D... Dress it up!

Love love love love love this maternity dress.  I have it in two colors  (black and purple).   It is so cute and so comfortable.  I am hoping I can even wear it not pregnant... but that might be pushing it.  The purple looks great with black tights and a cardigan which is how I sported it to my baby shower!  I LOVE the gray (how cute is the back) but unfortunately that was sold out in my size!   This dress gets a lot of wear these days... I think the ruffles are so darling!

I have had great luck with Target's maternity stuff..... cheap and cute.  What is not to love!  Until next time...xoxo

M is for Maternity.... fashion!

My philosophy on maternity wear is if you would not wear it not pregnant-- don't wear something just because you are pregnant!    Okay, during the end of your preganancy.... I am sure you wear just about whatever fits.  But, for most of your pregnancy, you don't want to be swimming in maternity wear that is too big or draped!  I also hate to buy things that I am truly only going to wear for a few months.  I am very practical!  There is lots of great "blowzy" fashion out there that is totally bump friendly and has an increased likelihood to be worn again.

Pants- you need maternity pants and you need them much earlier than maternity tops.  My pants started being uncomfortably tight around 13 weeks.  I could still get my regular pants on and buttoned, but after a few hours, I was miserable.  Get yourself some cute maternity pants.  Most of mine are from the gap (few Old Navy added in).  I bought black pants (one short pair for flip flops, one regular pair for wedges/heels and some capris), white jeans (flared pair, bootcut pair, and cropped pair) and splurged on some black mavi jeans (on sale at Pea in the Pod) for fall.  I LIVE in my white jeans (below)!  My main piece of advice is keep it simple.  I have never been into bright or patterned pants and don't think pregnancy is the time to try that type of attention to my bottom half!

Dresses are your best friend when pregnant.  Again, I have mostly non- maternity dresses.  There is a ton of empire waisted stuff out there right now!  I did buy a couple maternity dresses, but found a lot of cute flowy non-maternity dresses are Gap (like one below which I bought in white and black), TJ Maxx, Marshalls and so on!  Jersey is great... it fits smoothly, drapes well and stretches when you need it to!

Tops are like dresses!  You can get away with a lot of tops that are non-maternity.  If you find the right style (i.e. empire) you don't even need to buy in a bigger size (although sometimes you do).  I spend like $150 bucks at TJ Maxx and bought 12 maternity friendly tops and T-shirts.  Most I would still wear not pregnant.    Once again Gap served me well.  I bought this adorable beach cover (below) on sale for $20 that I can wear now and still wear later.  I threw a black cami under it and put on my white jeans.... very cute outfit!  Be creative- beach covers, tunics, short dresses... anything can become a top!

Jeans... mine are Old Navy and Gap.  I love them.  I thought about getting some designer jeans but decided I would rather "treat" myself to a pair post pregnancy to get me motivated to lose the baby weight then to drop $200 now and only wear them for 6 or so months!  Find a pair you love.  You only need one or two pairs (unless you wear jeans to work too). I also bought a cropped capri pair (Destination Maternity) and jean skirt (Gap).  White and black jeans are also mentioned above.)

More to come in coming months, but my main advice is to stick to your pre-pregnancy style sense, think beyond maternity stores, and comfort is key!  Until next time....xoxo