When should I start wearing pregnancy clothes?

Every pregnancy is different. I've been selling maternity clothing since 2015 and my earliest showing Mama-to-be was showing at 10 weeks, and the latest was 34 weeks. These are two extremes.

Most first pregnancies start to outgrow their pants late in the first trimester, and early second trimester. Your pants start to cut in and feel uncomfortable when you sit down. And you'll be using a hair elastic to keep your button waistbands done up. Around this time is when some pregnant people choose to buy a belly band. 

A belly band is a nylon blend band of fabric that you wear overtop your waistband to keep your pants from falling down and your underwear from showing. 

Around 19 to 22 weeks pregnant you'll have a small bump that you can visibly see. Around this time you'll be looking for bottoms and will start buying tops to swap out your pre pregnancy pieces. Work clothes are usually substituted first since comfort, function and appearance matter the most. 

If you're only carrying one baby, you'll "pop" around 30 to 35 weeks. This is when you'll look "pregnant" and not fat. When your belly button might become an outy, and when some of the maternity tops you bought in your first & second trimesters might be getting too short to cover your bump. 

If you'd like to learn more about maternity pants, you can read our blog post here.

You can learn more about maternity tops, and what makes them special by reading this blog post.