Maternity clothes, how many?

[hapahaolegirl]

With DD I only had five maternity shirts, one pair of capris, and a pair of shorts. I was able to wear my normal low rise jeans throughout my entire pregnancy. This time around I will be pregnant during the winter so I will not be able to reuse my old clothes. I'm really hoping to not have to buy much again.
So what do you think the absolute minimum could be? Also do you buy clothes in advance? I bought two bras in advance last time and that was a bad idea, they were too big the entire time, though I wore them anyway!

Thanks!


Kristen

[MsElle07]

I've been looking around at maternity clothes, and it seems like most companies are putting their summer stuff on clearance, while their nice fall/winter stuff hasn't come in yet. Although you could certainly buy some clearance tank tops for layering purposes. Shirts are not like bras, though -- if the fit is a little big, you're still OK.

I would say some comfy pajamas, a few pairs of pants, five shirts, and maybe one nicer outfit for holiday stuff would be the minimum...

[Arwyn]

A friend of mine had ONE pair of maternity jeans, and ONE maternity shirt. That and her husband's t-shirts and I think some sweats were all she wore for the last 4 months.

So I think it depends on how you define "minimum"... (I'm not advocating that little, btw. Just sayin'.)

[Yo Becca]

It probably also depends on whether you WOH. I had a pretty good amount of "work" clothes with my 1st pg - but only 2 pairsof jeans, 1 overall, and 3 pairs of shorts. We didn't run the A/c, so it was high-90's all summer and I wore those shorts and matching tanks all summer. I never want to look at them again. I'm giving myslef permission to buy some clothes I won't hate this time around. I bought a good stash of jeans and pants, jackets to layer with my short sleeve and tanks, and a few nicer long-sleeve tops. But I'm also moving to China, and I've been warned to buy all my maternity clothes before I leave - So I'm going a bit crazy.

I'd check out the Trading Post- I just got a few REALLY cute shirts NWT - and I couldn't have afforded them from the store, but got a great price. Or check out Ebay - they are often auctioned in lots. I've gone to store websites and gotten things from the clearance pages. There's more sale options online than in the store. ANd Old Navy.com has standard $5 shipping regardless of how much you buy (although be warned: their maternity tops run big, but the pants not so much. I'm going to be returning the tops to get a size down). Also, some consignment shops carry maternity - but some of it's super old and tent-style.

I'm also 5'2" - so I carry straight out (no where else for baby to go) - and from boobs to crotch. Even the "low rise" maternity pants don't work for me - there's no way I could wear regular pants.

[MrsTC]

The guidelines for how many that others have given is good, but I'm in the same boat as you...my clothes from the last time around are going to be off season--and THANK GOD FOR IT! I was fat in the hottest part of the year, I'm looking forward to being able to go outside in the cold this time around instead of subjecting dh to 65-degree AC.

I'm going to stock up on maternity tanks when they go on sale at the end-of-season and watch the clearance racks at places like Penney's for winter stuff. I have a few pants and capris from last time, but I imagine I'll be picking up a few more.

We have a few consignment places around here that I will begin stalking for cheaper things. Those are good places to look. Oh, and it's still garage sale season, that's the absolute best way to pick stuff up for cheap.

[Full Heart]

I buy mine used or on clearance. JCP has awesome sales sometimes and I bought a skirt for 77 cents once! So I buy tons of clothes. But I don't think I've spent more than $100 on clothes before. My biggest expense is usually maternity undies. I would say set a budget and see how much you can get out of it and thats your minimum lol.

[lotusdebi]

I bought a couple of lots on Ebay when I was pregnant in February. I'm a SAHM, and don't care about what's in style or anything - as long as it fits. So, buying used lots from Ebay made the most sense to me.