Well I woke up this morning 100% sure that I was finally in my 3rd trimester but alas I was wrong. Apparently I have to be at the END of m 27th week before I enter that phase. So instead of sharing with you my 2nd timester style guide I had planned. I am presenting to you my Maternity Swimwear Survival Guide. For those of you who happen to love baby bumps, this post will delight you. For those of you that think there is absolutley nothing attractive or worthy of admiration about a baby bump, you may want to check out something else. And for those of you who simply have a morbid curiosity of what I look like in a bathing suit…..Let me entertain you (and I really can’t believe I am doing this)……
Let’s start with coverups. My kids are 4 and 2 (almost 3) and already for the past month we have been going swimming every single day. So basically I am living in my bathing suit. I think it is pretty obvious that while pregnant cute coverups are important. My normal cutoff shorts are not an option right now, nor are my adorable rompers. So I pulled out all my short summer dresses and declared them my maternity coverups.
Maternity Coverups (without being “maternity”)
Dress: Hand-me-down, Sunglasses- Rayban, Shoes- Havaianas
Dress- Target, Sunglasses- Gift, Shoes- Steve Madden
I like the relaxed feel this option has. When layered over your bathing suit you do not have to worry about the right bra, or the length, or completling the ensemble with the right jewelry. It just screams I am headed to the beach/pool and it is automatically cute. I may not start my day off wearing a bathing suit and coverup but once I am wearing it, I most likely will not be taking it off until bedtime.
Now let’s talk about the actual bathing suits. I will start with the more typical maternity suit and then move toward the more daring option. I am actually comfortable in both and I switch off between the two often (sometimes depending on the crown at hand). I also have a couple tips, that have made me feel a lot cuter in a bathing suit while looking like a beached whale.
The Tankini Maternity Look
Top- Motherhood Maternity, Bottoms- Target (Not Maternity)
Ok, I HATE maternity swimwear. HATE IT HATE IT HATE IT! But the last time I was pregnant (3 years ago) I bought this black maternity tankini top and a separate black pair of bottoms from a different shop (I will talk about those later). It took me FOREVER to find a suit that I didn’t loath and this one ended up being a pretty good buy. The key was that it was fitted instead of loose or billowy. It actually works when I am not pregnant as a sort of “vintage” look since it is so long and straight. This pregnancy I decided it looked a lot cute when paired with some fun bottoms and since the tankini is long and black it really goes with any bottoms. I like to feel like I am not limited just because I am pregnant.
Top- J.Crew (not maternity), Bottoms- Pea in the Pod
Ok Natalia, I know you probably just screamed a little and even maybe threw up in your mouth (Don’t worry I understand) …. But here it is! The bump in all its glory. Now let me explain how I made this look work for me. I am a pretty average pregnant woman, I think. I am NOT all tummy. I get some extra padding in my thighs, my hips, and my love handles (what’s up with that!!??? There is no baby growing in any of those areas!) So my normal bathing suit bottoms are not so flattering (can you say muffin top?) That’s where the maternity bikini bottoms come in. They don’t squeeze me in all the wrong places but they also fit me in all the right places. I choose this instead of the larger non maternity bottoms I bought thinking they would accomplish the same thing but ended up almost falling off of me after getting wet. And the top is from one of my normal bathing suits and I will be honest I can’t think of a single reason you would need to buy a maternity bikini top unless you like the idea of paying $$$$ for the maternity label.
I hope this was a little helpful! I will be linking up with all the normal Link Parties this week! XOXO- Christie
@christiejean17
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Awww! I love this! (Im pretty sure I say this for all your posts Christy!) Your bump is so cute
And why is maternity clothing so expensive? Is it another way to make pregnant women miserable?!
No joke! It’s so ridiculous! Thanks for the compliment! You can tell me any time
These are great tips for the someday pregnant Alyx. And…your bump is adorable.
You look fab! I don’t do swimsuits…even NOT pregnant. LOL
I wish I would of had this guide when I was pregnant with my kids.
Christie, you look amazing. Love it! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Liz!
Yay! I can finally comment again! (don’t know what was going on, but I couldn’t load posts for a while) I received one hand-me-down maternity bathing suit, and it is hideous. I don’t like putting on a bathing suit anyway, so it’s not the end of the world. Plus, you look adorable in that bikini!
Seriously! Most maternity bathing suits are SO hideous! What in the world? Glad you are able to comment!
You rock it. There’s no way I would have been able to pull it off, but you are adorable. Jodi @ http://www.meaningfulmama.com
Thank you! Trust me i was pretty iffy about putting this post out there! lol Thanks for the encouragement!
You are SO cute girl!!!!
I have that same black top and love it (pregnant or not!) You look so cute and I love all the ‘cover ups’ you have!
You look awesome! I actually had the opposite problem while preggo – my bikini bottoms fit fine (okay, slight muffin top going on), but my boobs were busting out all over the place in my regular bikini tops, so I had to get a bigger size in those.
Lol! Well pregnancy certainly brings out different things in all of us! Thanks for the comment!