Best and worst pregnancy gear?

I was just thinking about what have been the best things that have gotten me through pregnancy, and what have been no use. There are a few things that I wouldn't be without if I was gonna do this again, and some that were a waste of $$ for me.

Most useful:
Lewis, my body pillow! So good that he gets a name!
My preggo lacy undies - sooooo comfy!
Maxi dresses
Stretchy-top pants and skirts rather than velcro or button up maternity stuff


Least useful:
Belly Bands - I found them very uncomfortable.

So ladies, what are your recommendations for most and least useful pregnancy gear?

I didn't get very big and carried high so managed to wear all my existing clothes and jeans until bout 37 weeks which was nice. I found all the maternity wear pretty hideous anyway! I bought a few fitting, stretchy tops from cotton on and a pair of harem pants with an elastic waist from sportsgirl which were great when jeans became too uncomfortable. Lived in leggings at home.

Mum bought be a belly belt which I never used so that would be my least useful I guess?

My Fav Pregger Picks:

breastfeeding pillow...as a sleeping pillow to support my guts and relieve the hip ache
ripe maternity jeans that i bought for $6! (has an elastic waistband so sits low rather than covering the guts
stretchy maternity skirts...i also dont dig the velcro/button stuff
Hot Milk maternity bras! oh.so.comfy. just wish i had of had them first time around lol!
leggings!

My Dust-Collector Pregger Picks:

Belly Band...got the smallest size and it still swam and kept falling down, so it looked just like a crumpled piece of fabric around my waist.
bonds maternity bras...found they had no support and i would spray milk outta the top LOL!
Floral print maternity tops...what was i thinking...probably tuning 'hyacinth' from 'keeping up appearances' LOL

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Mum bought be a belly belt which I never used so that would be my least useful I guess?

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Definately. I was trying to think of things, but forgot about this. Absolutely useless for me, the smallest one made my pants too big.

My chiro is ordering me a body pillow & breast feeding pillow, cant wait for them to come in!

I have a pink pair of stretchy pj shorts that mum got me for chrissy and im absolutely living in them! They were only cheap & from best & less i think but oh so comfy!

Also my white maternity tops from bub2b (i think its Targets brand? or Kmart) are awesome! Tight fitting but they cover bump nicely!

No useless things as yet..i dont have any belly belts haha

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Floral print maternity tops...what was i thinking...probably tuning 'hyacinth' from 'keeping up appearances' LOL[/COLOR]

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:rofl:

love that show! rrriiiiiccchhhhaaarrrrd!

I had a denim skirt I lived in through all three pregnancies. It was by Monika Monkhouse. Wore it summer, winter and autumn.
Most useful was a pair of maternity tights (winter pregnancy). As alot of the normal tights didn't give room around the belly and itched.
I didn't buy alot of maternity tops, the most useful were the Giordano brand tops as they stretch really well and then go back really well after you have had baby.
Same goes with Metallicus.
Least useful were things that sat under my belly. Ok at the start, then when I got big they were really uncomfortable and I felt like I was always pulling them up.

Best -
Maternity/Breastfeeding pj's from Dangerous Curves. I still wear them!
Bonds maternity singlets
Maternity bathers from BigW
Stretchy black pants from Pea in a Pod

Useless -
Belly belts and bands

Best

Pumpkin patch maternity jeans
Pumpkin patch and Target maternity tops stretchy and long!!
Target loose thin cotton PJs


Worst

Body pillow (couldn't get comfy with it was too long and took up too much space)
Bio oil

(didn't have a belly belt)

Best
-BellyBelly
-Rennies
-PP maternity jeans
-maxi dresses
-thongs (couldnt reach down to put on shoes so thongs were great)
-my pedastool fan (that hting went everywhere around my house with me as I used to get so hot)

Worst
-daggy maternity clothes that cost a fortune
-baby name books (easier to search internet)

Best:

Black yoga pants from BigW (I think??) I got about 4 pairs and lived in them through 2 pg's. I will need to invest in more for a 3rd pg though!
Maternity t shirts from Kmart
Maternity jeans from Pumpkin patch
Long sleeve cardi's
Hot milk Mat bras. (Still wearing them almost 2yrs later!!)

Bad:
Any Bonds maternity wear (just doesn't sit right on me)
Belly band (absolutely useless for me!!)
Maternity bras from BigW
Maternity pants from pea in a pod (small sizings nothing I got fit me!)

Ok one lonely vote for the belly band :)

I wore it from week 8/9 to present (Week 18). My jeans were getting too tight to button at that time but I couldn't really justify buying maternity clothes yet. I got 10 weeks more wear from my jeans by using it.

It worked best for me when I tucked the top half inside my jeans, making it about half the height (iykwim). If I left it sitting up (as you are probably meant to) it was too loose and bunched and rode up.

Getting too uncomfortable to wear as I'm getting bigger so I bought jeanswest maternity jeans today. Too early to say if they are hit yet :) but they look nice on and are very comfy so far!

So far...

Love:
My Belly Belts (another vote for the belt!). It pays to shop around though - I got some good, reasonably cheap ones from eBay. The best ones are thick fabric that don't fall down.
iPhone Pregnancy Application. It's American but still useful and good fun.
Heat Pack for back pain.
Long t-shirts from Target. They're not maternity shirts, but Target makes some regular size clothes that are long enough to cover the belly. I've lived in them since 12 weeks, and they were all about $15 each.
Poise Liners for the extra moisture :redface:
Belly Belly, of course.
Slippery Elm tablets for reflux/heartburn.
Positive Birth Stories on Belly Belly.

I'd put my Body Pillow in the "sometimes great" pile - sometimes it really helps me sleep, other times I find it too crowded and suffocating.

Do NOT Love:
Baby Name book. Total waste of money and paper. I've resourced all our baby names from newspapers, google and Bellybelly (stealing names from other Mums).
Up the Duff (pregnancy book) Not my cup of tea, but I know other preggy ladies like it.
Unsolicited advice.
Negative birth stories from people who feel they need to tell me.

BEST MATERNITY ITEMS
Long, skinny body pillow
Pumpkin Patch maternity tops. They were nice & long.
Slippery Elm Tablets
Womama maternity bras. So soft & comfy.
Bando Belly Band. LOVED IT!! Mine was seamless & super stretchy. I wore it everyday, kept my pants up & my belly covered. Even wore it post birth for weeks as it was great for holding everything in IYKWIM!!
Bonds maternity singlets
Bonds maternity jacket. This was awesome as it was nice & stretchy, plus it was hot pink!! At a time when all I could find were grey striped maternity clothes - this was heaven!! Was really sad when I grew out of it post birth so to speak lol.

WORST MATERNITY ITEMS
Belly Belt, didn't get this at all!!
Target Belly Bands. These ones were loose & uncomfortable
Maternity jeans. Waistband up over the bump gave me the irrits, waistband under the bump meant my pants kept falling down!!
Grey striped maternity clothes!! Most of my maternity wardrobe is white/grey strip, black/grey stripe or just grey...because apparantly pregnant women don't want colour?
Kmart pregnancy tops, because they're all very tight fitting & sometimes I just wanted something to hide behind lol.
Hot Milk maternity bras, once my milk came in they were very uncomfy.

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Mum bought be a belly belt which I never used so that would be my least useful I guess?

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My mum bought me one as well and I found it incredibly useful, I wore it all the time. Made my work pants & jeans last for AGES just with a long top over them.:lol:

Pregnancy pillow was ACE, couldn't have lived without it. :dance:

Least useful - anything ginger! urgh talk about making a girl want to spew!! :sick:

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BEST MATERNITY ITEMS
Bando Belly Band. LOVED IT!! Mine was seamless & super stretchy. I wore it everyday, kept my pants up & my belly covered. Even wore it post birth for weeks as it was great for holding everything in IYKWIM!!

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Yep, forgot that one.
Oh and I bought two Anita maternity bras..the best investment ever!

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Up the Duff (pregnancy book)

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I agreed - the tone is patronising. Give it a miss.

Love...
Belly band - when the work shirts couldn't button up over the belly any more.
Tunic tops - combine with tights/gym pants & you look great (even a big-bum like mine!)
Hot Milk bras - can't rave enough about them. Nice to have something with actual coverage!
The loose summer-season fashion - 80% suitable for a preg belly
Belly belly - speaks for itself!
The lycra pants mum gave me - no idea where they're from, but I look great in them :D
Pillow for the knees - knocked the SPD on the head early on.

hate...
The button in Jeans expander - was useful when belly was small, but found as belly has grown, pants quickly try to retreat to knees... I spent so much time pulling my pants up, and have all but given up on them.
Undies that are too small - give up, buy the bigger granny-dacks for the duration.
Some stupid preg book I bought for DH - I wish I could remember what it was called. Had a picture of a bloke in a hospital gown & hair net on it. Even he found it to be a disgraceful sexist & patronising book. He was so annoyed with it that she asked if I minded if he didn't finish it, and then threw it in the bin at the airport on the way to the plane.

Best:
wedge pillow for bump
womama mat bra and matching undies (I have them on now!)
gentle birth, gentle mothering. A book by Sarah Buckley.
Baby on board. A book by dr Howard.
Metalicus!!!! Dresses, tops and skirts! I know it's expensive, but I bought it on sale and still wear all the pieces.
Country road cardigan- it was long and covered lots.
Peppermint tear
Pink kit

worst:
Up the duff. Useless and the birth story is horrendous!
Anything that looks like maternity wear.
Bonds mat bra- what was I thinking?'

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Best:
gentle birth, gentle mothering. A book by Sarah Buckley.

worst:
Up the duff. Useless and the birth story is horrendous!'

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Yep and yep. Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering is fantastic.

Up the Duff is insulting to intelligent women, and the birth story was completely unhelpful. I get that some births are like that, but I didn't see the point in "normalising" it rather than normalising natural vaginal positive birth stories. I also found that she adopts a rather snide tone when mentioning homebirth as an option, and she only presents traditional medical approaches to pregnancy and birth, rather than a balanced, informed approach. Anyone want to buy it off me? It's in great condition!

ohh good thread!

Loved
Pink Bonds Maternity Hoodie
Maternity Jeans - cant remember the brand
K-mart maternity cargo 3/4 shorts - lived in them.. (still do post bub :redface: )
Belly Bands
Book - Birth Skills Juju Sundin
Wedge Pillow for bump
Ripe Maternity Wrap dress (still wear it!)

Hated
Up the duff - I cant see whys it so popular!!
Belly Belts.. urghh so dont work for me
Body Pillow.. too big for me
Loose tops - made me look fat not pregnant
Hot Milk PJs - looked great but not good fit for me

will have to have a think and see what else I can add

Loved:

Pumpkin Patch maternity tees
Target stretchy pants & linen skirt
Diana Ferrari slip on sandals

Disliked:

My bf pillow a gf gave to me. I was too hard & too small to fit around my waist.....I used it to 'prop' up DD when she was older (actually don't know where it is now)
A list of things to take to hospital also given to me by the same gf who gave me the bf pillow. Many things I bought I never used

Loved my pair of sensible shoes that a friend made me buy from the Nanna Shoe Shop. I lived in them all pregnancy even if they were a bit daggy. Worth. Every. Cent. Seriously!

Hated maternity jeans over the belly - yuck!

I have Up the Duff. It wasn't too bad for the early weeks, but once you got to the important stuff it wasn't much help and quite patronizing really! I was flabbergasted at the birth story too!

Yep, Belly Belly definitely comes under The Best heading too!
And loose, non-maternity tops (thanks KMart).
And Trade Secret for cheap maternity clothes that aren't appallingly daggy.

OO my chiro gave me a book, 'Well Adjusted Babies' im loving it!

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gentle birth, gentle mothering. A book by Sarah Buckley.
Baby on board. A book by dr Howard.

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both excellent books!

Also....
The New Pregnancy and Childbirth by Sheila Kitzinger (well anything by her)
Ina May Gaskin's guide to childbirth
Sleeping with your baby- Dr James Mc Kenna (interesting read, all the reasons why co-sleeping is good for your baby)
Sleeping like a baby/100 ways to calm the crying- Pinky McKay

I had my nose in a book all the way through my pregnancy!

I borrowed a book from the library for DH, I forget what it was called but it was written especially for men about all the things to expect post-childbirth and how to support a new mum. Very medicalised look at everything (written by a male OB) but if you knew which bits to skip over and take with a grain of salt it was pretty useful.

My mum got me Your Baby and Chil by Penelope Leach to read while pg...some parts worthwhile but overall I found it not at all in sync with my parenting values and stopped reading once I got to the bit about never letting your baby fall asleep at the breast :shakehead:

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Best:

Metalicus!!!! Dresses, tops and skirts! I know it's expensive, but I bought it on sale and still wear all the pieces.

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how could i forget my metalicus??!!!! this stuff is by far the BEST pregnancy gear and i wore it all even when non-pregnant and it is still holding strong with the second pregnancy. i just love it! easy to layer and looks stylish!!!!