My Maternity (un)Style

To be honest, I'm not a very stylish pregnant woman so this post is really about my lack of style as opposed to tips on being a super hot preggo lady. As I'm well into summer pregnancy #3, I'm quickly realizing one thing: I'm tired of being super frumpy preggo mom.  Seriously, though.  With number #1, I was so desperate to get clothes that I found a bunch of things that were "ok" at consignment stores and garage sales.  I did find a few things that I love and the rest of just "worked."  I did get a few new things but I felt so limited by my options and the incredible prices on them that I didn't buy much.  Before I even became pregnant with #2, I started to shop for new maternity clothes.  Whenever I was in one of the few stores around here that actually carry new maternity clothes (I think we have 3 total), I would scan the clearance racks to see if I could score anything good.  Same if I happened upon a garage sale that had maternity clothes and on my semi-annual trips to Goodwill.  I scored a few pairs of decent (as well as a few pairs of just "ok") jeans for around $3.  I also found a few tops and dresses.  When I was actually pregnant with #2, I felt like I starting to figure out what I liked and what I didn't  Now with #3, I feel like I'm ready to invest in some decent clothes.  My plan, which I've already started on, is to get rid all the things that I don't love (except for a few shirts that are good for exercising and cleaning), and fill my closet with a few things that I can wear everyday and feel beautiful in.  Here is what is on my to-buy list and how I plan to find them for affordable prices.  

• Tank Tops.  To be honest, I'm not really a tank top sort of person.  In "real life", I hardly ever wear them unless they are more dressy and even then I think I have maybe 1.  I scored one navy colored tank top at a garage sale for I think $2 and I wore it non-stop.  The summers here are really hot and humid and overheating is a serious problem especially as I swell up like a watermelon the second I start to get hot.  I noticed that if I wore a pair of shorter shorts and a tank top, I stayed significantly cooler than a normal t-shirt and a pair of capris.  I would wear this one lone tank top on walks and also with skirts and nicer jewelry for a dressier option.  This time around I've already ordered 2 more more of the same brand since they were on super sale for only $4 a piece. 

My poor over-worked tank top

• Shorts! At the same garage sale as the aforementioned tank, I also scored a pair of shorter gray shorts.  I wore the life out of those suckers.  I wish they were just an inch or so longer to hide more of my upper thighs but they were so comfy and cool.  One thing that I loved was that they were the under-belly type of elastic.  So much cooler and less hiking up!  They were also my go-to post partum pants as I found I couldn't into my regular shorts and I quickly got tired of hiking up huge swaths of elastic over my flabby post-baby belly.  I definitely plan on getting at least one more pair.  Since it is still a little too early to need to wear shorts, I have been super picky about trying to find a cheap pair.  If I can't find anything in the next month or so, I will up my price range and get something new. 
• T-shirts.  This probably sounds really dumb, but I really want to get some new t-shirts.  I have a few that I like pretty well, but no "perfect" ones.  I want to get a couple of plain colors and at least one with a graphic design of some sort.  Oooh or maybe some striped ones! I want something more fitted and probably with ruched sides.  I already feel so huge during pregnancy that I'm not a fan of loose fitting maternity tops in general. I also like t-shirts as compared to blouses simply because they are knit and stretch with me.  

  

  Buy here

I'd love to look this glam though it might also require actually styling my hair which I just don't see happening.  

Buy here

• Swim suit.  My parents put in an in-ground swimming pool last summer so a bathing suit is definitely on the "need" list.  I scored a supposedly never been worn tankini top on eBay for less than $5.   Note: I would never buy a used pair of bottoms.  So gross. I'm hoping it will fit but I figured that it isn't much of a risk compared to the store-bought prices. 
• Skirt.  I also just purchased a skirt off of Old Navy. Last summer I found myself wearing my one maternity maxi skirt constantly.  The one I found to add to my collection is a knit pencilish skirt.  I just bought it on Monday (not on clearance) and it is already down from their website so I can't post a picture.  I found that stretchy knit skirts are one of the best post-partum pieces of clothing to own.  I was so tired of wearing sweat pants and slightly too large maternity pants but popping on a stretchy skirt made me feel a lot prettier and it was just as comfy.  

I am currently scouring ebay nearly every day for good maternity clothes.  So far I've only found my bathing suit.  I also plan on listing my used items on ebay since they generally have a quicker and more profitable return than consignment stores and garage sales.  At the end of the day, I'd rather have 10 really good pieces that I wear over and over instead of 30 only so-so ones.  

I have also checked some online consignment stores but I either didn't find anything I loved or I was currently unwilling to pay the prices as listed including shipping.  

If I can't find the items I want over the course of the next few weeks, I plan on probably getting something from Zulily.  They have a lot of good options that cycle through and good prices for new items. 

I also try to check online with big box stores and watch for items to go on good sales or clearance.  

Where do you get your maternity clothing?  Any hot tips or items I really need to add to my closet?