Suggestion from Laura B of Sterling Heights, MI
Mother of 10-month old Skylar Steven

I have a winter tip for moms. I love to wear sweaters in the winter, and I'm always freezing (lovely Michigan weather) so I wear turtlenecks to layer. As everyone knows who has done it, it's hard to pull up layer after layer to feed the baby. I bought some really cheap turtlenecks and cut a slit by the seam down the sides. Then I bought some small snaps and sewed those on, and I had a turtleneck that I could wear under an open front top, or sweater. It made everything much easier!

Suggestion from Jody of South Bend, IN
Mother of 12-month old Killian Beckett

Something I thought of after visiting this site: buy yourself some pretty underwear that fits (who cares if it is a bigger size than you wore pre-pregnancy?). My son is about to turn a year old, and I have been wearing the same cotton underwear I wore through my pregnancy--no wonder I don't feel sexy!!!

Suggestion from Kim of Decatur, GA
Mother of 8-week old Sam

I love to wear dresses, especially in the spring and summer. I tried to wear some of my dresses that button down the front for nursing. This is okay in private, but showed too much breast for public breastfeeding. I now wear a thin t-shirt or tank top under my dresses that  I can pull up. This works best with very casual dresses. I plan to get some nursing dresses as well.

Suggestion from Heather H. of Charlotte, NC
Mother of a 2-month old girl

Heather responded to our Nursing Bra Survey with this  funny but on-the-money observation:

Truthfully, frills matter a lot less to me than comfort. I was in labor 36 hours with my husband's kid, he can live with a frumpy bra.

Suggestion from Crystal R. of Tuscon, AZ
Mother of 6-year old Megan, 4-year old Seth, 2-year old Alison and a new addition any day now! (as of 5/12/99...)

Someone once suggested wearing a safety pin on my bra, on the side last nursed on, so I'd remember which side to start the next feeding with. Then I found out you can actually buy (as in, pay good money for) a little device to slip onto your brastrap. Well, safety pins sometimes show thru your clothes, and I don't have extra $$ to waste on little knick-knacks. I wore a ring, and changed hands to remind me instead!

Suggestion from Amanda G-P of Caribou, ME
Mother of 4-week-old Cameron and 2 year-old Stenson

When you're home alone w/ the kids, go topless! I know it sounds weird, but it's a lot easier to put a hungry baby to the breast when you don't have anything to undo. Just be sure you don't answer the door like that!

Editor's note: I have been trying to convince Roxanne to use this fashion tip for many years now.  Since even before we had Cameron. 

Suggestion from Kristy S of Los Angeles, CA
Mother of 2 3/4 year-old Isaac and 6 /12 month-old Gabriel

My post-baby uniform with my second child was a slimming, black pull-on skirt with a sexy or cute tank/camisole under one of my husband's oxford-style shirts. The skirt/shirt combo disguised post-baby poundage, while the tank/oxford pairing looked a little funky and allowed for discreet and easy nursing. They showed off my newly acquired cleavage which was nice for a former A-cup!

Suggestion from Sprite of Vancouver, BC
Mother of 3 1/2 year-old Wyatt Benjamin George and 11-month Haven Olivia Abigail

I found an awesome designer when I was pregnant with my first baby. The name was Ma Divine Clementine, but it might be changed now to Clementine Mama. I bought the cutest maternity dress ever low cut square neck, and empire waist, slits at side,and didn't have any cash with this last pregnancy, otherwise I would have bought a killer chartreuse suit (for maternity!) so much style, really edgy lines. I saw this brand in Nursery Magic in Vernon, BC and at Maternal Instincts in Vancouver BC (Canada) It might be hard for US people, but might be something for OHM to look into? Seriously, i haven't found anything else that compares in fabrics and cut. And comfort! And sexiness!

Thanks, Stephanie. Funny you should mention Ma Divine Clementine. I just got their buyer brochure from my LA sales rep. We'll post your hint and look into carrying their stuff (If only they made nursing clothes, too!)
Regards,
Roxanne

Suggestion from Roxanne of Los Angeles, CA
Mother of 22 month-old Cameron

Warning!! Do not, repeat, do not fall for the "capri pants are summer's hot look" hype. Unless you're under 14, they grab fat in all the wrong places, make everyone look short and chopped off, and create a really unfortunate look that only an ob/gyn could love. Wanna look hip? Cropped pants, like those at the Gap and the Limited. They're loose fitting and comfy and also very trendy. For the love of God, please stay away from the capris!

Editor's note:  I thought capris was a drink.

Suggestion from Tina C. of Costa Mesa, CA
Mother of 5 year-old Jordan and 6 month-old Jared

Tired of pinching, pulling and pushing from your active nursling? Do what I did! Go to a craft store, buy standard plastic beads (cheap for a big bag) and nylon cord. Make nursing necklaces! They are fun, they are kicky and I have them in color combinations to match all my clothes.I feel "put-together" since I love jewelry but cannot wear my good stuff for a while. The necklaces are part of my Mommy-uniform and best of all they keep my little 6 month-old monster occupied during nursing. He also loves to chew on them when I am carrying him in the sling. Much preferred over glasses, hair, and other things that babies grab.

Suggestion from Kathy M. of Diamond Bar, CA
Mother of 4 month-old Ryan

I don't own any nursing clothes at all, besides bras. I'm short and have been overly *blessed* up top, so it's impossible to find nursing clothes that don't make me look pregnant.

So what the heck do I wear? Well, aside from pullovers that I lift to nurse, I mostly wear an overshirt and a tank top underneath. The overshirt can be denim, flannel, dressy, whatever. The tank tops are short, so I don't have to tuck and untuck them all day, but can still show off my new waist! For dressy occasions, I wear a silk blouse (washable, of course) over a wrap-around skirt. The blouse gets tied in front, which ends up looking casual-chic.

Suggestion from Lisa L. of Hollwood, CA
Seven weeks to go 'till first baby! (as of 6/6)

Suggestion: For days when my belly button feels like it's going to pop, I slip a circle of 4" wide elastic around my waist. Cost=$2.50 at about any fabric store.

I did something similar so that my sarongs wouldn't always fall down. I put D-rings onto a length of 2" wide elastic, and tuck the sarongs into it, so they stay secure all day long.

Personally, I'm not fond of most maternity clothes, and prefer the
sophistication of these nicely draped skirts when I'm out & about in the
city.

Suggestion #2:  For pregnancy and beyond, I bought a couple of all-nylon & lycra t-shirts in an extra long style. They go over my pregnant belly, feel nice & snug, and the more sophisticated fabric keeps me from looking too frumpy... you know that fading, over-washed cotton look? Not for me.

Suggestion from Lani of Stamford, CT
Mother of 6 month-old Sam

My tip for winter dressing is to take some old or inexpensive T-shirts, cut 2 slits in them for nursing and wear them under sweaters, sweatsirts, etc. It keeps you warm and allows you to nurse without showing off your belly!

Also, for summer I bought one of the trendy tankinis. It is stylish, like a bikini but covers more and since it is 2pieces, easy to nurse at the beach!

Suggestion from Rebecca W of Provo, UT.
Mother of 2 year-old Michael and 9 month-old Emmalie

I'm like you, the flapped nursing shirts have to go.  However, they cover great for public nursing.  My new solution?  I bought a cheap discount store ribbed t-shirt and cut holes in it (under the breast so they don't show thru close fitting things, as they can if they're over the fullest part,on a diagonal, above your waistline). I also bought several summer sweater vests and a denim vest which all are cropped at the waist.  Easy to lift up, t-shirt stays tucked in and I feel very covered!!  It's working great and for $7-8 for the t-shirt I can have several in different colors.That idea above about cutting on the side seam was great because then it can be worn under things that open in front instead of lift from the waist!

Thanks for the great web-site!  Can't wait for my shirt!!

Suggestion from Jenny L. of Santa Clara, CA
Mother of  2 1/2 month-old Lucy Elizabeth

Despite having stretch marks that resemble flames painted on the hood of a hot rod, and dark circles under my eyes from the all-night partying of Ms. Lucy, I still feel like a hot cookie. Why?  Because I wear fabulous shoes.  That pregnant foot growth thing was the perfect excuse to spring for some hot sandals.  My current faves are from Steve Madden (who has a website: stevemadden.com). Maybe it's because I can finally SEE my feet again, or maybe platform shoes with red toenail polish reaffirm that not all mommies get poodle perms and wear sweats 24-7 (a fear of my DH) ~ all I know is I get a sense of satisfaction in looking current and pulled together.

For the swim season, due to the aforementioned racing stripe stretch marks, I'm looking for options.  I'm considering surf-style board shorts, but would welcome some other options... It's not that I am ashamed of having stretch marks, I just don't want to invite offers to race other mamas with similar stripes.   ;)

Suggestion from OneFatMama (Julia) of Wichita, KS
Mother of  13 month-old Andrew

I've actually found, believe it or not, nursing tops at Sears (in their maternity section.).   Anyway, since I'm one short Fat mama, I've had to hunt all over for stuff. One thing that worked for me for church was to get a couple packages of the xl or xxl men's "athletic" style sleeveless tanks - you know, the kind that the arm holes go all the way down to your waist and you wouldn't be caught dead wearing it without anything else in public (very much similar to the one lady's suggestion of going topless!), but I'd just wear it under my short button-down tops instead of a bra. The fabric is kinda snug, it's 100% cotton so it feels nice, because of the huge armholes, it feels "sexy" or "naughty" knowing you are wearing a top that your husband would approve of ;-) and you can then just unbutton or pull up the shirt from the bottom, pull the tit out from the arm hole and let your nursling latch on. If someone comes in or "sees" you, basically they just see that you have a white top on under your shirt.    In my fantasy life, I was actually going to dye these athletic underwear shirts all kinds of cute colors - purples, blues, pinks, whatever... maybe I'll get around to it before the next one. Right now, my firstborn is 13 months old as of 6/16/99

Suggestion from Shelby H. of Paris, France
Mother of  5!  (Gabrielle, 11; Lydia, 9; Isaac, 7; John-Nathan, 4; Martin, 18 mo.)

I know this may sound weird but hats have lifted my morale. A friend at church bought me one that I can wear all the time dressed up or down and that coordinates with my nursing clothes from Elizabeth Lee.  So what if you think the styles aren't too trendy.  What matters is how you sew it & in what fabric.  I've been able to go from chic to funky with several of her patterns.  Nursing mothers are extemely creative. Loved the nursing necklace idea.

Suggestion from Lisa of Vancouver, BC
Mother of Elinor Violet - 7 months

I loathe nursing bras so ended up wearing sports bras, for both the pregnancy and for nursing. They give wonderful support for a "chesty" gal and some models have either zippers up front (Champion Jogbra) or hooks up front (Speedo) for easy access. They don't look frumpy at all - just sporty and, yes, sexy!

Suggestion from Nicole S of Southwest   Harbor, Maine
Mother of Emma, 33 months, and Brenna, 7 months

My Super Secret nursing shirt got me thinking...  My local cheapo clothing retailer (Fashion Bug) has a million faux twin sets for summer.  One could easily add nursing openings in the same place as the aforementioned SSNS has them.  Now, mind you, I do not want to take business away from OHM (you guys Rock!), but if $ is tight and you can stand poly/cotton blends you may want to check it out.  Don't ask why I was in FB to begin with!

Bob asks: Why were you in FB to begin with?

Suggestion from Kelly O of Chandler, AZ
Mother of Abigail, 3, and  Molly, 5 months

Hey, I did the Fashion Bug thing last night, on the recommendation above. It was on clearance for $10. It actually worked. Tips: just be careful where you put the holes so they don't show through the top piece. Wear it while making your initial cut, so you know where the cut should be, and aim for a little under the breast, where the fabric hangs rather than where it lays on you. Anyway... cool idea. Now I'm going to start looking for some less cheap ones.

From Stefanie of  Dallas, TX
Mother of  Zane Lance 6, and Alessandra Dominique 10 months

Either I can't find any nursing bras that are cute/sexy [except for the ones at One Hot Mama] or I can't find any in my size so I just don't wear them!  I've found it super easy just to slide the shoulder strap off my shoulder  then uncover my breast half way, just enough to be able to nurse.  It's very easy and I can wear any bra I want!   Well, I haven't figured out how to nurse in a strapless bra yet! :)

From Elizabeth B of Alexandria, VA
Mother of Christopher John, 5 months

1) During the summer I wore tank tops and pareos (sarongs).  Made me feel pretty and almost like I was on vacation!

2) For me, overalls over a skinny t-shirt has worked great as nursingwear!

From Laurie

Someone fairly common (I've seen them at Sears and JCPenny) - I think it's Olga brand - makes comfy lycra spagetti strapped tank tops with a shelf bra inside. It occurred to me while planning my attire for hubby's company's Christmas dinner that one of these would be great to wear under a matching color blouse, tucked into bottoms or hose. You could then lift your outer shirt from the bottom and pull the tank down from the top to nurse, and your tummy would remain covered. You could even omit a nursing bra if you're not too endowed which would reduce the bulk. Am I the only one that gets easily overheated while carrying and nursing a baby? Anyway, there it is, hope that helps someone somewhere.

With love, Laurie