If there is anything I have learned in my second pregnancy, it is that shopping for maternity clothes can make you want to bang your head against the wall.  When my waistline began expanding very early on this time around, I had my hubby climb up our step ladder and pull down my stash of maternity clothes that I had kept from my first pregnancy. I ran everything through the laundry for good measure, and began the pre-shopping fashion show. Over half of the clothing didn’t even make it onto my body. After a quick once over, I realized I had kept clothing that had been worn to the point of no return – profoundly pilled, colors faded, stains that might have gone unnoticed by the end of my third trimester when anything that would cover my ginormous belly was fair game, no matter how horrendous it looked.

When I tried on what was left, I had to wonder – why did I buy these things? I had two pairs of inexpensive maternity jeans, both of which were falling halfway down my rear end by the time I had traipsed from one end of my small apartment to the other (which was not a new occurence – this happened all throughout their tenure as my go-to jeans when pregnant with Colin). I had two sweaters that were dry clean only, which is just not cost effective for my day-to-day existence (and they aren’t especially compatible with my current life chasing a two year old who is constantly…sticky). I had a smattering of overly trendy shirts that I bought on clearance, despite the fact that they never fit very well…but at least they were cheap, right? I had three Gap Pure Body shirts that were so cozy that I would happily wear them daily, even when I was not pregnant, but aside from this tiny handful of functional maternity-wear, I realize that I had wasted a decent chunk of closet real estate for the past two years, and I was basically starting from scratch.

This time around, I am doing my best to shop smarter, and I want to share my strategies about how I’m tackling the acquisition of a new wardrobe for the nearly nine months where nothing from my pre-pregnancy closet seems to fit.


1) AG Stella Jeans Secret Fit Belly Maternity Jeans  |  2) Secret Fit Belly Maternity Pants  |  3) Gap Pure Body Long V-Neck Tee  |  4) H&M Maternity Tights

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Splurge:

Alright ladies.  I must start with my one and only mandatory splurge (for me, at least). I hate, and I mean HATE, that feeling of having to hike up your pants every two seconds while pregnant. No one likes feeling like a waddling penguin, and it’s one thing to deal with that when you’re on the brink of crowning, but for your first two trimesters and the first half of #3, one shouldn’t be plagued with this issue. Because I believe firmly in the idea of cost-per-wear, I thought about a pair of incredible jeans as an investment in my sanity this time around. Because my job doesn’t require business-dress, and the remainder of my time is spent with my two year old, I knew that 95% of my life would be comfortably spent in jeans. (If I were working full-time in a more formal office environment, I would sub fabulous jeans for an investment in excellent dress pants, and just buy a pair or two of inexpensive jeans or yoga pants for weekends). I bought these AG jeans from A Pea in the Pod, and I will tell you, even though I have never spent so much on nearly any item of clothing, even with the coupon I used, but I don’t regret it for a second.  I have worn them at least 5 days a week since 14 weeks, and will likely wear them as much until my baby is 3 or 4 months old. That translates to about a dollar per wear, which is probably better than my CPW of my much-hated saggy maternity pants of pregnancies past. Plus there’s the potential to pick a classic pair that you could wear for future pregnancies, and if you have no intention of needing them again, the resale value for designer maternity jeans is pretty high.

Spend: 

There are a few items that aren’t quite a splurge or a bargain, but I couldn’t have lived without in either pregnancy. I mentioned before my love for the Gap Pure Body line.  I never shop full price at Gap, since there is always an imminent sale, and if you wait for a 40% off deal, these short and long sleeve tees are worth their weight in gold. They are casual but can be dressed up with accessories, and they are so. friggin. comfy. Another non-negotiable for me are a few good pairs of maternity tights (at least if you are pregnant in the late fall/winter/early spring, and you aren’t blessed to live in SoCal, where I don’t think tights are ever really necessary).


1) HM Mama Top w/ Lace  | 2)  Liz Lange Long Sleeve Tee  |  3) JCPenney Maternity Striped Tee  |  4) Motherhood Sleeveless Scoopneck Stripe Top  |  5) ASOS Boatneck Top  |  6) ASOS Zip Detail 3/4 Sleeve Tee  |  7) Colorblock Pink Maternity Tunic  | 8) Old Navy Twisted Hem Jersey Top  |  9) Motherhood Maternity Tunic  |  10) ASOS Lace Dress  |  11) HM Wrap Front Dress  |  12) Liz Lange Shirt Dress

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Despite the fact that I looked back at some of my maternity fashion choices thinking, “why did I buy that?”, I don’t think that it has to be mandatory to only buy classic, solid (read: boring) clothes for the 5-7 months when you are stuck wearing them. Even pregnant girls like to feel pretty (and let’s be honest, many of us don’t feel radiant and glowy the whole time – some of the lucky ones, like me, look tired, green with nausea and bloaty all over). So having something semi-on-trend, or at least not boring and black, can be refreshing and make you actually feel good about yourself. But, BUT, I learned from the last time around that while you should not sacrifice fit for cost: buying something meh just because it’s cheap won’t make you feel less meh wearing it. And yet, despite all this, unless you work in a fashion mecca or just have a money tree out back, it’s tough to justify spending gobs of money on shirts that will get worn and washed to death. My threshold is around $20, and there are tons of great stores that have maternity clothes that fall within that budget, either via good sales or already low prices. Some of my favorites come from H&M, Old Navy, Gap and Asos Maternity, and I’ve also found some adorable options at JCPenney, Pink Blush Maternity, Motherhood, Target and even on Amazon.

When it comes to dresses, it depends on the occasion. I would potentially splurge on a dress to wear regularly to work (although during my last pregnancy, I had two Liz Lange for Target dresses that I wore probably twice a week), but generally, unless I am going to wear it more than 10 times during the course of one pregnancy, I can’t rationalize spending a ton. This time around, I had four weddings to attend while visibly pregnant (one of which I officiated), so I bought one great dress for $50 on Asos. Unless you are the bride, no one will remember what you wore, so one classic black dress can go a long way.  I also picked up a few casual dresses for date nights and girls’ nights out that could be dressed up or dressed down via styling choices. Neither of those were more than $25 either.


1) Coobie Scoopneck Bra  |  2) Merona Halter One Piece  |  3) Maternity Underwear

Skip:

For me, I felt like bra shopping while pregnant was an exercise in futility. My boobs were ever changing and expanding, and by the time I found something that fit well and didn’t break the bank, I was already on the brink of outgrowing it. This time around, I skipped the drama of first and second trimester bras entirely, instead getting a couple of Coobie Bras that are super stretchy and one size fits “most.” Certainly, this suggestion only works for those of average bust size pre-pregnancy-boob-explosion. And I was past 32 weeks or so, buying a couple great nursing bras to get me to the end and through my post partum phase – that was worth it for sure. But those first few purchases – I wish I had skipped entirely. Another “skip” for me was pregnancy swim wear.  Because of the timing of my pregnancy (and the fact that I live in Chicago, worlds away from the land of long term beach weather), I couldn’t justify the expense of maternity swim wear. Of course, if you are due in August, or of you are blessed to live along the Equator or somewhere fabulous where bathing suits are relevant year round, feel free to ignore me entirely. But if you are planning for a brief beach vacation or expect to wear your suit fewer than a dozen times or if your pregnancy falls in the “is that pudge or a real bump” phase during the swim season (raises hand awkwardly), either just appreciate the stretchy qualities of your existing swim wardrobe, or find the cheapest black one piece or tankini top you can find and order it a size or two larger than usual. And finally – underwear is underwear. Spending more for special “maternity” underwear is silly. Just buy what you already love, and go a size up when you need it.

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What maternity items are worth a splurge for you?  What do you save on?  Any purchases you regret from your pregnancy or items you wish you had treated yourself to?