Maternity/Nursing Clothes

11 Oct 2022

I tend to lean towards a capsule wardrobe. I like having versatile outfits that can be worn for any season of life. Because we've only had summer babies, I’ve bee able to use the same clothes for all three pregnancies and some were added along the way.

MATERNITY/NURSING CLOTHES

For the first baby post-partum, we didn't have a vehicle and I didn't want to buy anything online not knowing what would or wouldn't fit. Therefore, we could only go to stores within walking distance. I found a store across from the hospital where I gave birth and purchased a Melbourne top from Majama which I still use for the third baby. 3 summer dresses that were gifted to me by my sister a year before I was pregnant. These dresses are great because they're floor length, easy to wash, breezy and I can wear them whether I'm pregnant or not!

Second baby bump was much larger than the first so I couldn't fit in many clothes. I wanted comfortable maternity clothes and found Dwell and Slumber Cocoon Dresses and Seraphine. For Seraphine, I would purchase various sizes of my faves and send back ones that didn't work. There's a max on how much you can charge and purchase from their site internationally so I did it in batches. This by far has been my fave to wear pregnant and nursing. For pants, I bought the chinos and easy fit and have worn them for 3 years.

MATERNITY UNDERWEAR
For the first pregnancy, I wore regular underwear that I had. The last few weeks, I ended up wearing my husband’s boxers or tie string underwear (like these) because others were uncomfortable.

The second pregnancy, I decided to purchase some maternity underwear which I didn’t wear until postpartum. They didn’t fit right and I didn’t like it during pregnancy. It was great immediately post-partum but then was too big in size.

The third pregnancy, my mother sent me a UNIQLO maternity underwear – game changer. I didn’t realize my belly would hurt during the day because the underwear wasn’t right. I had been wearing the ones from the second pregnancy and the fabric would always roll and more than half of the underwear would end up below my belly digging in. I asked those around me what they wore - they said the same brand and had the same problem. The UNIQLO maternity underwear covers the entire belly, stays on and is comfortable. I went through the entire pregnancy in them. I had black and grey. Black ones were larger in size than the grey even though they were sold as the same size. Something I learned in retail is that color changes the size so I always suggest people that if it’s possible, try the same pants all in different colors because the size may not be the same. That theory was true for the underwear but since I couldn’t try them on prior to purchasing, I wore the grey close to the end of the second trimester and wore the black ones for the third trimester. They’re great post-partum as well. I highly recommend these.

MATERNITY/NURSING BRA
For the first pregnancy, I purchased a Cake Maternity bra at a department store. Postpartum, I purchased a Majamas sporty bra. When I was in the house, I wore no bra. The bands for any bra that I tried were uncomfortable and I felt like it restricted milk flow. When I was at home, I would wear a soft T-shirt and I only wore bras when I left the house.

For the second pregnancy, I purchased several different Cake Maternity bras. A warning for those of you who buy them online: even though they may say the same size, you have to be careful because they’re not the same across designs. I recommend contacting their help desk to make sure you have sizes that are all the same. Their help desk is amazing and really helpful. Because they didn’t all fit too well, I ended up looking for shelf bra tanks and found them at Soma Intimates. I purchased 5 varying styles and colors (which I can no longer find on their website) and placed a breast pad in the shelf tank. They were comfortable and didn’t restrict milk flow. (The second pregnancy and birth were during the lock down so all of my previous bras from the first pregnancy were sitting in storage and we were unable to retrieve them). The con is that over time the shelf tank does over stretch and then the pads move around everywhere during sleep. I have woken up once or twice where they had shifted during sleep and I found one side wet.

For the third pregnancy, I tried wool bra called boob design. They’re comfortable but their largest size doesn’t quite fit the girls that I feel like I’m busting out of them. If I’m not wearing them, I’m wearing the Cake bras I used for the first pregnancy. I honestly prefer the V style where I don’t have to bother clipping and unclipping the bras. However, to make sure I’m covered properly, I do wear two breast pads, which to me isn’t a big deal.

MATERNITY/NURSING PAJAMAS
During my first pregnancy, my mom visited my sister and came back with an XL pajama from Peter Alexander which I used for every single one of my pregnancies - so comfortable and perfect. I also had some pajamas that my grandmother had sewn for my grandfather. I wore those because the elastic she put in was perfect for a stretching belly and I could cover my entire belly in it!

During my second pregnancy, the grandpa pajamas were worn out and thrown out so I purchased two sets of Baby Be Mine. I purchased a medium because I needed a medium top but a small bottom. The bottoms are too flared in the medium that I have caught my toe in the fabric many times walking and tripped. I wish they’d let you purchase varying sizes. Also, I sent an inquiry to them asking if they ever sold long sleeve shirts (since I purchased mine in the summer) and never received a response. During the winter for nursing, I used Hanna Andersson’s women's night gown which have been perfect. I wear long john pajama pants too, for extra warmth.

For the third pregnancy, I was home most of the time with my eldest two so I used the Baby Be Mine pajamas for the day and the Peter Alexander for the night. I wore the Baby Be Mine tops for nursing during the summer but quickly switched to Hanna Andersson for the winter months.

Update 12/5/2022: I just saw that Dwell and Slumber have Cosy Dresses (long sleeve!) so I would love to add that to my wardrobe.

What have been your favorite maternity/post-partum brands?

Maternity/Nursing Clothes

11 Oct 2022

I tend to lean towards a capsule wardrobe. I like having versatile outfits that can be worn for any season of life. Because we've only had summer babies, I’ve bee able to use the same clothes for all three pregnancies and some were added along the way.

MATERNITY/NURSING CLOTHES

For the first baby post-partum, we didn't have a vehicle and I didn't want to buy anything online not knowing what would or wouldn't fit. Therefore, we could only go to stores within walking distance. I found a store across from the hospital where I gave birth and purchased a Melbourne top from Majama which I still use for the third baby. 3 summer dresses that were gifted to me by my sister a year before I was pregnant. These dresses are great because they're floor length, easy to wash, breezy and I can wear them whether I'm pregnant or not!

Second baby bump was much larger than the first so I couldn't fit in many clothes. I wanted comfortable maternity clothes and found Dwell and Slumber Cocoon Dresses and Seraphine. For Seraphine, I would purchase various sizes of my faves and send back ones that didn't work. There's a max on how much you can charge and purchase from their site internationally so I did it in batches. This by far has been my fave to wear pregnant and nursing. For pants, I bought the chinos and easy fit and have worn them for 3 years.

MATERNITY UNDERWEAR
For the first pregnancy, I wore regular underwear that I had. The last few weeks, I ended up wearing my husband’s boxers or tie string underwear (like these) because others were uncomfortable.

The second pregnancy, I decided to purchase some maternity underwear which I didn’t wear until postpartum. They didn’t fit right and I didn’t like it during pregnancy. It was great immediately post-partum but then was too big in size.

The third pregnancy, my mother sent me a UNIQLO maternity underwear – game changer. I didn’t realize my belly would hurt during the day because the underwear wasn’t right. I had been wearing the ones from the second pregnancy and the fabric would always roll and more than half of the underwear would end up below my belly digging in. I asked those around me what they wore - they said the same brand and had the same problem. The UNIQLO maternity underwear covers the entire belly, stays on and is comfortable. I went through the entire pregnancy in them. I had black and grey. Black ones were larger in size than the grey even though they were sold as the same size. Something I learned in retail is that color changes the size so I always suggest people that if it’s possible, try the same pants all in different colors because the size may not be the same. That theory was true for the underwear but since I couldn’t try them on prior to purchasing, I wore the grey close to the end of the second trimester and wore the black ones for the third trimester. They’re great post-partum as well. I highly recommend these.

MATERNITY/NURSING BRA
For the first pregnancy, I purchased a Cake Maternity bra at a department store. Postpartum, I purchased a Majamas sporty bra. When I was in the house, I wore no bra. The bands for any bra that I tried were uncomfortable and I felt like it restricted milk flow. When I was at home, I would wear a soft T-shirt and I only wore bras when I left the house.

For the second pregnancy, I purchased several different Cake Maternity bras. A warning for those of you who buy them online: even though they may say the same size, you have to be careful because they’re not the same across designs. I recommend contacting their help desk to make sure you have sizes that are all the same. Their help desk is amazing and really helpful. Because they didn’t all fit too well, I ended up looking for shelf bra tanks and found them at Soma Intimates. I purchased 5 varying styles and colors (which I can no longer find on their website) and placed a breast pad in the shelf tank. They were comfortable and didn’t restrict milk flow. (The second pregnancy and birth were during the lock down so all of my previous bras from the first pregnancy were sitting in storage and we were unable to retrieve them). The con is that over time the shelf tank does over stretch and then the pads move around everywhere during sleep. I have woken up once or twice where they had shifted during sleep and I found one side wet.

For the third pregnancy, I tried wool bra called boob design. They’re comfortable but their largest size doesn’t quite fit the girls that I feel like I’m busting out of them. If I’m not wearing them, I’m wearing the Cake bras I used for the first pregnancy. I honestly prefer the V style where I don’t have to bother clipping and unclipping the bras. However, to make sure I’m covered properly, I do wear two breast pads, which to me isn’t a big deal.

MATERNITY/NURSING PAJAMAS
During my first pregnancy, my mom visited my sister and came back with an XL pajama from Peter Alexander which I used for every single one of my pregnancies - so comfortable and perfect. I also had some pajamas that my grandmother had sewn for my grandfather. I wore those because the elastic she put in was perfect for a stretching belly and I could cover my entire belly in it!

During my second pregnancy, the grandpa pajamas were worn out and thrown out so I purchased two sets of Baby Be Mine. I purchased a medium because I needed a medium top but a small bottom. The bottoms are too flared in the medium that I have caught my toe in the fabric many times walking and tripped. I wish they’d let you purchase varying sizes. Also, I sent an inquiry to them asking if they ever sold long sleeve shirts (since I purchased mine in the summer) and never received a response. During the winter for nursing, I used Hanna Andersson’s women's night gown which have been perfect. I wear long john pajama pants too, for extra warmth.

For the third pregnancy, I was home most of the time with my eldest two so I used the Baby Be Mine pajamas for the day and the Peter Alexander for the night. I wore the Baby Be Mine tops for nursing during the summer but quickly switched to Hanna Andersson for the winter months.

Update 12/5/2022: I just saw that Dwell and Slumber have Cosy Dresses (long sleeve!) so I would love to add that to my wardrobe.

What have been your favorite maternity/post-partum brands?