Clothing my pregnant body

Going into this pregnancy, I hoped to avoid buying any NEW clothing.  I mean, what a ridiculous thing, right?  Why buy something brand new that I would wear for a few months at most, when there should be plenty of good condition used maternity clothes floating around out there.

The reality: finding used maternity clothing is easier said than done.  Where is all of the gently used maternity clothing?  Are there lots of mothers out there, hoarding their maternity clothes for the next potential pregnancy?

Goodwill: I struck out at my local Goodwill store — one small, disorganized rack with nothing in my size.  If I were willing to drive to some of the posher Goodwill locations, maybe I would have better luck, but it’s hard to justify the gas for a distinct “maybe.”

Kangaroo Kids: I had a bit more luck at this children’s and maternity resale shop.  I scored a pair of gray dress pants, a black knee length skirt (that I need to grow into), and two tops for about $22.  The downside is the distance — it’s out in the direction of my MIL’s, so it was easy enough to justify a stop, but I wish it were closer so I could pop in more often, since their inventory changes daily.

Scholarshop: Both Scholarshop locations have a maternity rack.  Small selection, but good condition and easy to look through.  I considered a few purchases, but at that point I was waiting to see what I would get from my sister.  Not quite as far away as Kangaroo Kids, but not super easily accessible without a car, either.

My sister’s closet: My youngest sister and I are fairly close in size, and she just happened to be about four months ahead of me in this pregnancy thing.  She is now a new mama, and done with some of the maternity clothes.  I inherited a few tops, a pair of jeans, and a nice pair of corduroy pants.   The jeans and most of the tops are currently a bit big on me, but maybe I’ll grow into them?

New purchases

Belly bands: Back in January, before acquiring any other maternity clothing, I purchased three belly bands.  I hoped to use them to extend the life of my regular pants, but they didn’t work particularly well for that.  The thin, stretchy fabric could not hide the fact that my pants were halfway unzipped.

I am using them now with my maternity pants, as many of my regular tops still fit, but aren’t quite long enough to hide the weirdness of the maternity pants’ waistbands.  Belly band to the rescue.

JCPenney: Looking for a couple of maternity pieces that would be well-suited for travel, and with a gift card that needed to be used anyway, I did some online shopping.  I ordered a pair of pants and three tops.  I wanted a pair of leggings to round things out, but they were no longer available when I went to checkout 😦  They have yet to arrive, and I’m honestly not sure if I’ll keep any of them.

I’d like to get back by Kangaroo Kids and Scholarshop, but I’m not sure when that will happen.

The fact that I can get by, pretty happily, with my limited maternity wardrobe of 2-3 pair of pants and a handful of tops proves that my pre-pregnancy wardrobe (while not huge by most standards) was significantly larger than necessary.  I look forward to whittling it down, but at this point I don’t want to get rid of too much until I see where my shape settles post-baby.