No doubt about it, becoming a mother requires sacrifices. But style need not be one of them.
That’s the mantra of an expanding cadre of designers who are dedicating themselves to making modern maternity clothes. Free of Peter Pan collars, string ties and metal clips at the back of the waist–and often using stretch fabrics in place of panels at the belly–these styles won’t look like frumpy interlopers hanging next to your regular wardrobe.
On the premise that pregnancy shouldn’t be incompatible with personal style, Cherie Serota and Jody Gardner founded Belly Basics in 1994, creating an instant hit with their Pregnancy Survival Kit, a box of four black cotton and Lycra basics. Since then they have added other items that keep pace with fashion trends, from boot-cut pants to twin sweater sets. They share their accumulated wisdom in the recently published book “Pregnancy Chic: The Fashion Survival Guide” (Random House).
Their philosophy also is shared by several designers who have emerged in the last year, most notably Liz Lange, Pumpkin Maternity and L’Attesa. Although they’re all based in New York, the clothes are sold via catalog or the Internet, making them readily available to women across the country. (Belly Basics is also carried at several Chicago-area stores.) Clean lines, updated silhouettes and upgraded fabrics distinguish them from the majority of polyester blends hanging in maternity shops.
“I think a woman who is pregnant really looks best in a clean, pared-down, simple style,” says Liz Lange, who makes capri pants, shift dresses and tailored jackets in European stretch wool. Her silk and cashmere twin sets have become a must-have item for pregnant supermodels. “And when you keep the design simple, one benefit is the designs become very versatile.”
The way Pumpkin Wentzel of Pumpkin Maternity sees it, an expectant mother has about as much call for such traditional feminine flourishes as bows, floral prints and lace as the Sahara has for a few extra truckloads of sand.
“Women are at their most feminine when they’re pregnant,” says Wentzel, who injects her sense of downtown cool into camp shirts, knee-length shorts and bandanna-print sundresses in machine-washable fabrics. “They don’t need ruffles or shiny fabric to make them more feminine.”
