Maternity clothes?

[WD]

This is my first pregnancy, and I am completly confused about maternity
clothes, specifically underwear and bras. Now I did go by the Motherhood
Maternity store in the mall and the description of the various styles of
pant/skirt 'bellies' helped a lot, but all the undies are packed up in boxes
and you can't see how they're made. (Tops aren't a problem)

I'm at 17 weeks now and ~just~ starting to pooch out a bit. I'm still
wearing my 'fat' clothes (I'd lost about 20lbs in the year prior to becoming
pregnant, talk about handy!) bras aren't really a problem yet, I will need
to pick up some of the 'expanders' at the sewing shop. But my underwear are
starting to become uncomfortable. Do you buy the same size in materity
undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to maternity
pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go ~under~
my belly rather than over? (I'm accustomed to wearing high cut briefs.) I
assume I'll need the support later.

I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is there
some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
TIA,
Wendy

[Rosenugga]

I never bought maternity underwear. I was able to wear my regular bras because
I wear sports bras. I did need to by a few bigger and with a little more
support whe I got near the end. As to panties I read somewhere to buy the next
size bigger in bikinis. This worked great for me. I had a lot of problems
(itching and irritation) with having things on my belly late preganancy. Hope
this helps.
Rose
Mamma to Caity Feb 13 1999 ( Daddy's best birthday present)

[silvasurfa]

"WD" > wrote in message
...
> This is my first pregnancy, and I am completly confused about maternity
> clothes, specifically underwear and bras. Now I did go by the Motherhood
> Maternity store in the mall and the description of the various styles of
> pant/skirt 'bellies' helped a lot, but all the undies are packed up in
boxes
> and you can't see how they're made. (Tops aren't a problem)

I'd go to Target for maternity undies, and get fitted at a lingerie shop for
a maternity bra if I was you. Maternity undies are less of an issue than
bras, because you can really just wear anything that will stay up on you. I
like full brief cotton undies, and I just bought plus sizes and wore them
backwards so my big belly went where the fat ladies bum would go.

>
> I'm at 17 weeks now and ~just~ starting to pooch out a bit. I'm still
> wearing my 'fat' clothes (I'd lost about 20lbs in the year prior to
becoming
> pregnant, talk about handy!) bras aren't really a problem yet, I will need
> to pick up some of the 'expanders' at the sewing shop.
>
> I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
> major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is
there
> some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
> breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
> the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
> TIA,
> Wendy
>
>

Get fitted, and do it soon. Maternity bras are designed not to compress milk
ducts. You may need to be refitted a few times through the pregnancy... both
band size and cup size can change. If this all seems like a lot of $$$,
maybe get just one bra at each fitting, and get a snug fitting seamless
cotton lycra sportsbra to use when the usual bra is in the wash.

[Dagny]

"WD" > wrote in message
...
> <snip> Do you buy the same size in materity
> undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to
maternity
> pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go
~under~
> my belly rather than over? (I'm accustomed to wearing high cut briefs.)
I
> assume I'll need the support later.
>
> I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
> major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is
there
> some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
> breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
> the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
> TIA,
> Wendy
>
Wendy,

At 27 weeks I am wearing regular bikini underwear either the same size or
one size larger below the belly and have been since about week 12; but I've
been in bigger bras for about thes ame time, probably because I was so small
to begin with. I was a 36A and bought and am comfortable in an assortment
of 38 and 40, stretchy B and C cup sport (pullover and front zip) or sleep
type bras and these are continuing to fit well. My size 36 sport bras got
too tight early on, I think my rib cage expanded. I know people who nurse
in these type of bras so that's what I'm going to try first.

[Stephanie S]

"WD" > wrote in message
...
> This is my first pregnancy, and I am completly confused about maternity
> clothes, specifically underwear and bras. Now I did go by the Motherhood
> Maternity store in the mall and the description of the various styles of
> pant/skirt 'bellies' helped a lot, but all the undies are packed up in
boxes
> and you can't see how they're made. (Tops aren't a problem)
>

I *hate* maternity underwear. Right now I am 29 weeks. I take my old regular
ones and just let them ride low under my belly. Maybe it is because I am not
developing as much rear end as I did with my son, but the maternity
underwear is too small over my belly and GIANT over my rear end. It just
flaps in the breeze.

> I'm at 17 weeks now and ~just~ starting to pooch out a bit. I'm still
> wearing my 'fat' clothes (I'd lost about 20lbs in the year prior to
becoming
> pregnant, talk about handy!) bras aren't really a problem yet, I will need
> to pick up some of the 'expanders' at the sewing shop. But my underwear
are
> starting to become uncomfortable. Do you buy the same size in materity
> undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to
maternity
> pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go
~under~
> my belly rather than over? (I'm accustomed to wearing high cut briefs.)
I
> assume I'll need the support later.
>

The Motherhood ones I got are just big and shaped differently, they do not
use the expanding belly concept of the pants. I liked the JCPenney maternity
underwear ok with my son, but I was a house with him.

> I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
> major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is
there
> some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
> breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
> the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
> TIA,
> Wendy
>
>

Band size as well, at least for me. If you do buy a larger size nursing bra
before delivery, do nt get a lot. You may expand more than one size. I got
lucky and did not, but my friend did.

[Alicia Elliott]

Hi Wendy, I was so excited when I finally started to show, but I had a heck
of a time with underwear. I normally wear a thong, I don't like anything on
my backside (mind you, it took me a while to get used to thongs too), but I
found that anything without a really decent stretch was uncomfortable.
Speaking from personal preference, I don't like anything over my belly under
my clothes, it becomes really obvious later as your tops get more tight, and
it feels very restrictive. I also have tried wearing normal 'low-rider'
underwear, but the fabric still bunches up under my tummy and makes me feel
like I constantly have to tuck and pull to get it right. So, my
preference(most people won't go by this), is thongs with as little as
possible between the front and back, and a low cut front that sits just on
your short and curlies, but doesn't cover the belly at all.

As for bras, I went from a small B to a large C in my first trimester and
then also got bigger around the ribs. I had to buy a new bra in a larger
size, but still a normal bra, not a maternity bra. I'm 36 weeks now and
still use the same bra and underwear.

Best of luck in your search for comfort. : )
-Alicia


"WD" > wrote in message
...
> This is my first pregnancy, and I am completly confused about maternity
> clothes, specifically underwear and bras. Now I did go by the Motherhood
> Maternity store in the mall and the description of the various styles of
> pant/skirt 'bellies' helped a lot, but all the undies are packed up in
boxes
> and you can't see how they're made. (Tops aren't a problem)
>
> I'm at 17 weeks now and ~just~ starting to pooch out a bit. I'm still
> wearing my 'fat' clothes (I'd lost about 20lbs in the year prior to
becoming
> pregnant, talk about handy!) bras aren't really a problem yet, I will need
> to pick up some of the 'expanders' at the sewing shop. But my underwear
are
> starting to become uncomfortable. Do you buy the same size in materity
> undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to
maternity
> pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go
~under~
> my belly rather than over? (I'm accustomed to wearing high cut briefs.)
I
> assume I'll need the support later.
>
> I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
> major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is
there
> some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
> breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
> the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
> TIA,
> Wendy
>
>

[zeldabee]

"Nina" > wrote:
> "Stephanie S" > wrote >
> > I *hate* maternity underwear. Right now I am 29 weeks. I take my old
> regular
> > ones and just let them ride low under my belly. Maybe it is because I
> > am
> not
> > developing as much rear end as I did with my son, but the maternity
> > underwear is too small over my belly and GIANT over my rear end. It
> > just flaps in the breeze.
>
> I found low cut underwear at WalMart, I guess they are made for teenagers
> wearing those hiphugger pants. I wear those and the low cut thongs. I
> really like having anything over my stomach, especially in the heat.

I'm still wearing my prepregnancy Victoria's Secret bikini underwear. I'm
30 weeks, and comfortable with them so far. My butt is bigger, but I
haven't reached critical mass yet. :o) I'm really hoping that I don't need
to buy bigger underwear. I like the VC cotton underwear, but I only buy it
on sale.

--
z e l d a b e e @ p a n i x . c o m http://NewsReader.Com/

[==Daye==]

On 09 Jul 2003 19:41:13 GMT, zeldabee
> wrote:

>I'm still wearing my prepregnancy Victoria's Secret bikini underwear. I'm
>30 weeks, and comfortable with them so far. My butt is bigger, but I
>haven't reached critical mass yet. :o)

Allow me to warn you of something that happened to me. I
continued wearing my underwear for a while. Then it was obvious
that I was going to have to buy either bigger undies or go to
maternity undies.

After the birth of the baby and I went back to my normal clothes,
my regular pre-pregnancy undies were all strectch out of shape
and no longer fit. In fact, they wouldn't stay up anymore.
Sigh... I had to buy all new undies again.

--
==Daye==
E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au

[==Daye==]

On Wed, 9 Jul 2003 04:08:23 -0400, "WD"
> wrote:

>Do you buy the same size in materity
>undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to maternity
>pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go ~under~
>my belly rather than over?

I didn't buy maternity undies. I started out with bikinis. Then
I went to granny panties (ie briefs) in a larger size. I had
to... my normal size didn't fit anymore. I bought cheap, cotton
undies. They worked just as well. You will have to find what is
comfortable for you, and then buy several pairs.

>I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
>major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is there
>some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
>breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in?

I bought a maternity bra when my old bras became uncomfortable.
In fact, my breasts hurt because they were not getting enough
support. For fitting, I went to a upscale underwear shop (like a
Victoria Secrets) and got fitted by them. I found out what size
I needed. Then I went to Target and bought a maternity bra in
that size.

--
==Daye==
E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au

[==Daye==]

On Wed, 09 Jul 2003 15:04:38 -0700, wrote:

>Why bother with buying underwear you will only wear for a few months? Go without underwear.

If you enjoy being without underwear, that is prefectly okay.
However, some of us don't like to be without undies.

--
==Daye==
E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au

[zeldabee]

==Daye== > wrote:
> On 09 Jul 2003 19:41:13 GMT, zeldabee
> > wrote:
>
> >I'm still wearing my prepregnancy Victoria's Secret bikini underwear.
> >I'm 30 weeks, and comfortable with them so far. My butt is bigger, but I
> >haven't reached critical mass yet. :o)
>
> Allow me to warn you of something that happened to me. I
> continued wearing my underwear for a while. Then it was obvious
> that I was going to have to buy either bigger undies or go to
> maternity undies.
>
> After the birth of the baby and I went back to my normal clothes,
> my regular pre-pregnancy undies were all strectch out of shape
> and no longer fit. In fact, they wouldn't stay up anymore.
> Sigh... I had to buy all new undies again.

Thanks for the warning...but I guess I'll jump off that bridge when I get
to it. :o)

--
z e l d a b e e @ p a n i x . c o m http://NewsReader.Com/

[Em]

"zeldabee" > wrote in message
> ==Daye== > wrote:

> > After the birth of the baby and I went back to my normal clothes,
> > my regular pre-pregnancy undies were all strectch out of shape
> > and no longer fit. In fact, they wouldn't stay up anymore.
> > Sigh... I had to buy all new undies again.
>
> Thanks for the warning...but I guess I'll jump off that bridge when I get
> to it. :o)

That's what I thought too when I read Daye's warning (which was kind of an
"ah ha!" for me). Oh well, my current undies are far from fab. It would do
me good to get some new ones!

--
Em
edd 9/23/03

[==Daye==]

On Thu, 10 Jul 2003 19:22:37 GMT, "Em"
> wrote:

>Oh well, my current undies are far from fab. It would do
>me good to get some new ones!

Yeah, it was a great excuse to go out and buy new undies. DH
asked why I needed them when it seemed that I had prefectly good
undies in my drawer. I demostrated their lack of staying up. We
went shopping that day. :)

--
==Daye==
E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au

[zeldabee]

"Em" > wrote:
> "zeldabee" > wrote in message
> > ==Daye== > wrote:
>
> > > After the birth of the baby and I went back to my normal clothes,
> > > my regular pre-pregnancy undies were all strectch out of shape
> > > and no longer fit. In fact, they wouldn't stay up anymore.
> > > Sigh... I had to buy all new undies again.
> >
> > Thanks for the warning...but I guess I'll jump off that bridge when I
> > get to it. :o)
>
> That's what I thought too when I read Daye's warning (which was kind of
> an "ah ha!" for me). Oh well, my current undies are far from fab. It
> would do me good to get some new ones!

Yes, it's not like they're hard to find... I would think, though, that mine
would feel tight if I were stretching them out, and they're not. Then
again, I've got somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 weeks to go, so who
knows how much more I'll expand.

--
z e l d a b e e @ p a n i x . c o m http://NewsReader.Com/

[E]

"==Daye==" > wrote in message
...
> On Thu, 10 Jul 2003 19:22:37 GMT, "Em"
> > wrote:
>
> >Oh well, my current undies are far from fab. It would do
> >me good to get some new ones!
>
> Yeah, it was a great excuse to go out and buy new undies. DH
> asked why I needed them when it seemed that I had prefectly good
> undies in my drawer. I demostrated their lack of staying up. We
> went shopping that day. :)
>
> --
> ==Daye==
> E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au

if I had demonstrated that to my DH, he would have told me he liked them
better than before :) I don't think we would have gone shopping, at least
not right away :)
Edith

[HollyLewis]

>But my underwear are
>starting to become uncomfortable. Do you buy the same size in materity
>undies as you wore pre-pregnancy? How are they made? Similar to maternity
>pants w/an expanding panel? What about wearing bikinis that will go ~under~
>my belly rather than over? (I'm accustomed to wearing high cut briefs.) I
>assume I'll need the support later.
>

I never bought any special undies until the very end, just wore my regular ones
(hipster or full-back bikini style) under the belly. I wanted cheap cotton
grandma briefs for the hospital -- and even then I didn't buy maternity briefs,
just regular ones in a plus size.

I dunno about needing support -- for that you'd need a maternity belt, I think,
and most of us don't bother. The maternity briefs are the same material and
overall construction as regular briefs; they're just cut with more room in the
front. They'd probably be much too big on you right now. Just go get some
bikini style, or if having the waistband across your tummy doesn't bother you,
the same style you're used to but in a size or two larger than your usual.

>I've noticed a little bit of tightness in my bras now, but nothing too
>major. When do you generally have to buy a nursing/maternity bra? Is there

Buy bras that fit comfortably, and expect to buy new bras in several different
sizes as your body changes. Don't bother buying nursing bras, unless you can't
find an inexpensive regular bra that gives you enough support, until the last
month or so. I wasted a lot of money on nursing bras that fit me midpregnancy
and were too small by the time my baby was born! Well, actually, it wasn't a
total waste, as I'm wearing those bras now -- my 2.5 year old is still nursing
morning and bedtime, and my boobs are smaller again than they were when he was
exclusively breastfed.

>some 'guideline' to figuring out what size you'll be (I plan on
>breastfeeding exclusively) when your milk comes in? Also, is the gain in
>the breasts strictly cup size or does it usally affect band size as well?
>TIA,
>Wendy

On average, go up one band size and one cup size. (So, if you're a 36B now,
you'd expect to need a 38C for most of the time you need a nursing bra.) But
that is, of course, an average and YMMV. That's why the standard advice is to
buy bras in the eighth month, when you can hope you're close to the size you're
mostly going to be for a while. You will want something that is stretchy
and/or larger for the first week or three when you are likely to get engorged.
Many moms like Bravado bras for that; I found a different type that I liked
better but if you look at the Bravados you'll see what I mean about stretchy.
But after the first few weeks you will probably end up wanting something that
is more supportive and looks better under a t-shirt. ;-) Try the Motherwear
catalog (www.motherwear.com) if you don't have any local maternity shops
convenient to you. Mall stores generally have less of a selection.

Holly
Mom to Camden, 2 yrs