Post partum wear - YouLookFab Forum

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Dressing

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Post partum wear

An

Hi Everyone! It's been sooo long since I've been on the forum. I've been keeping up with the blog and getting an occasional peak at the forum but that's about all I've been able to do in amongst being pregnant with baby number 3, selling and packing up our house, living with the in-laws for 10 weeks, and renovating and moving into our home.

Baby 3 is due in about 2 weeks and I'm needing some help to get some post partum wear organised. My usual body shape is a pear but in previous pregnancies it has taken me a while to lose my tummy so I have apple thrown in there as well. With both other pregnancies I've found it quite hard to dress my post partum body and have always felt really frumpy and not fab during those first few week. I'ld really love to have a little capsule together to see me through those first 6-8 weeks. Any suggestions or advice on what worked for you would be really appreciated.

Dressing

15 replies

Latest reply was from An

goldenpig

(website)

Veteran

I don't think I can give you good advice since (embarrassingly) I kept wearing my maternity tops the whole time in between my two kids and for about a year and a half after, until I joined YLF. I even posted a thread asking if I could still wear my tops even if I wasn't pregnant or whether they looked like maternity tops (the answer was no, and yes).

But anyhow, what did you wear the first or early second trimester when you were just beginning to show but before you had to wear real maternity clothes? Would any of those clothes work for you for postpartum? I would think that going with tops with more volume and drape on top might help, paired with leggings or stretchy pants like yoga pants. Maybe a pair of transition jeans in a size or two up from your pre-preg size. How about some stretchy jersey dresses or foldover skirts with stretchy waistband. You need stuff that can still be wearable as you shrink, however long that takes (whether months or years!). Good luck with the wardrobe and congrats on the upcoming baby!

wilson

What a full plate you have! I haven't been on here much in the past 18mos either

Its been 7 and a half years but oh my goodness I distinctly remember post partum dressing frustrations! Three things I remember making a difference were 1) finding really structured tops with some stretch and 2) cutting my hair super short (I know you didn't mention the hair thing but I found that after cutting it short I was more likely to shower because I didn't have to spend time on my hair afterwards and it helped me feel more put together) and 3) stretch/jersey wrap dresses with camisoles and/or leggings were also good to me those months afterwards.

I hope you can get lots of rest even with all the hustle and bustle! Welcome back!

wilson

I just want to add something I remembered,

I found the best structured tops in the section of the department stores that I thought of as more for the older crowd of women. The tops in the sections I was used to shopping in didn't have the same quality of structure.

An

Thanks GP and Wilson. I appreciate your responses.

GP, I do have a maternity denim skirt, a fold over waist black jersey skirt and some yoga pants that I think will all work on the bottom. In regards to tops I wore early in the pregnancy, they all tend to be stretchy, tightish tees which I don't think will do much for my post preg belly!

Wilson, I like your suggestion of structured tops - do you mean woven tops with some stretch as opposed to jersey / T-shirt type tops? I also like the suggestion of some jersey cross-over dresses. I was looking at this one - do you think it would work?

http://www.birdsnest.com.au/br.....over-dress

Cheers An

Katiepea

(website)

Veteran

Hi An!

Congratulations on baby #3 - how terribly exciting.

As you may or may not know, I'm also a mum of three (in four years) and I found that button up tops were incredibly useful for breastfeeding and keeping a semblance of "looking nice" in the early days post partum. I also had a couple of special "breastfeeding tops" that I found relatively useful (I was expecting them to be nirvana, but can say that whilst they were useful, I didn't wear them all the time). Given I also lost my tummy after #3, I found the "tummy trim" jeans that you can find to be quite useful in giving support and avoiding the muffin top look.

Oh, and I would say patterns, patterns, patterns, patterns, over solid/block colours. If you are going to be anything like me, running around with a newborn and two toddlers, I didn't have the energy to change all the time - I found that a pattern disguised the marks.

Given it's winter, I can say that a scarf is really *useful*! You can use it to "hide" baby under when breastfeeding for extra privacy, or if you have a leak or an accident, the scarf can hid it all. It can even be used to "wrap" the baby in if necessary.

If you don't mind me offering just a tiny bit of advice, after baby three, I wore a "stretchy tube" of tight fabric around my tummy from right after post-partum to help support my lower back and support and pull in my poor tummy muscles. I hope you know what I'm talking about. I personally found found it really helped.

Best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy and beautiful baby three! Life becomes crazy, but it is worth it - I promise!

x

harmonica

Veteran

You've got great advice, so just wanted to chime in and say congrats and all the best for baby three, you and your family!

Yes, you've really had a full plate! When DS3 was just some weeks old, we where on the move (buying house, selling appartment, living with my parents and in-laws for weeks e tc etc), so I hear you load and clear.

With all three kids, I found yoga pants, jersey skirts, tank tops, maternity tops, breastfeeding tops and volume tops my best friends. Also cardis, shrugs and scarves were helpful. And pattern! Well, I did not look fab at all, but my comfort was that my time would come, I just had to be patient and embrace the precious baby time with all my love. But I did not sit still or have a break (even for 2 minutes!) for months and months after DS3 came into our world. A last tips is that baby wearing saved my life (free hands, closeness of baby, calming effect etc) http://babywearinginternationa.....earing.php

An

Hi Katiepea! I'm very excited to see you're still around!! You've got 3 boys also don't you? We're pretty sure this one will be our 3rd little boy - very exciting but also a bit daunting!!! When you say button-up tops - do you mean woven fabric? think I saw some Tummy Trim jeans on the Jeans West website? - will check them out. Thanks for the suggestion on patterns and I'm on team scarves so will definitely make use of them! And thanks for the advice of the 'stretchy tube' - I do know what you mean! I've also been looking at the recovery shorts but they don't look terribly comfy and are very $$$.

Harmonica - thanks for the baby wearing tip. I'll have a bit more of a look at that website when I get a minute.

Kim

Veteran

I highly recommend the baby wearing (and you can make your own wrap out of a long piece of stretchy fabric, there are internet sites to show you to tie it. It's simple and very effective.) I run a home childcare and I will wear the "babies" (often one year olds) when they start with me to make them feel secure and comfortable, but to also be able to use *both* my hands, since I have 5 kids here under 4 years old during the day.

Here's a how-to. All you need is 5 yards of fabric and a pair of scissors. No sewing required. I'm also a mom to 3 (who are all grown up now) but I remember the business of those young years. Lots of fun!

http://www.rookiemoms.com/how-to-make-a-moby-wrap/

An

Cute baby wrap Kim - thanks!

Traci

Veteran

If you haven't seen this old post from Academichic on post partum dressing, I highly recommend it.
http://www.academichic.com/tag/postpartum-style/

Katiepea

(website)

Veteran

Hello!!

Wow! Three boys too? You lucky woman! I mean that seriously. I adore being the mum of my three little rascals. It's a very special club to belong to. Just ask any other mum of three boys. I sometimes wonder if there is the same sort of club for mothers of only girls, or if we are just extra lucky!

Sorry if I wasn't particularly clear before, yes I meant woven tops over knit. I would just unbutton the top couple and use my scarf to provide modesty when required. I had a couple of tops that I loved. And you have the added advantage that you can always wear a jacket over the top, so if you need to feed, you can often leave your jacket on, unbutton a few on your top, use your scarf for modesty, feed with relative ease. We took our three boys over to the UK when my youngest was around 8 months old and this is how I managed to feed whilst "out and about" and without horrifying the locals!

And yes, I bought the tummy trimmer jeans from Jeans West. They had a higher tummy on them which was handy and the fact that they didn't cost a huge amount of money given how quickly my body changed your body changes post baby was a definite plus!

I got my stretchy tube stuff from a physio for free when my back suddenly seized during pregnancy. If you've needed any physio or have a physio friend, maybe it is worth asking? Those shorts sure sound uncomfortable!

Anyway, I'd better get going, it's nearly 11pm here and I need to go to bed!

I truly am very excited for you. It's a crazy time ahead of you for sure with three little ones, but honestly, it's a stage of my life that I personally look back on with a lot of love now that my "baby" started school this year. (Can you believe it?! My youngest is now FIVE! Where did those years go?)

Do be sure to let us know when you've had your precious bundle!

x

harmonica

Veteran

I just wanted to chime in again and say that you must go easy on yourself in terms of fabness. I know that looking pulled together on the outside helps, but your greatest accessories are you kids and your FAB-time will come no matter. I always feel like the proudest mom with the very best boys when all three are around

An

Traci, thanks for the academichic link - thrifting sounds like a great idea - just need to have the time and a bit of luck I guess ... she got COH jeans for $8 WOW!

Katiepea, thanks for reassuring me that having 3 boys is exciting - I've been getting some neg vibes from friends / family so I really appreciate your positivity and excitement!! After infertility issues and 2 assisted pregnancies, I just feeling very blessed to be having a 3rd unexpected bubba. I wish I could sit down and have a coffee and a chat with you:-).

Harmonica, thanks for your advice. I won't be going overboard in my efforts to look fab, I just know that I feel better about myself and therefore function better when I feel a little bit pulled together!

qfbrenda

Veteran

Others have the advice well covered, so I will say congratulations! I'm a mom of 5 boys and LOVE having boys! They are a busy adventure and I wouldn't have it any other way.

An

Thanks qfbrenda! Sounds like a fun household :-).