style: feeling more like me

Dressing for my bump has been a big challenge. As I said before, I also write a beauty and style blog. I like to think that over the years and as I reached my 30s, I’d found my “style”. I had a way of dressing that suited me, suited my lifestyle and made me feel comfortable. Adding a bump to the equation (and boobs) was always going to be a challenge but I don’t think I’d realised quite how big a challenge. I tended to wear loose, oversized pieces before I was pregnant and assumed that I’d be able to wear many of these throughout the nine months. Up until about 20 weeks, this did seem to be working but then I think I must have “popped”! My bump suddenly felt much bigger and clothes that a week or two before had fitted neatly over my bump were now being stretched and looked a little odd.

My first maternity purchase was a pair of maternity jeans. I have worn skinny jeans for years (and years and years) and so decided to stick with my usual shape. My favourite two pairs are from H&M. They feel more like jeggings if I’m honest. They’re really stretchy and really comfortable. Comfort has been a massive consideration when buying maternity clothes. The reason I bought the jeans in the first place was because my non-maternity jeans were starting to dig in and make my nausea even worse.

For weeks 14 through to 20, my maternity jeans worked fine with long line tees and vests under loose, oversized jumpers.

Once I hit week 20, I realised that many of my normal jumpers were getting too short and the pool of clothes I could wear was rapidly decreasing. So I had to hit the shops again.

I wanted to stick to my usual style of skinnier bottom half and looser top half. But much of the maternity clothing I came across was fitted and stretchy on top. So this week I resorted to Primark for a few of their non-maternity oversized dresses to see my through the next few weeks. Funny how something so simple as a shapeless dress can make you feel more like yourself again...