fashion

AVOIDING THE ‘MUM BUM’

Mind The Gap sign on tube station platform in London UK

Whether you’re sat on the floor at Gymboree, wedging the pram in the car boot or saving Sophie la Girafe from the floor for the nineteenth time that day; it seems there is no escaping the ‘Mum Bum’.

If you’re not au fait with the term, let me explain. You’ve had a baby, maybe not quite back to pre-baby weight and your once favourite jeans don’t fit as well as they used to. Now whilst wearing said jeans and finding out that 98% of your day is spent bending over; you have what can only be likened to a builders bum. Sat in coffee shops, at baby sensory classes, in the doctors waiting room; you can be sure to find an abundance of Mum Bums, constantly being rectified with a quick yank up of the jeans or pull down of the top but to no avail. The Mum Bum wins….every time.

Sound familiar? I know. I’ve been there. THE MOTHERSHOP has the solution with these crack-concealing (sorry) high street hero pieces…oh and some outfit inspo too.

£48 Topshop

Dungarees are maternity heaven; room for bump, easy access for feeding and no possible bum show. Winner every time.

[Pic credit: Pinterest]

Look for high waisted pieces; trousers and skirts. Wrap skirts are great for a bit of give for bending down, and loose trousers with a pair of Adidas Originals will work for park laps.

Stock up on the bum busters now; and leave the wardrobe malfunctions to the workmen…

: Massimo Dutti

: £19.99 New Look

: £40 Zalando

: £120 Jigsaw

: £30 River Island

: £39.99 Zara

Matchy matchy

T-shirts £18 and £28 available from Tease + Totes

Ok I’m not suggesting you head down to your local Sainsbo’s in an adult baby-grow, but I’m noticing a growing trend for Mum’s and their little ones in coordinating outfits and I’m liking it. We had a taster last winter when Dolce & Gabbana sent their models down the runway with a matching mini-me in tow and others have since followed suit. Tease + Totes have their brilliantly empowering ‘Girl Power’ tees (above), where proceeds go towards Worldreader, a non-profit mission to get digital to books to all children.

Now there’s ways of doing this, and doing it well as it could go very wrong indeed. Keep it simple, don’t go matching head to toe, a top or jumper works best. Like these sweatshirts; now I love a sweatshirt, I love a grey sweatshirt, I love a grey sweatshirt with a slogan on it (still with me?), so this little combo from Bob & Blossom is tres bon in my view…

Sweatshirts £38 and £24, available from Bob & Blossom

And it’s not just apparel either, Sophia Webster jumped on the twinning is winning bandwagon with her Mini collection. The ‘Chiara’ style below is very sweet in teeny sizes. I’m not sure I’ll be rocking the heels round Peckham Rye Common pushing the Bugaboo but then again you never know…

£294 and £95, Sophia Webster

If in doubt, keep it simple. These monochrome tee’s from Threaded Tees are a winner, just add a flash of red lipstick (on you, not the baby), your well-loved jeans and you’re good to go.

Threaded Tees £21.41, available from Etsy

This post isn’t complete without a special shout out to Selfish Mother. Any cool mama in the know has a ‘Mother’ sweatshirt in their wardrobe (or in their clothes mountain, or on the bedroom floor). The brain child is founder Molly Gunn and her clothes are a hit with celeb Mum’s such as Fearne Cotton and Myleene Klass. I live in mine and am contemplating getting a t-shirt for the summer. For those who aren’t familiar, Selfish Mother don’t just make quality cool clothes, they do a lot of good for the world at the same time. They’ve raised over £50K for charities including Women for Women International, The Refugee Council UK, KIDS, and Help Refugees UK so buying one of their pieces goes a long way. Do it.

£45 Selfish Mother

£13 Selfish Mother

Click on brand for stockists:

Feeding Time

If you thought styling a bump was limiting, wait til you get to breast feeding…Tops suddenly need to be easy access (ahem..) Of course there’s actual maternity feeding tops, but after nine months of wearing maternity clothes you’re gagging to get back to some of your faithful old favourites.

So from zips to wraps, buttons to pussybows, here’s THE MOTHERSHOP’s edit of the top 10 feeding tops on the high street. Enjoy.

[Click on the image for details]

[Picture credits Asos, Cos]

Molly & The Wolf

£30 Fox Print

I stumbled across Molly & The Wolf when I was compiling a page of childrenswear for one of the Sunday supplements. I was pregnant at the time and didn’t know what I was having but found myself compelled to buy something…you know, as you do. I settled on the Fantastic Fox Jumper and to this day, I bring it out the wardrobe and try it on Florence only to find it’s still too big. Most days I find myself wishing she’d stop growing up so quickly, apart from this; I want her in that Fox jumper!

£55 BEAR CUSHION

£75 Fancynulle Rabbit

£36 BEAR BOOTIES

£47.75 Cotton Cashmere Playsuit

£35 Gold Crown

£29.95 Animal Nesting Dolls

£24.95 Elephant Push Toy

£30 Rat Jumper

Molly & The Wolf have nailed the quirky, cool and individual market. Whether you’re a Mum, a Dad, Godparent, colleague or friend buying a present for a little person, there’s endless gifts to choose from. Some such as the Balsa Wood Plane or Kaleidoscopes will send you on a trip down memory lane whereas the shark tail or Lobster bonnet & mittens are fun and unique in their own right.

Head over to the website now and grab a bargain in their amazing sale. Also you lucky MOTHERSHOP readers can enjoy a exclusive discount on all full priced items. Just enter ‘Mshop20’ at the checkout for 20% off.

As for me, I’m off to try the Fox Jumper on Florence one more time…

Back to Basics

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It’s official, Isabella Oliver just upped its cool factor to a whole new level. Yes, the collection has its strong statement pieces, such as the ‘Rowsley’ leather leggings or ‘Rosliston’ jumpsuit, but what gives the range its wardrobe welly is the variety of basics available; which is what I found hardest to get my mitts on when I was expecting. Yes, it’s easy enough finding a nice dress, or a good coat within the (not so) vast maternity market, but try finding a well-cut white shirt, or a layer worthy polo neck, or boyfriend jeans that won’t make your bottom half look as wide as your waist and the challenge began…until now.

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The clever clogs at Isabella Oliver have thought of everything. There’s the black turtleneck to layer under a collared dress or their grey ‘Lexi’ top. There’s the ‘Relaxed Maternity Jeans’ which are just the right side of boyfriend, and the wear-anywhere ‘Grayson’ and ‘Marlow’ dresses should be top of any wardrobe wish list for defs. Complete the look with the carefully edited accessories; cool sneaks, textured clutch bags and delicate jewellery. Job done.

£45 The Maternity Turtleneck

£75 Veja Arcade Trainer

£135 Stowe Maternity Tunic Dress

£42 By Boe Infinity Necklace

£79 Lexi Maternity Top

£138 Sol Sana Frost Mule

£109 Baukjen Clutch Bag

£99 Grayson Maternity Dress

£65 Extra Long Skinny Belt

View the complete collection here.

Clary & Peg

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Clary & Peg is the brainchild of two London Mothers; Edwina and Johanna. With celebrities such as Rosamund Pike and Sophie Hunter (aka Mrs Cumberbatch) in their garms as well as awards from Smallish and Baby&Me magazines, they’re set to go far. Oh, and the small fact that Edwina’s cousin is none other than Cara Delevingne who caused a social media storm when she posed with a fake bump wearing a Clary & Peg design.

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The pieces are designed to be worn with a bump and also beyond so you won’t feel like you’re spending a lot for something you’ll only wear for a few months. Many of the styles have a vintage inspired feel to them; from Sixties pinafores, Seventies smock dresses and Eighties jumpsuits, Clary & Peg have the decades down in style. My personal favourite is the denim pinafore dress; worn with a plain polo neck and black opaque tights it has a certain Alexa Chung feel to it…

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The bambino’s haven’t been forgotten about either, with the sweetest range of baby bloomers to choose from. They can be worn bare legged in the summer or over tights in the winter. Super cute!

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See the full Clary & Peg collection here

Mama Owl knows best

OEUF NYC Alpaca Sheep Hat £40

If you’re little ones are feeling the cold (I know I am), then look no further than MamaOwl for all your wooly needs this winter. The London based company sells the most gorgeous organic and natural wool clothes for little ones.

Organic merino wool dungarees £35

Alpaca dots sweater £68

Organic wool / cotton tights £12

Merino sweater £40

From sweaters to scarves, blankets to booties; MamaOwl has all your knitted needs covered. These Alpaca bonnets in hard-to-chose tones are going straight to the top of Florence’s Christmas wish-list.

Alpaca bonnets £24 each

And with sizing ranging from newborn to 8 years, MamaOwl will no doubt see a regular spree from me. For now though, I picked these little grey Booties for Florence which when delivered, came wrapped up with a little wooden horse!

Organic Fine Knitted Merino Booties £15

Click here to view the whole MamaOwl collection.

The Inbetweener

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Thanks to the likes of Kenzo, Giles and Orla Kiely, whether you’re expecting or post-baby, the cape will be your new best friend. They were seen on the AW15 catwalks in pretty much every form; silk, waterproof, hooded…the list goes on; perfect for right now with the hot / cold / can’t make its mind up weather. Is it Autumn? Is it winter? Should I crack open the full on winter coat yet? The answer is no, invest in a cape which will see you through this inbetweeny stage.

Blanket cape £50 Hallhuber

If you’re very pregnant, avoid structured styles and go for a loose blanket style cape like the above from Hallhuber which will fall over your bump. These are also brilliant for post pregnancy and double up as a cosy feeding cover or emergency baby blanket!

The below style from Hobbs is ideal for working into your current wardrobe. It’d work for either the early stages of pregnancy when you’re still trying to conceal your tummy from prying work colleagues or post pregnancy, until you’ve lost that baby weight – and lets face it, it never happens as quickly as you’d hope; especially with all the coffee and sweet treats consumed, so you may as well invest in a decent cake concealer!

Hat £22 Asos. Watch £67 Seconda. Bronzer £27.50 Nars. Boot £79.99 Mango. Scarf £30 Woolovers. Bag £45 Monsoon. Jeans £40 Topshop. Poncho £149 Hobbs. Nail Varnish in Red Wine £2.99 Barry M.

Dress De-Stress

With the party season just round the corner, anyone with a sizeable bump is no doubt dreading coming up with what to wear for the work parties, the family get-togethers or drinks with mates (of the boring non-boozy variety of course). But before you send yourself into an early labour, have a look at the amazing selection of dresses ASOS have to offer.

There’s Seventies inspired maxi dresses, ideal for hiding puffy ankles and if it’s long enough, you could probably get away with wearing flats. And for the folky fans, a selection of embroidered beauties; the berry coloured oriental bird print is my favourite. I actually wore the SS15 pastel version to a wedding earlier this year (see below) when I was 8 months pregnant.

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ASOS_Maternity_Embroidered_Folk_Skater_Dress_-_£45

So panic not, Asos has saved the day and taken the stress out of pregnant party dressing. What’s more, the best thing about being sober for nine months is that you have more money to spend on clothes! Hurrah!

All available from http://www.asos.com

We’re all going on a…Mimi Holliday

Pic credit: Instagram

Bra shopping + Pregnancy. Before you run (or waddle) for the hills, hear me out. Mimi Holliday have the most amazing feeding bras. Fact.

Gone are the days of granny width straps and boring basic colours, Damaris Evans (or ‘The Smalls Saviour’ as I like to call her) has designed the prettiest of pieces that are way too good to stay hidden.

I was kindly given one to try out when I had Florence and can honestly say they’re worth every penny. Ok, they’re not cheap when you think how many nappies you can buy for the same amount, BUT they do make you feel more like you did in your pre-pregnancy days and what’s more, a little flash of lace under a top definitely ups your ‘sexy mum’ status!

www.mimiholliday.com

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