post-partum fashion--what are *your* plans?

[tinyshoes]

ah, post-partum....the first time I was post-partum, I found myself trying to wear dh's boxers as shorts, and I was stretching out and leaking in an ugly tank top with my giant boobs (I'm a 32A girl when I'm not lactating)

But I was a bit smarter during pg #2, and I bought a few patterned (to hide breast pads and leaks!) shelf-bra tank tops (the olden days before Glamourmom tanks) and a pair of stretchy cotton shorts, so I was comfy, stylin', and feeling a wee bit lovely (instead of pouting in my maternity clothes.)

And so last week I stumbled into the American Eagle store at the mall, and saw all sorts of cute summery stuff with forgiving empire waistlines....it is our time to SHINE, ladies! Teen fashion + post-partum bellies are UNITED! how harmonious!

I tried on a few of their dresses (yes, with my giant belly--I have no shame, I am making my post-partum fashion plans, outta my way) and found an excellent choice, so low-cut a person might call it 'slutty,' but I'm calling it perfect for breastfeeding! So I ordered my little black dress today.

[ecomommy2b]

love your dress! What a great idea

[meli-mello]

Ooo... I'll take mine in red thank you very much! I was at the mall today buying a nursing nightgown (and finding most nursing shirts crazy uncomfortable!) and was wondering the same thing - what am I going to wear? This is my first pregnancy so I figured I would give myself a couple weeks of recovery before worrying about what to wear.

[Alpaca Wacka]

Oh that IS stylin! I'm just wandering around the hospital in an old pair of pj pants and a worn out maternity shirt! LOL! This would look great though!

[kjoy2]

Love the dress!

QUESTION: help! If you had to order a dress now for an Oct wedding (6 months postpartum), what SIZE would you order? Pre-preg size? A few sizes up from pre-preg?
I have to order a bridesmaid dress... yes, at 9 months prego with twins (my future SIL's ideal of a cruel joke??!!) Though the wedding isn't until the beginning of Oct, apparently the dresses take up to four months, so I must choose my size now. I don't know what to order. I don't want to pay for alterations if I can avoid it and would rather be a zipper-buster

[anstar]

Originally Posted by kjoy2

Love the dress!

QUESTION: help! If you had to order a dress now for an Oct wedding (6 months postpartum), what SIZE would you order? Pre-preg size? A few sizes up from pre-preg?
I have to order a bridesmaid dress... yes, at 9 months prego with twins (my future SIL's ideal of a cruel joke??!!) Though the wedding isn't until the beginning of Oct, apparently the dresses take up to four months, so I must choose my size now. I don't know what to order. I don't want to pay for alterations if I can avoid it and would rather be a zipper-buster

Ah.... BTDT Last Preg, only I had less than 4mo from EDD to WD.

First, INSIST on a two piece, skirt and top. I begged and pleaded, and I should have just opted-out when she picked something else!

As for size.... I went with my preg bust size w/pre-preg size for everything else. They'll order for the biggest measurement, so if you *were* a 10, but your bust is a 12, order the 12. This worked for me, and I gained about 35lbs last preg. You can also go by the 9mos on, 9mos off, and figure you'll have about the last 10lbs to go at 6mo pp.

On the alterations, unless you're 5'8", you won't be able to avoid them. You'll need a hem, at the very least. I can also say that taking in the waist will most definately be easier/cheeper than letting out the bust.

[Goddess3_2005]

As a seamstress I would say order a size larger. You'll have more material to play with for taking in and letting out. If your breastfeeding and will have baby with you see if they will add something like zippers in the darts to accommodate feeding the baby during the wedding.

[amaayeh]

PP Fashion: I totally agree on the styles this season!! Empire wastes are IN and I'm so excited! I bought a dress at Target to wear home from the birth center and I can't wait to buy more and not have to worry about my tummy sagging over the top of my pants. Always a lovely thought.

Wedding dress: I completely agree to order a size up. 35 lbs is a great weight gain (in the sense of it coming off easily), but the boobs could still be out of control at that point. I hope I never have to be in another wedding.

[kjoy2]

Okay, thanks for the bridesmaids dress sizing help! I have gained over 50 lbs so far, but with twins (all the work and the feeding) I still think the estimation that I'll be 10 lbs above pre-preg is fair - my body in general is a slim build. My boobs have reached new heights, however
I think the 2 choices are both dresses, no top/skirt combos... and I have no idea how I'll juggle breast feeding twins during the wedding celebration. Ugh.

[chely7425]

I haven't even gotten to thinking about this yet... I am too scared to shop for anything for post partum because I am scared to face what my already HUGE boobs are going to do... I have a bunch of maternity shirts that don't look maternity, if that makes sense, so I figure those will work. I also have a bunch of cotton skirts and some gauchos so I figure I will be ok for a few weeks at least. Then I am going to have to go shopping because I will be seeing hubby about 1.5 months PP for the first time in like 4 months and I want actual CUTE clothes!!!!

[Ironica]

Well, for my hospital bag, I packed a pair of pants that were comfy before I got pregnant... and that I could still wear at least a few weeks ago. ;-) I can't wait to see what my body looks like a couple weeks after baby's born. Last time I was at my PP weight at 3 weeks after birth; this time, I'm only 1 pound up from my PP weight at 38 weeks, so I'll have lost ~10 pounds by the time baby and its luggage exit! Whee! I'm looking forward to digging out a lot of old clothes that haven't quite looked right in a while.

[anstar]

I do really like that dress, BTW. I just love wearing dresses, but most are not very BF friendly.

As for me, I'll have to rotate out my maternity ASAP, since I'm already on the REALLY slim side for finding things to wear. Not to mention that our seasons will be in full switch here in the northern midwest, so I'll be looking for springy and summery items. I have a few pairs of jeans 2 sizes up from pre-preg, so I'll dig those out. Other then that, I'm hoping to raid Old Navy just as they start really clearancing spring stuff, and drop in to DressBarn to pick up something really cute.

[GiGiQ]

I'm in the May DDC, but thought I'd chime in.

I live in central Texas, so it's been hot here for awhile and I'd been wearing empire waist sun dresses from the juniors section in lieu of buying more maternity stuff for several weeks now (really, I just want to be naked most days, so "slutty" cotton dresses is the closest I can get to comfortable). I was hoping to be able to wear them post-partum, too, so I'm glad to hear from someone who's been there that this is a reasonable hope. One of the ones I have actually has detachable straps, which I thought would be good for nursing, and I'm handy enough with a needle and thread that I thought I might give the others the same treatment if it works out.

[treehuggermama]

That is a cute dress!! I am 2 wks pp now and just wearing my mat clothes from 1st and 2nd tri. The weight is melting off thanks to bf but I am cheap and don't want to spend money on clothes until I am back to pre preg weight. However those empire waisted shirts that are in now are sooo cute.....

[limette]

I'm hoping I have the same luck as last time. I was in my regular clothes by my two week appointment. I was still chunkier in the boobs, belly and arms than I was previously but everything still fit.

At the moment though I have absolutely no clothes. I buy very infrequently and all my stuff is ready for the trash so I'll be going shopping for new stuff as soon as I can afford it after the baby is born.

[Amandamanda]

i've been living in pajama pants and a nursing bra.

leaving the house? what's that?

[Chinese Pistache]

My plans are to wear my early maternity clothes because I don't want to spend $ on clothes that I hope to outgrow very soon! LOL

[GISDiva]

Even though I'm pretty slim, I am a big fan of comfortable clothing, so lots of my summer stuff involves elastic or draw-strings and blousy tops. I got a few nursing tops on clearance on the web a few weeks back, so it will be nice to have something new to wear. I don't buy new clothes very often, I'm cheap.

DH says I should go out and buy a pretty dress or something after the baby is born as a reward, and I'm all "Um, and wear it to what?!?" Somehow I don't think the symphony is in the cards for a while, and there's no weddings for us to go to so...

[kjoy2]

I'll be wearing early maternity clothes for a while pp, and maybe 1 or 2 new things to help me feel not so frumpy! But we'll see!

[squirt07]

i also dropped all most of my weight and was in normal clothes quickly, but did retain some chunk in my butt and arms. i havent even thought about clothes. i mean ive dreamed about getting a complete new wadrobe b/c ive found my style to have changed but im gonna get a little less flabby first.

that dress could be really dressed down with a white or black nursing tank under and flip flops. then you dont have to worry about slutty