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My Favorite Non-Maternity Maternity Clothes

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Now that I’m at the very end of my second pregnancy, I feel like I have a pretty good idea of the best maternity clothes and best non-matenrity maternity on the market. The majority of my first pregnancy was during the warmer months, and the majority of this pregnancy has been in the cooler months (and by majority, I really just mean the portion of pregnancy where I needed to dress for a bump), so I’ve had experience in all different temperatures.

That said, one of the things I pride myself on is that I don’t spend a ton of money on maternity clothes. Since this season of life is so short in the grand scheme of things, I don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on clothes I won’t wear again. And even though I saved a bunch of maternity clothes from my first pregnancy, I didn’t want to wear most of them since I was over the styles.

So instead, I wore things I already owned (stretchy workout gear, oversized pullovers, relaxed dresses, etc), or I bought non-maternity clothes that worked for a bump and can be worn long after. Of course, there are things like maternity jeans that are simply necessary, but in general, I didn’t buy a lot of true maternity clothes.

My Favorite Non-Maternity Maternity Clothes

Below, I shared a handful of my favorite non-maternity maternity clothes. These are things that I wore before my pregnancy (and plan to after) that worked well for my growing bump. I hope this round-up inspires you if you also don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on clothes you can only wear right now.

Alrighty, let’s get into it.

Dresses

Amazon Turtleneck Sweater Dress

It’s hard to beat an affordable sweater dress when you’re pregnant. Sweater dresses are usually stretchy and comfortable, and this specific turtleneck dress from Amazon has a relaxed fit, so I had no problem with my bump. However, it’s worth noting that I’m 5’1″, and it’s been just the right length on me until about 35 weeks. If you’re taller than 5’5″ish, it may be too short sooner than that.

Amazon Denim Dress

One of my favorite dresses from this entire pregnancy was this button front relaxed denim mini dress. Again, not true maternity, but very loose and relaxed for a bump. It would also be a great nursing-friendly option for the spring or fall because of the buttons.

Tuckernuck Kenzo Dress

I ordered this Tuckernuck Kenzo dress in a Blackwatch pattern in my pre-pregnancy size and it worked perfectly, even in my third trimester! It’s perfectly relaxed in the skirt which gives you lots of room for a bump. I can’t wait to wear this next year with both my babies in tow! The colorway I have is no longer available, but the same style comes in a TON of colors.

Tuckernuck Nightly Organza Palmerston Dress

This Nightly Organza Palmerston Dress is another Tuckernuck dress that I bought in my pre-pregnancy size. I was so happy to have a cocktail style dress that could also work for less dressy occasions, and I love that I can wear it next year or later into this winter. It comes in a few different colorways as well, and the red/pink combo is calling my name.

Tuckernuck Callahan Shirt Dress

I had this Callahan Shirt Dress from Tuckernuck before I got pregnant but wore it all throughout the summer. The version I have is linen, so I couldn’t wear it towards the end of this pregnancy while it’s cold, but it does come in other colorways and fabrics that are more appropriate for cooler weather. Get your true size in this since it’s naturally very relaxed and oversized.

Tuckernuck Nior Vivianne Dress

Lastly, another Tuckernuck find. This turtleneck sweater dress from Tuckernuck is the best blend of casual and chic. You can dress it down with loafers or clogs and then dress it up with boots or booties. Get your true size in this. I have the black AND the hazelwood color because I love this dress so much. Now that I’m 38 weeks, the black one is a tad bit short, so I paired it with opaque tights for church. (The Hazelwood color is a bit longer…perhaps because I haven’t dried it.)

Jeans

Like I mentioned in the intro, I did buy maternity-specific jeans. And that’s because I wear jeans multiple times a week, and my pre-pregnancy jeans stopped fitting. I learned throughout this second pregnancy that I preferred a belly band for pregnancy jeans. It made my outfits feel more polished since I wasn’t concerned about my belly peaking through if my shirt wasn’t long enough.

I have a separate blog post with my favorite maternity jeans linked here. You can read about each pair in detail there, but I’ll also link them below for easy reference. All of the brands below carry different styles and washes, and I shared the ones I own in the post linked above. I bought my pre-pregnancy size in each brand and all of them ran true to size.

Leggings/Joggers

I have a blog post coming about this specific topic because it felt like I wore leggings for the majority of my pregnancy. They’re just the best. However, there is only one pair of non-maternity leggings from Amazon that wore until 35 weeks.

HeyNuts Essential 7/8 Leggings

The leggings I love the most are HeyNuts and I’ve shared them hundreds of times. They are 90% as good as Lululemon Align leggings, they don’t fade at all, and they come in a ton of fun colors. The waistband worked on my bump until about 35 weeks ago where it started to slip. Pretty impressive. I recommend these to everyone: pregnant or not.

Athleta Venice Joggers

I ordered the Athleta Venice Joggers over two years ago, obviously long before I was pregnant, and believe it or not, they have fit my bump for the entirety of my pregnancy. The waistband is so stretchy and comfortable that I’m able to roll it down under my bump, and it doesn’t bother me at all!

I’m incredibly picky when it comes to joggers, and this Athleta pair of joggers along with a pair from Vuori are the only ones I wear. The Vuori pair is more of a sweatpants material, which I like, but I’d recommend the Athleta Venice Joggers to ANYONE. I tried 3-4 pairs of Amazon joggers and didn’t like the fit on any of them so I think it’s worth investing in the Athleta pair, especially if you are petite. I have an XS Petite in the Venice Joggers and a Small in the Vuori ones.

Tops

For any tops I bought, I just ordered a size or two up from my regular size. I was gifted a few true maternity tops from Pink Blush Maternity and shared my favorites in this post, but other than that, I just ordered a few sizes up in non-maternity tops and sweaters. I’m sharing a few of my most-worn tops below.

J.Crew Relaxed Fit Button Down

Make sure you buy a good white button down for pregnancy. I got this relaxed-fit button down from J.Crew and it worked perfectly with all of my maternity jeans. I didn’t tuck it into my pants for obvious reasons, but I will style it with a front tuck when I’m not pregnant.

Relaxed Open Front Cardigan

Relaxed cardigans will also be your best friend. Thankfully, cardigans are super popular these days, and you can find them in a ton of fits/colors/and patterns. Not only do they work well as a top on their own when buttoned up, but if your bump begins to outgrow them, you can still style them unbuttoned with a tank or tee underneath. I wore this striped cardigan from Amazon most often.

Oversized Open Front Cardigan

The other cardigan I wore non-stop throughout the end of this pregnancy was this oversized open front cardigan from Amazon. The quality feels MUCH better than a typical Amazon find, the price is great at just under $30, and it comes in a ton of colors. I wore a size XS and it fit perfectly. It’s so easy to throw on with jeans and definitely long enough + cute with Vejas, clogs or loafers.

Stretchy Black Turtleneck

The other top I wore often towards the end of my pregnancy was a stretchy black turtleneck. The exact brand of mine is sold out, but this black turtleneck from SPANX is a great option since it has zero compression and lots of stretch. I wore my black turtleneck with jeans most often.

Sweatshirts and Pullovers

On the days that I wore leggings, I typically always wore an oversized pullover or sweatshirt. I didn’t order a size up for them since they were already oversized, which ended up working seamlessly with a growing bump.

Here are my favorites:

Amazon Oversized Half Zip Pullover

This oversized half zip pullover is one of my sportier pullovers. I have the beige in a size small, and I wear it with black leggings and sneakers.

Mockneck Sweatshirt

This grey mockneck sweatshirt feels more chic than a regular sweatshirt because of the neckline. Something about the mockneck feels cool and sporty, and it looks a lot like this Isabel Marant sweatshirt that’s close to $500.

Knit Quarter Zip Sweater

When I want to feel a little more cute than sporty, I opted for this knit quarter zip with leggings and fashion sneakers. It’s similar to the beige pullover above, but this is a little more polished while the other is more athletic.

Amazon Scuba Lookalike Pullover

This cropped pullover from Amazon is one that I did order in a size up. I had read to size up in general for a more Lululemon like fit, so I went up a full two sizes to work with my 36 week bump. A small would have worked well for the majority of the fall, though. At 38 1/2 weeks, it’s a tiny bit short but with a black tank underneath and paired with black leggings, you can’t tell.

Outerwear

I needed to order a new jacket for the end of my pregnancy because none of mine would zip. And thank goodness I did! The temperatures dropped pretty low recently and I was so glad I had a coat that would zip over my bump. Again, in the name of not spending a ton of money, I ordered a puffer coat from Amazon and just sized up.

I got this white quilted oversized puffer with a hood for under $100. I sized up to a small and it zipped over my bump just perfectly.

More Pregnancy Resources

I hope this is all helpful! If you need recommendations on anything else, let me know!

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