Preggo Style – Day 1

Okay, here we go! Day 1 of the Preggo Style Project (note: I hate the term “preggo” but it somehow stuck during the development of this whole idea, and now my brain can’t seem to think of another title for this series…if you have any ideas, feel free to leave them in the comments) is focused on work-appropriate attire. We wanted to find a look that would work for a business casual work environment, and could also carry over to after work activities. For this, I knew it had to be comfortable, especially in the shoe and torso departments, as long days seem about a million hours longer when you’re pregnant. So without further ado, here is our first look!

From Stylist Extrodinaire, Katie: For me, this look represented a work chic option for those days at the office where you might need to dress up a bit more, say for a luncheon or meeting. I love this look because it’s looks easy and comfortable, yet can keep up with you as you run around. Nothing beats the comfort of leggings – pregnant or not. If you do not own a pair of leggings, matte tights, textured tights or some knee high socks (that I absolutely love at the moment) would rock this look as well. The dress offers a bit of texture to the look, with its geometric pattern, while the cardigan ties everything together. We went for a monochromatic look, opting to stay within neutral tones, but you could “get all crazy” (Megan face) and add bits of color (say in an accessory, or the knee socks you could wear).

From Megan: This outfit pretty accurately represents how I’ve been dressing for work, at least during this last bit of my pregnancy. I apparently own way too many empire waisted / loose-fitting dresses, because most of my non-maternity dresses have been able to be worn throughout each trimester. The dress is a short-sleeved J Crew number I got two years ago on some crazy online sale (it is no longer listed on their website, boo). The sweater I bought at Costco last year when I was under-dressed during a Fall shopping day and needed something to warm up. I wear it all the time, so I’d say it was fate, even though I’m not a big advocate of buying clothing where you buy your bulk toilet paper. I’d tell you the brand, but I cut out the tag because it was super-itchy so I have no idea what the brand actually is. The leggings are from Francesca’s Colletions on the Plaza in Kansas City. The brand is Iris and I love them because they are non-maternity, but cut to somehow fit under the belly, rendering them totally useful throughout this pregnancy. I have two pairs and I wear them constantly.

From Katie: What I love about Megan’s pregnant style is that she loves her figure. She doesn’t want to hide her silhouette and I think that is marvelous. So to tie in (literally) the dress and cardigan combo, we took her existing skinny belt and created an empire waist. The skinny belt was extra fab because of its hint of greenish-bronze that went along with the tones of the look. The jewelry, all separate and different pieces Megan owns, were also a perfect tie in. My belief is that it shouldn’t be to matchy-matchy. Choose one element that can tie all of the pieces together (in this case, we chose color) and let the different styles and textures blend together. The necklace is a perfect example of doing this (in one piece!). While we laid out various looks, I immediately started to scheme about how I could steal these boots (which I thought were Frye’s) without her noticing….but then, you probably shouldn’t steal from pregnant women…and then she told me they were BORN boots. BORN! (!!!) (…check out the knee sock/tight combo! <3 <3 <3) So, I just settled on being jealous of her awesome buy.

From Megan: The necklace was a gift from my sister for my birthday this year…in fact most of my jewelry comes from two places, gifts from my sister or made for me by my sister-in-law. When I first laid eyes on this piece, which she’d purchased at some random purse party sale thing, I thought it was a wee bit much for me. But when I saw it with this outfit, I really liked it. We shortened the chain length a bit so it hit at a more flattering angle, and I think it works. The charms all represent something about me and it even has two empty photo frames for pictures of the kids. (Awwwww!) The boots, as Katie mentioned, are Born’s and they are too awesome for words. My sister-in-law had them when I visited her last year and I coveted them so much, I tracked them down for myself. By that time, it was almost spring so I got a killer deal, at Dillard’s of all places (they retail for $180, but I got mine at $75ish if I remember right). They are easily the most comfortable shoes I own, so they have been go-to footwear this fall, as I’m carrying some extra poundage on my poor feet. The earrings and bracelet were both also gifts from my sister, I believe from Express, circa 2004. The skinny belt is from the J Crew sale bin.

My favorite part about this outfit, other than it’s comfort and styling, is the fact that not one part of it is maternity wear. Proof you don’t need to spend a ton on special maternity gear to get a classic look. Yay for saving money!

Up tomorrow….a bit more color and another, more casual, work look….