To buy or not to buy maternity clothing! That is the pregnant woman who is growing out of her regular clothing’s question. And Jamine Smith of Dress Me Blog Me is here to answer it!
As a fashion stylist, I was initially of the thought that I should have all the necessary skills required to get through my pregnancy with very little diversion away from my current wardrobe. Five months in, I realised desperately how wrong I was!
I tried the hair-tie looped around the jean button trick, I wore my elastic waisted shorts uncomfortably low, I managed to stretch a few favourite tops over my bump and then decided abruptly that I was playing a loosing game. As much as I wanted to withhold from any maternity-specific items at first, I also wanted to quite simply be comfortable!
And no, an open zipper and a makeshift hair-tie stretch waist does NOT make for a comfortable outing. As much as it theoretically works, it’s incredibly embarrassing if you stretch or sit or move in the wrong way. An open crotch flash is not something any pregnant woman should have to go through! And so I bought my first pair of maternity waisted stretch black leggings!
Ohhhh and I can’t even begin to explain how thankful I was!
When pregnant, fashion moves from simply being a stylish sartorial choice to being orientated around bump/boob convenience and comfort, and with the pressures of the bodily changes we face during pregnancy, I believe our clothing should be there to ease the process. What specifically designed maternity wear does is allow the luxury of both looking like yourself despite the dramatic bodily changes AND physically supporting the pregnancy process.
Now I’m not saying go out and spend, spend, spend on that growing bump! But I am saying I believe in maternity designed fashion and its function to aid the female form. With features like elastic waists, breast-feeding friendly zippers, roughing and panelling that allows for bump-friendly expansion – it pays to view maternity wear as an aid to the journey your about to embark on. I also greatly acknowledge that it is still important to remain budget-weary and spend only what is necessary. Buy full priced maternity wear, but also look into other options!
So with that being said, here’s my list on how to tackle the necessary maternity-wear wardrobe…
MATERNITY BOUTIQUES
With their specialised approach to maternity garments I suggest going in-store on your first maternity buying expedition! The sales staff in any Hong Kong boutique will be able to educate you on exactly what your looking at when it comes to maternity fashion – and trust me, you need this as it’s not as straight forward as what you’d think it would be!
My favourite Hong Kong based boutique is Mayarya.
ON-LINE SHOPPING
To ease the weight on your credit card, look towards fast-fashion on-line outlets like ASOS.
Now the clothing will last you one pregnancy, perhaps two or three depending on the material and style of garment you buy, but it’s really a way of shopping for low priced items that you’re happy to throw out at the end of your pregnancy if need be.
SECOND HAND BUYING
A fantastic platform for pre-loved garments is one like ‘Baby-Swap-It’ or ‘HK Mama’s Marketplace’ – both Hong Kong based groups hosted on Facebook.
Via here, individuals sell their previously worn maternity wear at a substantially cheaper price to what was originally past for it. From experience, the clothing is often in superb condition and make for cheap and easy inserts of maternity wear into your current wardrobe.
BORROWING
Now it goes without saying that more often than not, you’ll have a girlfriend or two who have already gone through the process of pregnancy, and quite often, they’ll be happy to loan items in between their pregnancies – happy that the item is getting more wear!
Be proactive! Perhaps even think of starting a group with your girlfriends where you can swap and borrow maternity wear easily. The Hong Kong wardrobe storing service that PAKT offers would be ideal for this!