Inexpensive Clothing Choices as You Lose Your Baby Weight

I am convinced that finding flattering postpartum fashion is one of the most awkward things about being a new mom. I’ve been there! You are no longer pregnant and although the eight pound bowling ball under your shirt is gone, your body looks nothing like it used to. Your old clothing doesn’t quite fit right but you don’t feel like investing a whole lot of time, money, and energy into new clothes because you are hoping to shed at least some of that baby weight. At the end of the day, all you really want is to feel good about yourself when you look in the mirror.

Before updating your wardrobe, think about what your body goals are. Are you more or less happy with your shape and size or do you seriously plan on making changes? If you have just a few pounds to lose, you can make do with your maternity clothes for the time being. Do you plan on nursing and if so, for how long? If you plan on nursing for an extended period of time, you will most certainly enjoy the convenience of nursing clothing. Check out my Round Up of the Best DIY Tutorials for Nursing Bras, Nursing Tanks and Nursing T-shirts on the Web.

If you are like me and choose to make a significant dent in your weight, I am guessing that you don’t want to spend money on yet another temporary wardrobe. By the way, I’ve heard this many times from other new moms and am now learning this myself- don’t be disappointed if once you get back to your pre-pregnancy weight, your old clothes don’t fit you the way they used to. Something about pregnancy tends to alter a women’s general body shape. I am certainly finding this to be true and as I get closer and closer to my goal weight, I know that I will need to fully update my wardrobe. You have lots of inexpensive options for updating your wardrobe while you lose the baby weight. Here is what I am doing to get me through the gap between maternity clothes and my new wardrobe.

Inexpensive Clothing Choices as You Lose Your Baby Weight

I chose to keep wearing a handful of my maternity clothing items. Many women can’t wait to get rid of their maternity clothes due to all the negative body image issues we seem to pick up toward the end of our pregnancies. In reality, maternity wear is a very practical choice for new moms especially in the first few months post-partum. They are comfortable and are designed to accommodate a growing and shrinking figure. Another bonus is that many maternity tops transition well into nursing tops. I’ve heard so many new moms agonize over still wearing maternity clothes that I felt the need to address the issue in more detail here: How Long Can I Wear My Maternity Clothes? I am now six months post-partum and my pregnancy jeans are finally starting to fall off me. Luckily I am now starting to fit into my pre-maternity “fat pants”. Perfect timing! It would have made absolutely no sense for me to go out and buy all new pants just to wear for this six month gap.

Next thing I did was determine what pieces of clothing I was missing and absolutely couldn’t live without. I also took the maternity clothing I never wanted to wear ever again to my local maternity consignment shop. I got $28 back and re-invested that money into my shopping budget for my must have list. I shopped at a local consignment shop along with clearance racks at Target, Anne Taylor Loft, and T.J. Maxx. I also borrowed a couple of pieces from friends. With a just a bit of effort I found everything I needed for under $100.

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Building a Winter Maternity Clothing Wardrobe on a Budget

Becca Daniels is a self-proclaimed fashionista from St.Paul Minnesota who believes that “just because you are pregnant and on a budget, it doesn’t mean you should look and feel frumpy”.  She is the momma behind Inexpensive Maternity Clothes, a blog focused on helping women find stylish and inexpensive maternity clothes online. Keep in touch with Becca on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.