Her Majesty, The Queen of Carrots, asks a tough question, tough for me because it’s been so long since I’ve been in maternity clothes. I’m expecting lots of help!
Her question:
On a very old topic, I went back and tried the measuring the four zones thing and found my measurements were almost the same as yours except my Zone 2 was even longer proportionally. And I do tend to gravitate towards sharp distinctions at the waist–belts, scarves, short jackets, strong color contrasts. So what I really wonder is, what do I do with this zone when I’m pregnant? I don’t have a full-length mirror, but I rather suspect maternity tops are making my legs disappear altogether. Or should I just be grateful to have lots of room to fit a baby in?
Yes, lots of room for baby is something to be thankful for. 😉 I’ve also heard a number of people say that because of a long torso they didn’t need pregnancy clothes as soon.
A couple of thoughts, though, concerning maternity top shapes:
- I like the look of the cute maternity tops they have out now with a pretty ribbon tied just below the bust. If you had a top that was long enough, you could add your own ribbon. This breaks up the zone a bit. Tying a belt around the hip would also break up the zone.
- The other thought is to use this opportunity to wear the short dress as top look.
(Sorry- I know you’re not crazy about pink.)
Picture these dresses with shorts, pants, or leggings under.
What other suggestions do you readers have? Anybody else have this dilemma? (All illustrations via GapMaternity – Clothes.)
All the geometry/spatial relationships makes my head swim but if this means the short
thigh space, too, then maybe a clue is working with the hemline of the tops and dresses
so that they’re as short as possible and then legs portion looking longer? People never
seem to think too much about altering the length of maternity things. I guess the “interest” –
the extra details – that a longer section/room can support can include the bump?
If you reframe the situation to being an Apple or Diamond shape body, does that give
good options?
Well, I am going to be thinking and posting about maternity clothes a lot in the next several months, when I’m not looking at baby name books and planning a nursery. 🙂
I haven’t done the zone measurements because I’m kind of lazy and it may make me even more uncertain about what works and what doesn’t. But I’ll share a few thoughts about maternity tops… I’ve been out looking at maternity top offerings about 4 times already and I’m only a few weeks.
1) Some maternity tops are cut long and some are cut quite a bit shorter. The difficulty with the shorter ones is if you are going to be wearing bottoms with a panel or other material that needs to be covered. I think a mix of longer and shorter maternity top lengths is good. Choose a couple longer ones so you’re covered if you run into issues with needing to cover a panel. Also, choose some bottoms with and without panels if you can, so you don’t always have to be concerned with worrying about coverage.
2) I tend to dislike the really long maternity top, but remember when you’re 8 or 9 months, the belly is going to make that top rise up. That’s the disadvantage of a shorter top, is that it will pull up with a bigger belly.
3) I would look at other tricks to make the legs look longer, like no capris, and choosing shoes that visually lengthen the leg line.
4) A pregnant belly will change all the proportions, and so all the dressing rules change. I wouldn’t worry about a long torso but focus instead on choosing colors that make you feel good and necklines that are attractive for your upper body. I’d also look for fun details on tops that will give the maternity outfit more overall interest. All the style in maternity wear comes from the styling of the top (well and accessories). The bottoms are mostly pretty boring, so I’d search for a selection of tops that are fun and flattering, first and then match up the bottoms afterward.
Rebecca, I love the images you got from the Gap!
Well, I am short waisted and I’m still having trouble finding maternity tops that are long enough now that I’m in the 3rd trimester. For some reason, designers seem to think that if you are 7+ months pregnant and normally wear a medium, your belly will stay medium sized too. Ha! Under-the-belly jeans with a too-short shirt=not so flattering.
I have thought about the mini dress over jeans look too. Very workable.
I’m picturing that pink as a bright, crisp spring green and those are very cute tops. I might try a coordinating scarf with a plain shirt, too.
The short dress over jeans idea might be a good one, too. I just found out it’s twins so I’m definitely going to be needing some larger-capacity items before too long.
I’ll try to stay away from capris, but I’m going to have to find something else cool to wear in June. Hmmm . . . what if I cut old capris into knee-length shorts? Probably too ambitious a project while I’m trying to find room for twins in the house.
Twins! Congratulations! 🙂
The top on the left is actually available in that green! The alternative to pink in the paisley is black & white.
I have to say I keep thinking about the mini-dress over pants look done with capris, or even a skirt. At least try it on and let us know if it works. 🙂 Remember: long over short, short over long. Also, if you have capris you want to cut off to shorter, just cut them and fray them. Don’t worry about a hem.
Karen – thanks for all the ideas! I’m excited to watch your blog as this topic progresses. 🙂
My favorite maternity outfit was a mini dress over a slim skirt. Wish I could wear that look now!
Wow! Twins!!! Congrats!
I’m just getting through a pregnancy (32w) and I’m found sad when facing my wardrobe for every passing day changes me a bit. (ok, maybe not every day, but surely every week changes things around. and I mean aROUUUUND!). The idea of a mini dress over a jeans or leggings is just great! I’m playing with summer dresses right now because they’re easy to wear and easy to adapt my changing body. I think you should do the same (concentrate more on the dresses than tops) because it’s more easy to live with and far more easy to match!
Have a great pregnancy and the most easy delivery possible! bless you!