Ethical, Sustainable Maternity Clothing
From top left: Isabella Oliver / Hatch / Boob Maternity / Storq
I never quite succeeded in creating a my dream capsule wardrobe, but before I got pregnant I was in a pretty good place clothing-wise. I'd found ethical versions of most of my wardrobe staples, sewn a few things, and curbed my purchasing habits quite a bit. I was hoping I could somehow adapt my wardrobe for pregnancy without having to spend too much.
After all, it seemed really lame to go out and buy a bunch of new clothes that I could only wear for > nine months. Talk about waste! Talk about being a target demographic! I could work around the bump, right? Defy the expectations of society and Google Ads alike?
Oh, how naive I was. I'm only four months in and not really that big yet, but I've already had to put much of my "normal" wardrobe away.
One of the problems is that I didn't wear much loose, flowing clothing to begin with. Most of my dresses are fitted at the waist, and I tend to forgo knit blouses in favor of cotton or silk blends that don't leave much wiggle room. Even my looser shift dresses now make me look like a tent, and the hems of my blouses are rising to scandalous heights. I'm at a point that I need to find some ethically-made staple pieces, and fast.
I spent some time last weekend scouring the internet and other ethical fashion blogs to find the cutest sustainable maternity and maternity-friendly brands out there. Did I miss anything? Pregnant or formerly-pregnant ladies speak up!
Strictly Maternity
- Boob Design | Made sustainably in Turkey and Portugal
- Storq | Made in USA
- Hatch | Several made in the USA options
- Leota | Made in USA
- Mitera | Made in USA
- Tiffany Rose Maternity | Designed and made in Britain
- Envie de Fraise | Made in France | Adorable maternity swimwear
- Isabella Oliver | Made in Portugal | Note: While I wasn't able to find much information on Isabella Oliver's website in terms of sustainable practices, they do have a stated commitment to timeless design an high-quality fabric. Their clothes are worth checking out if you think you can wear them post-pregnancy.
Skirt by Storq
Monika Top by Reformation
Maternity-Friendly
- Ace and Jig | Lots of loose, flowy stuff, if that's your thing.
- M.M. Lafleur | Made in USA | Check out their blog post detailing how Maura Kutner Walters, the Digital Executive Editor of Condé Nast Traveler, adapted M.M. Lafleur dresses during her pregnancy.
- Synergy | Made with certified organic materials using fair labor practices | Lots of jersey, lots of stretch!
- Reformation | Sustainable and made in USA | Ok, so while 99.9% of Reformation's clothing is not maternity-friendly, they do carry some gorgeous wrap tops, like the one pictured to the left, that could be layered over a maternity dress and tied above the bump. I'm going to try this one out, and hopefully have a cute wrap top I can wear post-baby :)