A Maternity Wardrobe: Options to Not Buy New

You know what is not that fun about being pregnant? Needing to create an entirely new wardrobe around your ever-expanding belly.

Well, some people might like that, but I do not.

Luckily, I have been able to craft my maternity wardrobe in a handful of ways that help keep my own personal impact down.

Borrowing From Others

My cousin and her friends have been accumulating maternity clothing for years and through a number of babies. They kept passing the collection back and forth to whoever was pregnant next.

They were happy to loan me their 3 BINS OF CLOTHES! After doing some sorting based on style and size, I picked out a good start of long sleeve shirts, sweaters, and some pants.

A friend who had a baby in 2018 also let me borrow some more clothes from her. Now that I have multiple peoples’ clothes, I had to make a mark on the tag of each to help me remember whose is whose when it is time to give them back.

Buying Secondhand

I love ThredUP normally, so I looked to them for some secondhand maternity styles. I ordered some basics like a few t-shirts, tank tops, a dress, and leggings so far. The dress and leggings still had tags!

Given that there is just one of everything it is important to check every once in a while on their ever-changing availability.

Using What I Already Own

For the most part, I am still working in my regular clothes into my wardrobe. I bought some longer tank tops that I can wear under a lot of my shirts to extend them and I have one of those belly bands to keep my pants up. In the beginning, I employed the hair tie trick with my pants.

Unfortunately, as I get bigger it is harder and harder to incorporate my normal clothes. My shirts and sweaters are not long enough and when I wear my regular pants with the belly band, I live in constant fear that the band has ridden up and 1) my unzipped fly is exposed or 2) my bottom is hanging out!

But Also Buying What I Need

This is not to say I have not bought anything brand new. I did get a couple basics (the tanks I mentioned, 2 long sleeves, tights, jeans) and some workout gear (2 tanks, 2 shirts, and 1 pair of leggings), but I consider my purchases to be pretty minimal so far. We shall see what happens when my belly really starts to get big in the third trimester!

Overall

The absolute worst part about buying maternity clothes (whether secondhand or brand new) is you cannot try them on! I literally have no idea what will fit me and basically, all stores that have maternity lines do not carry them in the store, meaning you have to order multiple styles and sizes just to see what works for your body! To add to that, most physical stores do not accept maternity style returns and require returns to be mailed in only.

It is frustrating and annoying and I totally get why leggings are the primary uniform of the pregnant woman.

No More New Clothes

Having been laid off from my job, I am now on a bit tighter of a budget than I was before. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to test my own willpower.

While I am not a big shopper (I get bored after maybe an hour on a good day), I definitely do buy new clothes here and there. Especially with the back to school season in full swing and all the cozy, warm fall sweaters and boots showing up in the stores.

I already have sweaters, boots, and scarves, and definitely don’t NEED anymore.

So, for the rest of 2016, I will not be purchasing any new clothes or shoes.

One of the best ways to avoid temptation is to remove yourself from store’s email lists. If I do not know they are having a 40% off sale, then I am more likely not to start browsing and see what is on sale.

 

No more of these. Unsubscribe.

 

I did this weekend go to a craft fair and flea market, but I am not counting my purchases from either. I supported local, handmade products and bought second-hand.

I will be keeping you updated! Do you have any suggestions and what has worked for you?

Where Is My Stuff Going? Donation and Recycling Centers

My move is coming up in just a few short days and I am starting to get a bit overwhelmed with what is coming with me and where other things are going to new homes.

I had to make a list of where everything was going just to keep track!

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• Eyeglasses– Lions Clubs International or ask your optometrist

• Electronics– Forest Preserve District of Cook County

• Clothing/shoes– Amvets and Neat Repeats Resale which benefits the Crisis Center for South Suburbia

• Small Appliances– Amvets and Neat Repeats

• Ink Cartridges– Target

• Random Other Things– Being sold on Craigslist and Facebook Sale Groups  and to friends

I am in the Chicagoland area, so my list is based off of what is available in my area.

Do you have a list or know of a list of recycling and donation centers you have used in your city?

I Am Emotionally Attached to My T-Shirts, Are You?

I am betting right now that you have an exorbitant amount of t-shirts. The are stuffed in a number of places throughout your room. They are under your bed, in your closet, and in your dresser. Maybe you even have some in a bag in the basement because you just can’t seem to part with them. When I moved to DC for a semester in college, I remember having a hard time deciding which 6 shirts I should bring with, then I somehow lost one, and I was weirdly upset about it.

You have collected t-shirts since you joined your first team sport in Kindergarten (that would be T-ball for me, see below).

Yup, this is from t-ball in the 90’s. Still have it. Under my bed.

You have shirts from school clubs, events, volunteering, and grabbing one shot from a t-shirt gun at a college basketball game. We clamor and fight over a free t-shirt that usually ends up being an XL and pretty ugly. Have you ever actually ended up wearing that t-shirt you fought so hard for? Probably not. If I have not donated that shirt, I might have ended up wearing it to bed.

Along with the random ones we have acquired over the years, there are ones that hold a special place in our hearts. We just cannot give them up. They hold memories and feelings you cannot just toss in the donation pile.

One way I have calmed the anxiety of purging t-shirts I am emotionally attached to, is by having my shirts made into the t-shirt quilt. That way I still get to keep those memories and I get to be snuggled up in them. It is even better than wearing them. I highly recommend a t-shirt quilt/blanket for anyone who has trouble letting go. I have had 2 made now. One was all my t-shirts up through high school and the second that was just finished was all my college shirts.

My first t-shirt blanket was a gift for my 20th birthday. It is gigantic!

My second was a Christmas present. Went for a little smaller one this time!

Obviously these are not all the t-shirts I own. I just picked special ones that fit well together. To get your shirts made into a blanket:

• Find some one on Etsy
• Go to a local craft fair, there usually is at least one booth dedicated to t-shirt quilts
• Ask around! I had a local woman do it and I am so pleased that I got to support her as well as not have to ship my t-shirts somewhere. Additionally, I got to be a part of the process in person. We discussed what I was looking for, color schemes, fabrics, etc.

So, what other ways can you deal with the t-shirts you are emotionally attached to?

Moving = Opportunity to Purge

I am super excited to be moving into the City of Chicago on April 1st. While I have grown up in the suburbs of Chicago, I have never had the opportunity to actually live in the city. This is because I previously lived in Bloomington, Indiana, and Washington DC.

So with that excitement comes a lot of change and a lot of opportunities.

Since this blog is about living with less, I am going to take this chance to make some real decisions on how to live minimally and how to make a move less wasteful .

Ironically, I have a ton of stuff. It just accumulates over time. When I moved out to DC, I had only what could fit in the car. When I moved back to IL over a year and a half later, I had an entire van stuffed to the brim! Most of my stuff is not new either. I have countless pieces of furniture that I have “collected” over the years from friends, relatives, and craigslist.

I am not the only with this problem. There are plenty of other WordPress bloggers out there purging their closets too:

• https://minkajoy.wordpress.com/2016/01/21/closet-purge-update/
• https://chaewjeong.wordpress.com/2015/08/04/closet-purge/
• http://indigo-jones.com/2015/05/15/coming-out-of-the-closet/

And you will find tons of posts and resources about it elsewhere:

• http://theeverygirl.com/7-questions-to-ask-when-cleaning-out-your-closet
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/13/7-ways-to-edit-your-closet_n_1881632.html
• http://recoveringshopaholic.com/the-keep-or-purge-question/

Not only do I have too much stuff, this move comes with a combination of all my stuff, plus all my boyfriend’s stuff. We have both lived alone before, so we have almost double of everything. He is doing is own closet purge as well.

As we get closer to moving day, I will have to start going through my things and paring down what can fit in our 1 bedroom, 750 square foot apartment. It will definitely be an adjustment, but I am excited to do it! Do you have any suggestions for downsizing?