I can hardly believe that I have been keeping up my pledge to participate in Isis’s Ethical Clothing challenge for months & months & months now, with only a couple of stumbles, being;
- A pair of metallic pink con-like shoes that were on clearance for $4. I couldn’t resist. I couldn’t. Really.
- Two pairs of stretchy PJs since I generally just sleep in whatever I find lying about & it was thought that I might need something more conventional for an expected couple of night’s in hospital, which never eventuated.
- One pair of maternity jeans – these were, quite frankly, very necessary, and I do not regret them at all.
…apart from that… I have stayed strong. I have found clothes to accommodate my growing girth at Le Oppy or just made do with what I already have, but I feel my resolve weakening. It is really quite hard to find the one piece of suitable pregnancy attire that has been hidden ‘Where’s Wally’ style somewhere in the store, and I’m sick of wearing shirts & tops that are for the even more rotund woman, making me look like I should be rolled out of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory instead of asked “When are you due?”. It’s hard enough, and unflattering enough, BEING a big fat preggers lady – one shouldn’t make things worse with unsuitable attire.
So.
I’m trawling Ebay for some ‘stylish’ maternity wear – surprisingly harder than one would think, and Etsy for handmade maternity wear, unsurprisingly expensive, and other ethical garments, which are both hard to find AND expensive. It is little wonder that I find myself hovering outside department stores, squinting in the windows, hoping for a glimpse of a nice maternity tee or some comfy pants….
The two ethical and affordable solutions for maternity wear seem to be giving up caring about how you look, or getting creative.
ReplyDeleteI'm surviving this pregnancy with one unflattering pair of jeans from last pregnancy, some refashioned old cords, tracky daks if I'm not leaving the house, two purpose-made maternity tops and the largest of my usual wardrobe of teeshirts and jumpers. I have a bunch of awesome maternity dresses I made myself last pregnancy but haven't got around to buying a new pair of tights to wear with them (what a stupid reason not to wear dresses) and can't be bothered dressing up as I'm not working in an office this time around.
Megan Nielsen (who made the maternity top pattern I used last month) has some very simple maternity refashions on her blog, which can be done using op shop clothing. She's changed the setup of her site a bit so you have to scroll a bit to find them, but this is a good place to start:
http://blog.megannielsen.com/?s=maternity+refashion
Not knowing exactly how "fat" you are (hehe) and how much weight you might have put on, have you tried those belly band things? Like a boob tube thingy that you use to kind of extend the use of your existing wardrobe. They have them on ebay, just search belly band. Quite cheap too. Or make your own.
ReplyDeleteVic, there are some times in your life when you need to be kind to yourself and when you are pregnant is one of them - you're supposed to be enjoying this special time so go buy yourself some things that make you feel beautiful!! And not from the opshop either. If you're on a budget Target often have nice maternity things and Big W sometimes have some Bonds things that are cute - and they're not too dear. So go shop woman!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Tin can Daisy. You haven't signed a legally binding contract to not buy new things? You are pregnant it is an uncomfortable time. Buy yourself some Bonds preggars stuff and get comfy and feel nice.
ReplyDeleteAhuh.. I am with the two comments above!
ReplyDeleteGo and get yourself some stuff to make you feel good...My preggers 'uniform' at the moment is really comfy maternity leggings or tights with a black stretchy skirt or merino wool skirt (above knee), stretchy witchery singlets (they are fantastically comfortable) and long cardi of some sort..boots... Perfect and comfy!
I am either in that or a tracksuit!
I'm with them (she says indicating the previous comments). I held back on buying stuff when pregnant with no#1, bought a couple of things when pregnant with no#2 and a couple more when pregnant with no#3. The best of the cheaper stuff were a couple of tops from Kmart that had ruching(?) down the sides so they stretched around belly without sliding up all the time and my sister loved the belly band tubey things. Pregnancy is often uncomfortable enough without having uncomfortable clothing as well. If you really don't want to spend I have a few items that have been loaned around the expanding belly zone and I believe they are back in my possession again so maybe a loan would work for you???
ReplyDeleteoh Vic, i hear you. i feel your pain. I share your torment.
ReplyDeleteHave you tried on the boy's clothes? I started wearing hubby's clothes, (from his pre-Oz skinny days) and found a pair of hip-hop style shorts that fit. I lived in them. Then it got cold and I found a pair of his Aussie-bought jeans; I was horrified when they fit. But that was months ago. I'm mortified to say they don't fit me anymore.
The only thing I buy new is undies: I bought a whole heap, but I had to go up 2 sizes! My bum is getting scarey. So just know this: you are not alone.
Good luck with the ebay mat clothes search. Everything I bought off ebay when I was preggers ended up at the oppy, unworn. Now there's a great vote of confidence! Another idea is to hack off the waist band of an oppy bought skirt and sew a tube of firm jersey or ponti-like material to it. Just a thought. :)
ReplyDelete:D looking forward to hearing how this goes... must be SO hard... kudos to you
ReplyDelete