A couple weeks ago, the topic of my weekly Facebook Live Playgroup was “Shake Off The Mom Frump” with my dear friend Tiffany Reese. (If you missed it, you should give it a watch. Tiff and I share all our fav. mom beauty products.) Recently, I got an email from a pregnant mom who was wondering if I had any similar tips for getting through early pregnancy frump.
I felt like it deserved a blog post instead of just an email reply, so here you go.
This mom mentioned she’s 8 weeks pregnant and the bloat is setting in. Trust me, I know that struggle! I was about 7.5 weeks pregnant when I had to squeeze myself into a formal dress to accept my Iris Award last May. The bloat was real. It took 2 friends to pack me and allllllll of my boobs into it. I can’t believe we got it zipped. Thank goodness I had a blowout appointment that day and time to put on a good face of makeup. I had to fight back the feelings of frump and ick, but I wasn’t going to let them ruin my night.
Two lessons I can share from this experience:
1. Dress in forgiving clothes.
You won’t fill out maternity clothes just yet, but don’t go trying to squeeze yourself into stiff chiffon (or jeans with zippers). This is actually a great time to stock up on pieces that will also serve as transition pieces after you have baby, too. Don’t spend a lot of $$ on this. These are not investment pieces. You’ll likely end up hating these clothes in 18 months. Try the juniors section in a size larger than you usually wear at Target or Walmart. If you have no budget to work with, see if any friends have some bigger clothes they are looking to unload.
You don’t need a ton. A few bottoms, a few tops, maybe a couple dresses. If/when nausea sets in, there may be quite a few days you don’t get dressed at all. Elastic waists, leggings, tunics, swing or A-line dresses- these are your friends. I found a couple pair of elastic waist denim shorts at Target last year that took me a long way through pregnancy, and I’m rocking them again now in the 4th trimester (thanks to this non-existent Texas winter we’re having).
I also really like these tunics from Amazon. I ordered a size larger than I usually wear. Pair them with some regular leggings in the beginning, and then transition to BLANQI maternity leggings when you start to pop.
2. Take good care of your hair and skin.
Treat yourself, even! If you are due for a root touchup or haircut when you find out you’re pregnant, try to get in and get that done asap before you get too sick and tired to sit in a chair for that long. My advice is to not do anything drastic to your hair at this time- no super short cuts, no new bangs, no new hair colors. Stick with what you know how to style and what you know looks good on you. Pregnancy hormones do not mess around, and you could end up on the salon floor in the fetal position, sobbing about how you think you look like a chipmunk with those new layers.
Of course, dry shampoo is a good tool for all stages of life, including pregnancy. And shaking in a little volumizing powder before you put your hair up in a ponytail or messy bun can really help elevate your everyday I-don’t-care hairstyle.
Pregnancy clears my skin up so beautifully… only after it completely wrecks it in the first trimester. My bloat and onset of nausea also come with breakouts all over my face and my back. The only thing I can do is keep my skin clean, drink tons of water, and wait it out. Don’t skip out on cleaning your face at least every night before bed, no matter how tired you are. I highly recommend stocking up on makeup cleaning wipes. I like Burts Bees and Neutrogena.
The most important thing to remember- give. yourself. a. break. This won’t last forever. You’ll be filling out maternity clothes soon, and, hopefully, you’ll get some relief in the 2nd trimester. It’s okay – IT’S NORMAL- to feel blah about how you look, to be exhausted, to not want to get dolled up, to hate the way you look when you do, to cry so hard you scare people. All of that is just another day of real life when you’re pregnant. ((HUGS!))
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