th wedding anniversary & baby shower so I got 2 new dresses for that. I also found a fantastic pool cover up that I am going to use as a mumu/house/nursing dress. |
| Target | size large comfy pj pants | $19.99 | These will probably be too big when I am back to my “new normal size” but I really needed a pair of sweatpants that were not leggings to toss on. |
| Jane.com | nursing/house dress | $27.99 | I had $4 Jane.com credit & $5 PayPal credit if I spent $25 + plus free soooo yeah I think this is a good purchase |
TOTAL |
$459.71 |
||
A dear friend who had her first baby in March gifted me compression socks & pregnancy underwear. Let me tell you pregnancy underwear CHANGED ME!!! lol I had no idea that pregnancy underwear existed & without her gift would have continued in uncomfortable ignorance.
In addition to that a neighbor gave me a gorgeous black floor-length dress I wore to a black tie Indian wedding (see above) and 2 pairs of workout leggings. One of Will’s cousin’s also sent a small box of baby stuff & leftover maternity clothes.
Read more from the blog Catholic All Year: “Nursing Dresses I’m Recommending to the Virgin Mary (and you)”
Making Non-Maternity Clothes Work
One of the biggest reasons I could still use about 75% of my pre-pregnant wardrobe is that I wear a lot of dresses and skirts with elastic anyways. So my #1 tip would be to look at your wardrobe and see the non-maternity items that work, perhaps with modification. There are so many things marked up because they’re maternity when the size large in a regular dress, maybe with a cute thin belt, can work just as well. The two pictures above (and the picture at the very top) and are all with NON-maternity clothes. Most of the pictures on my Instagram are too.
Here are the most verstible items:
- Midi skirts with elastic bands
- Dresses with waist ties
- Loose t-shirt dresses (just make sure they don’t get too short)
- Long & loose tanks (you can tie them up or tuck them in)
- Loose maxi dresses
- Tighter fitting bodycon-like dresses a size up
- Slip on shoes
- Sports bras (I did not have to buy any)
Here are the items I suggest getting maternity wear:
- Leggings (I know, shocking)
- Jeans & pants
- Underwear
- Bras
- Bathing suit
- Shorts
JMF
