Exercise Tanks

I got an email about some new maternity fitness clothes, I got a little excited thinking there may be running shorts (maternity running shorts are impossible to find, I can't possibly be the only person who wanted them) but no, just tanks. Then I took a look at the tanks and I think they are so cute. Check out this one -

In general I stay away from slogan shirts, but these are adorable. There are versions for other sports, they are ruched on the side which is great for a growing belly and the colors are fun. The pink is special for October's Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Find them here.

Great new pants!

I have a new favorite pair of pants, and it really really surprised me for several reasons. First, they are a lot like leggings (!) although quite thick and structured so they actually are pants, and they are from the Loved by Heidi Klum line at Motherhood so they are relatively inexpensive. Check them out -

 

This is not the best picture of them, because I certainly am not wearing them like that. I wore mine with flats, a top like this one - 

 

and topped with a brightly colored cardigan. 

I loved this outfit! It's comfortable, totally work appropriate and got lots of complements - key when you are feeling like a beached whale.

Plus Size Maternity Tops

Finding cute maternity clothes is tough for everyone, but since finding great plus size clothes is difficult without the added maternity aspect, I imagine it can be even tougher to find the good plus size maternity options. But Old Navy maternity and Motherhood actually have some very nice pieces in plus sizes (and the fact that they are inexpensive is great!). These are a couple of my favorites -

A Treasure Trove of Maternity Clothes

I feel like I just discovered a buried treasure.  But it wasn't really buried, what I discovered is that Asos, a European fast fashion source has a HUGE selection of maternity clothes plus free shipping both ways, so you can experiment with styles and sizes without feeling like you are wasting money. I'm pretty sure it doesn't get much better than this!

They have work appropriate clothes,  like this dress -

And this one -

There are also alot of different kinds of pants and adorable tops like this cream one -

Find them all and more here - ASOS Woman

a great maternity dress

While away we attended a few family events. For someone who is used to always having the right dress in the closet already, packing was a little stressful now that I'm only wearing maternity clothes.  I thought the best thing I could do would be to buy a basic dress that I could wear to all different kinds of events, for work, and would fit in subsequent pregnancies. What better than a well made and well-designed wrap dress? I bought the black version of this one -

It's really perfect. Other wrap dresses (even DVF ones) have to be retied frequently and can be too low cut, but I didn't have any issues like that with this Isabella Oliver maternity dress. It's also a great length, which is not always right for someone a little on the short side like me. I would be too concerned about shape to have a maternity dress altered, so it was very important that this dress not need to be shortened.

I got a few other things as well, and had free lightening fast shipping. I will report back when I wear those other items!

*** update - for some reason the link to the dress isn't working for me, if it isnt' working for you either try this one - Iconic wrapping and ruching for every stage. Update your pregnancy wardrobe with Isabella Oliver Maternity this Fall.

Multi-Brand Maternity and Nursing Sale at Gilt

There is a big maternity and nursing sale at Gilt Groupe today. Brands include Paige Premium denim, Nom, Belabumbum, Maternal America and a few others.

The last time they had maternity clothes I got a few things that have turned into my favorites, like this NOM top -

I wore it so much over the last couple of weeks on our trip in fact, I got a second one!  Now I'm thinking about getting some nursing PJ's, any opinions on whether they are worth it? They certainly sound like a great idea.

Click here for the invitation link.

Adorable Baby Blanket

I know people who like to have extra gifts stacked in the closet so that when the time comes they don't have to scramble, or run out to get something. I would love to be that person, and if I was, I think I would stock a couple of these adorable baby blankets in my closet -

It also comes in a dinosaur theme -

I really like the subtle muted colors and clean pattern. Either of these would make such a sweet gift!

Baby Bedding I Actually Like

Looking to decorate your nursery? We aren't quite there yet, In fact we are considering staying in our one bedroom for the first few months of our baby's life, but that doesn't mean I'm not looking around at bedding and other things like that. Most of the time, to be honest, I do not like what I see. Just because we are having a baby doesn't mean I'm going to suddenly want colors or themes I never liked anyway to be all over the place. Then I was looking at Overstock of all places, and found this bedding set -

I love the subtle colors, the contrasting prints and patterns, the overall vibe of it works with I actually like. This I could buy and feel good about (plus it's inexpensive, it is from Overstock afterall). Even without the striped wall behind it, I think this will look really really nice, so nice in fact, that even if the crib is in our bedroom, I wouldn't mind looking at it everyday. I think I would even like it...

Workout/Loungewear Need Not be Maternity...

I've been meaning to buy workout or yoga pants for myself, I'm just reaching that point where my regular options don't work quite so well (they sit too low with a regular drawstring waist) and the only pair of lounge pants I wear now have a very stretchy roll waist. So when I looked around a bit recently I thought, why spend a lot on yoga pants by the Gap or some other company that doesn't specialize in those kinds of pants and are sure to pill, tear or just look worn out very quickly? Well, no reason considering there are real yoga pant options out there that will work just fine with a growing belly. Take these for example -

So Low Contrast Fold Over Pant in Black/Flamingo

They are great pants in their own right, and with a low, rollable waist band, why wouldn't they work over my growing belly? And then they will still work really well AFTER the baby comes too, something important to think about. I would probably get a size bigger than normal so there is a little extra room.

The pair above are on sale at Revolve, there are also other color combos to choose from including prints on the rolling band.