I CANNOT believe this week I am 26 weeks pregnant! I can remember back in July thinking I’d be sooo far along by the time Thanksgiving and the holidays ca†me around, and it flew by so quickly. It doesn’t feel like it’s been “as hard” as it was when I was pregnant with Hudson, but maybe I am just busier, or more used to it and comfortable with all of the changes! I also think a huge relief this pregnancy has been figuring out how to dress myself, and not investing in tons of maternity clothes right away! With Hudson, I vividly remember driving out to Motherhood Maternity near me at around 17 weeks, and feeling like I popped because my pants were a little tight. LOL, little did I know! I picked up so many things that didn’t fit yet, and ended up feeling sooo weird in them, and ordering more “hip and stylish” pieces further down the line. In my pregnancy with Hudson, I never fully embraced my body, and refused to wear bodycon, whereas this time around I am loving how I look in tighter pieces, and trying out some new looks that still feel “me” but highlight the bump a lot more!
I wanted to share a few of my favorite pieces up until this point, and also some tips that I found to work in feeling stylish, but still embracing my pregnant body!
1 – When your pants begin to feel a bit too tight, instead of running and buying maternity pants (that for most women I know, feel really awkward and uncomfortable until your bump is a real bump) invest in your favorite pair of jeans, just 1 size up. For me, it was these 11 inch high rise jeans. I honestly sized up 2 sizes up once 1 size up stopped fitting over my bump, and I am still rocking them at 26 weeks! It makes me feel so much more myself VS a low rise pair of denim that I can’t tuck anything into. I really wish they made over the bump jeggings, but I have yet to see any!
2 – Find stretchy non-maternity skirts, and continue to wear them until they’re too short! I linked a ton of my favorites below, but I am still rocking high waisted skirts that are stretchy! I love how cute they look “over the bump” with a top tucked into them, and they look so cute with over the knee boots, or tights underneath!
3 – Stretchy body con dresses are your friend! As a trend, maternity dresses are just so much more expensive, and I find that most of the time they have SO much extra fabric! Of course everyone hits a point where they need maternity everything, but it takes me until month like 8 to reach that point, and in between I am usually at a loss for what to wear! I’ve been buying Forever21 bodycon dresses in a size M, and they’re so affordable, and look really cute. Sometimes if I feel too “out there” in body con I will layer a flannel or a cardigan over the top for a little more coverage! I have been loving this dress and this one.
Those are my top 3 tips that I’ve been living by up until this point – I am finally starting to move more toward maternity pieces, because my bump grows so much from the morning to the night, that things will fit, and then not fit at all! Here’s a few collages of some of my absolute staples that I’ve been wearing!
MATERNITY PIECES I LOVE:
Here’s some of my favorite Maternity staples so far in this pregnancy! I absolutely love these cute overall dresses with a turtleneck and tights layered underneath! For lazier more casual days, these Spanx leggings have been my go-to – I love how high up they sit over the bump, and they look so cute with a sweater tucked in! If you’re looking for a great pair of stylish maternity overalls, this has been my go-to pair! The side panel is high enough that it feels somewhat high-waisted, which makes them much more stylish! As for maternity jeans, I always go to Madewell for jeans that are cute, and the ankle is skinny enough to wear boots with! They have over the bump and under the bump options as well!
NON-MATERNITY PIECES I LOVE:
For my non-maternity pieces I’ve been rocking, most of them are super stretchy! I have been wearing the Madewell 11-inch high rise jeans sized up, because they’re super stretchy and the rise is high enough that they still look somewhat high waisted. I also really love stretchy body con dresses, and have been living in this one, this one and this! If body con isn’t your thing, this pinafore dress looks really cute with a bump as well. I’ve also been living in stretchy high-waisted skirts, like this one and this!
That’s pretty much my main staples as of lately, mostly for dresses and bottoms, because for tops I just size up one! I hope this helped someone else out there!