I've had some questions lately about where to find reasonably priced vintage maternity clothes. When I was pregnant with Rhys, I wasn't sure how I'd wear vintage with a growing belly but it worked out surprisingly well. The key to saving was, I didn't have to buy a lot of things that I wouldn't wear again once the baby was born. I built my regular vintage wardrobe instead of stocking up on specialty maternity clothes. Shop at thrift stores for things you won't wear much after the baby comes like maternity pants and save your money for things you'll wear all the time (or for the new baby)! Here's some thrifty tips and ideas of what to buy for your bump that you can wear long after baby comes.
Vintage maternity clothing is cute in theory but vintage skirts and pants often entailed a big hole that the belly stuck through with an unflattering tent-like top to hide the belly and the rest of the expectant mother's body. When I was pregnant with my two, I was thankful that today's maternity clothes are as comfortable and flattering as they are! If you want to try a 1950s style maternity top, you can sew your own pleated tunic from a men's top or over sized ladies top. Button it up all the way, add a peter pan collar and pair it with a stretchy pencil skirt. Get my tutorial for a super fast stretch maternity pencil skirt.
Cardigans
You can't have too many cardigans when you're a mother-to-be. The stretch accommodates a growing belly and chest and anything that buttons up the front is good if you plan on nursing. Let's also face the fact that babies spit up, spill things and drool at the most inconvenient times so if you have a cardigan handy, you can cover it up until you can get a change of clothes. I always kept a cardigan handy towards the end of the pregnancy too, in case of leaky milk problems. Cardigans and jackets are something I wear all the time. They're cute with a little pin up dress or capri pants and they pull an outfit together for work or school.
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| a simple dress with an elastic waist band and a red cardigan |
1. Starburst cropped cardigan
2. Dream of the crop cardigan (comes in 6 colors)
3. floral keyhole cardigan
Full Skirts
I wore loads of pleated or full skirts when I was pregnant with my little ones. Just pull the waist band up over your belly and the fullness of the fabric leaves plenty of room for your bump. Order a size up and you could move the button as your belly grows for a more adjustable waist band. I never wore maternity blouses. Instead, I paired my skirts with my usual vintage tops, as long as they made room for my chest. Knit tops are a good way to go also. If you sew, you can whip up a quick pleated skirt in an afternoon with a few yards of fabric and basic sewing skills. Check out this tutorial from Flashback Summer.
1.Hell Bunny green skirt
2. Navy high waist swing skirt
3.Pin Up Girl Clothing Jenny Skirts
Look for dresses with an elastic waist band, pleated skirt, flowing fabric with a little stretch, zip, wrap or button front. These are some of my dresses that I wore when I was pregnant. The top left was sewn using a 1940s robe pattern, I just shortened it and wore it as a wrap dress. The only actual vintage maternity dress is on the bottom right, a gift from my best friend. Check thrift stores, ebay and etsy for vintage dresses. For larger sizes and fabrics with a little give, look at early-mid 60s styles with a full skirt. I love nylon 60s dresses, especially the Shelton Stroller label, which often zips up the front. For a great selection of swing dresses and fit and flare dresses, check out Unique Vintage. They always have sales too so make sure to sign up for the email newsletter. When you're looking for a dress to hike up over your belly, make sure it's long enough to your liking or if it's a little short for your comfort, try some capri-length maternity leggings in cute colors.
2. 1940s grey plaid swing dress
3. Hell Bunny burgundy crepe 1950s dress
Pair stretch capri pants with a cardigan, tee or tunic with cute little flats and a hair scarf for an adorable modern pin up look. If you're in a larger size now than you usually are, don't buy new pants, check out the thrift stores. Some of my favorite capris are cheap ones from Dollar General or Walmart or $10 or less per pair. I like them so much, I buy a few new pairs every 6 months or so.Since you can find simple stretch pants everywhere, I thought I'd share some shops that sell adorable retro tee shirts.
Favorite Pants and Tees
1. Atomic Swag
2. Clumsy Kate
3. Mischief Made
See more of my vintage maternity outfits here and if you'll be nursing, check out "Vintage Style for Nursing Mamas" This post contains links to my affiliates. Thank you for supporting them and Va-Voom Vintage!
I am in awe of what a stylish Mama-to-be you were, really fab to see some of these pics again. Rhys is a good Welsh name, great choice ;)
ReplyDeleteYour dresses were all so cute! While most of my maternity wardrobe was modern knits, I have two dresses and two tops I made from 1950s/60s patterns that I absolutely LOVED and have held onto in case we decide to have a third. I usually wore my tops with skinny jeans or knit pencil skirts to keep them from feeling so oversized. Those original skirt/pants patterns were far from flattering.
ReplyDeleteYou totally rocked vintage maternity! I hope when I decide to become a Mom that I can hold my fashion sense together that well!
ReplyDeleteTerrific posts! I get questions on this topic sometimes, too, and will definitely be sending folks this link from here on out.
ReplyDelete♥ Jessica
Did you enjoy cloth diapering with diaper pins and plastic baby pants?
ReplyDeleteActually I loved cloth diapering! Much easier and not as gross as I thought it would be! They don't use pins and plastic pants anymore, though. In place of pins, I used this stretchy grippy thing called a Snappi (invented by a dad I think!). It has little plastic teeth that grab the diaper and hold it on. http://snappibaby.com/products/snappi-diaper-fastener
DeleteAnd then instead of those old plastic pants, they make cute fabric diaper covers with a waterproof side. They're adjustable with velcro so I used 2 snappi fasteners and 3 diaper covers for the first 9 months or so and then after that, I had to buy the next size up and got 3 more covers. These are the ones I used: http://www.thirstiesbaby.com/products/cloth-diapers/duo-wrap
Much better than the old style and no pricked fingers!
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ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about maternity clothes lately. You make dressing the bump look so easy! Should the day ever come that I have to do the same, I'll certainly remember this post and look to you for inspiration!
ReplyDelete