Winter Wardrobe

lunaed

Hello YLF ladies!

Am looking for advice on winter wardrobe.

After doing serious purge of closet before moving into new house, I found myself rebuilding my wardrobe especially with pandemic-induced new wfh status that might continue after pandemic too. I used to dress in pajamas in winter time but with possible lifestyle changes, i'm not exactly sure how to dress in budget for the year and have a winter wardrobe.

Below are details to consider:

Lifestage: 30s, looking to have kids God-willing next year. So would love to have at least half of the wardrobe to be maternity/nursing/mom-friendly in winter.

Lifestyle: WFH 5 days a week. (Really want short or half sleeves to help with easier cleaning/dishes) Church/extended family visit on Sunday.

Body: X-shape hourglass with tummy issues. 39 ,32, 42. 5 feet high and I think I have short torso.

Style: Feminine, Relaxed and modest style. I stick to red, blue, black and gray as main colors with pink, maroon, navy, silver as secondary colors.

Winter fashion:
I already own a lot of leggings so wanted to incorporate that in daily winter style. I'm much too curvy to pull of tunics and leggings and stay modest. Therefore, I'm considering short/knee-length straight/pencil skirt with some high-low sweater tops or cotton tees with long cardigans which would also help cover butt and be more modest in back despite form fitting skirt. Flared short skirts might be too unpractical with kids at legs while maxi skirts seem too long for petite frame.

However, is this strategy really practical type of winter wardrobe going forward? I'm hoping the skirts would be stretchy in handling maternity/nursing sizes. What daily winter wardrobes do you have or were using in 30s/with kids?

Thanks in advance for your valuable advice!!! Really helps me keep in budget as well.

5 years ago

Shopping

10 replies

Latest reply was from nemosmom

rachylou

Veteran

Hello!

I had a question and a thought: What are your winters like? Are we talking snow? And then, half your wardrobe being maternity clothing in advance seems like a lot, when you'll be changing sizes/shape from month to month. I'm thinking there are lots of tricks to stay in your normal clothes for quite awhile until you know what you need... On the other hand, there are lots of cute maternity clothes that work when one is not pregnant. So there is that. I'd buy as I went along.

Ok... I have more thoughts. How about dresses and leggings?

5 years ago

Anonymous

Do not plan to fit into pre-pregnancy clothes afterward, even footwear and underwear. Everything changes and lots of. Body parts like hips and feet widen. How about loose wide tunics or dresses to wear over those leggings? If you are nursing the baby, you will want wide tops that you can just pull up. I am small breasted and found it easiest just to go braless at this time. You may start lactating before the baby is born. If so you will want something that will not show milk on your clothes. Big scarves are helpful. Prints work better than plain fabrics. If you need ( and you will) get up with the baby in the middle of the night, you will need a warm cozy robe. You will wear those pregnancy clothes after the birth for longer than you think. Get a new bra fitting. It will probably change. Do not invest in much now. Save for when you need a new wardrobe. Buy the best baby bag that you can find. You will use it through potty training at least.
If pregnant in winter, a coat is a problem. Get something wide and roomy..
See if you can wear a old coat of your husbands.

5 years ago

Anonymous

I just reread you post. I had my first at 31 in September and was not prepared for winter. Or not fitting into pre- pregnancy clothes. I had to layer like crazy. as I I had very few clothes. The second was born in March and summer was easier. Do not plan to have any time to shop after the baby is born. You will be sleep deprived too. It will pass, but until it does, be prepared to order online.

5 years ago

Liz

Veteran

Rather than try to build a wardrobe that takes many future years into account, I'd recommend just getting a few outfits that work for this winter. When you get pregnant and see how your body is changing and what you need, then add the clothes you need for that.

For this winter, I'd start with some outfits that work with your leggings. One outfit style could be leggings, tunic, and long cardigan. Another could be leggings and a sweater dress. I'd wait to buy much more than that until you find out how warm or cold your new house is in winter, whether you'll continue working from home, and when and how your pregnancy might fit into a winter season.

5 years ago

lunaed

Active Member

These are really helpful advises ladies! Thank you so much! I decided to do more 2 or 3 cardigans and see if I can transition my current wardrobe as much as possible with layering this winter and buy more dresses or long tunics as I find them needful in winter material.

YLF advice pages about capsule maternity outfits were also really helpful in guiding as well.

5 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Hi there, lunaed! And welcome.

I may have missed it, but what is your climate like?

5 years ago

lunaed

Active Member

Apologies for not noting that before.

The climate is mostly summer (humid, mild to hot) and winter (mild to cold with snow from Dec to March). Fall and Spring are pretty short 1-2 months ish each in between with fluctuating temperatures from morning to evening requiring layering anyway.

So I pretty much try to dress for summer or winter with few pieces as transitional via layering.

For summer wardrobe with new WFH status, I at least have tried to replace with tunics + leggings/jogger pants + dresses uniform with more dressy lounge wear at evenings/weekends so that I'm more presentable than with pajamas and can also go out of the house in some of these clothes easily in weekends.

For winter, I liked wearing boots with leggings and long sweaters or pencil skirt with short sweaters and had pajamas that no longer fit and were donated. Many of these work/semiformal outfits are not functional at home with daily home chores. Therefore, slowly looking to transition to more house-friendly outfits. Our house is big so unlike cozy apartments, it can be overall chilly. Therefore, I plan to continue to wear leggings and for now layer current summer tunics/casual dresses. I struggle with having a nice wardrobe uniform strategy for this & future winters as tunics and leggings only seem impractical with babies/kids. Dresses w/o buttons also seem that way.

From what I gather from reading and advises is that:
- I may have to change multiple times in a day while handling babies. (i.e tops and bottoms give better mileage vs dresses)
- I should try to have patterned tops to camouflage (btw great advice as I typically buy solid tops just b/c easier to find/buy online despite liking some patterns)
- I need to layer on top to handle possible breastmilk leakage (< a bit concerning as I tend to be a clothing minimalist but in winter, i probably can manage if i layer with cardigan which might have to be patterned vs solid)
- I need to keep practical outfit for nursing (i.e. buttons and MAYBE zippered tops which I like but feel can be harsh for soft baby skin. i had this epiphany later in summer-shopping game so next seasons as needed, I will see if I can do different daily outfits than tunic top that doesn't open for easy nursing but atleast current outfits will help me thru maternity/pregnancy stage well)

From all these advises, I'm hesitant on good outfit formula in winter that works well for me lifestyle and style wise...

What would you advise Angie? (or anyone too)

Thanks in advance!

5 years ago

Liesbeth

Veteran

I'm seconding Liz. Not to ruin your optimism but I took a long time getting pregnant and it can be depressing to buy only things with pregnancy/kids in mind for a long time.
That being said, I did heavy capsule dressing during pregnancy AND maternity and having read your preferences would recommend these two outfit formulas myself:

leggings with stretchy pencil skirts, tees (swap out for maternity or nursing tees when the time comes) and a cardi - both cardis and stretchy skirts can accomodate weight shifts better than pullovers and pants

Skinny or other somewhat fitted jeans/pants with a button-down and a cosy cardi (swap out pants for pregnancy pants or joggers) - but don't buy expensive jeans pre-pregnancy b/o what Joy said.

And machine washable scarves serve both as nursing cover-ups and stain hiding devices ;).

Another caveat: I've seen many friends dressing completely differently than me in these life stages so obviously you need to take into account what feels right for you too.

5 years ago

Liesbeth

Veteran

Another good strategy when the time comes is to find one or two good nursing tunics (new or second-hand), knowing you'll get great mileage out of them when the time comes. And see if you can maybe borrow stuff from friends & family?

5 years ago

nemosmom

Veteran

Seconding Liz's advice! You never know which season(s) your pregnancy might span and how your body will change. Hormones may dictate how warm or cold you will feel, regardless of season.

It's also difficult to know *if* you will be able to nurse, and how much tolerance you have for laundry. I would buy a handful of mix-and-match, layerable separates, that are elevated loungewear - comfy enough for lounging, yet nice enough to be seen in public.

Woven joggers can be worn over heattech layers, and often have elastic or drawstring waists. Knit versions can work if you run super cold. They are also durable enough to withstand laundering. Cardigans without embellishment and nursing-friendly tanks will be fine out and about, yet comfortable enough if you nap mid-day, or are up all night. I spent a lot of time on the floor in baby and toddler years, and dresses and tunics were not comfortable for that.

5 years ago

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