Formal business wear - maternity edition

January 23, 2018 10:28 AM

I have a work event next week that I would typically wear one of my nice suits to. I'm 29 weeks pregnant and none of my suits fit. Which of the options below is the most professional/appropriate/closest to a suit?

Day to day I wear jeans and tshirts, so this is much higher than my baseline. I don't want to buy a new outfit for this one-day meeting if I can avoid it, and it's very hard for me to find maternity clothes that fit since I'm very petite. Much of the day I will be sitting at a table so my lower half won't be terribly visible; I think some lack of matchingness won't be too obvious. I am very clearly pregnant. Which of these options is most appropriate if I'd normally wear a suit?
-black jersey wrap dress, leggings, flats, nice scarf/jewelry, a suit jacket if I can find one of mine that fits, or a cardigan if not
-a slightly-cowl-necked sleeveless dress, black with a white floral print, older so a bit pilly in spots but I don't think that's noticeable from a distance, and either a jacket or brightly colored cardigan (I need to cover my upper arms); flats and leggings
-black maternity pants and a black suit jacket that isn't the same fabric; probably a cotton shirt underneath unless I buy a new one; flats
-black or grey maternity pants, buy a shirt (perhaps this one), and a cardigan
-suck it up and buy a new dress (any recommendations? needs to be xxs or xs and affordable)

Bonus question: if I wear leggings and flats, what do I do with my feet - leave them bare under my flats? Find black trouser socks? Wear fun stripy socks but just have them tucked under leggings? Both the leggings and shoes will be black. I can't wear heels or pumps, but I do have a pair of black leather chukkas I could possibly wear if that sounds more professional.

posted by john_snow to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (24 answers total)

Sorry, dumb question, but why the leggings with the dress? Flats will look better with bare legs/feet. Omitting the leggings, either option one or option two should be fine. People will see that you're pregnant and understand why you're not in a suit.
posted by praemunire at 10:32 AM on January 23, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I think your third option (black pants, shirt, non-matching jacket) is the best. I have worn leggings under dresses to work and have felt out-of-place and under-dressed. The first two options could work if you pair with stockings/pantyhose instead of leggings.
posted by valeries at 10:34 AM on January 23, 2018 [3 favorites]

Best answer: I think your first or second options sound fine, but especially the first one. When I had to dress up for some work events when I was very pregnant, and my normal go-to of a suit wouldn't fit, I just wore a striped boatneck with a blazer. I tried to avoid buying shirts and stuff for single use because it seemed like a waste. As long as you feel professional enough for the situation, it will be OK.
posted by kendrak at 10:37 AM on January 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I was thinking leggings because I will be freezing if I don't wear something on my legs. I am very familiar with this particular meeting site and it's always cold. Is there such a thing as maternity stockings?
posted by john_snow at 10:41 AM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: People cut pregnant women a LOT of slack when it comes to professional attire, as they should. I like whatever option requires you to buy the least amount of new stuff. If it were me, I'd buy maternity stockings and do option 1 or 2.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 10:44 AM on January 23, 2018 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Your wrap dress idea sounds great to me, and completely totally fine with leggings.

It's fucking January outside and you're growing a whole human being. If someone has a problem with you wearing leggings to this meeting I am happy to have you provide them my cell phone number so they can hear an alternate opinion.
posted by phunniemee at 10:44 AM on January 23, 2018 [16 favorites]

Best answer: There are! Most decent maternity brands will have them, as will some cheaper sources of maternity clothing (in the US, I got some from Old Navy). I'd definitely go with the wrap dress though. If you wear the tights you can forego additional foot coverings with the shoes so that solves one of your problems.
posted by olinerd at 10:44 AM on January 23, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: Target has maternity stockings- I trust the SPANX brand highly.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 10:45 AM on January 23, 2018 [3 favorites]

Best answer: I like the wrap dress best. A scarf is always a good focal point.
posted by Dashy at 10:50 AM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: Well, here's a another opinion. I like the dress with the leggins, provided they fit well and don't bag at the knees. Make sense to me in winter! Black hose socks to keep it more "formal" and again, its winter. Not the stripy informal ones.

Which one do you actually prefer/ is more comfortable / and makes you feel more relaxed (and pretty?) None of them sound terrible. Wear your favorite, and rock it. It's about you and your skills, not the clothes. :)
posted by BlueHorse at 10:51 AM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: I'd vote for don't wear non matching black. Black dress, grey jacket, or coloured. I'd wear the wrap dress, with a camisole if it's low cut. I wear leggings with dresses at work a lot. (Fleece lined leggings! It's cold). It works best with ankle boots, or taller black boots. I sometimes wear black socks with leggings on top, and black flats. It's not the most fashionable, but nobody cares. I'd wear a bright coloured cardigan or jacket with that much black. Or a "fun" accessory like a scarf or necklace so you look like you put in effort.
posted by Valancy Rachel at 11:25 AM on January 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I was coming in to say 'wear literally anything that's comfortable, up to and including pajamas, and fancy it up with jewelry and maybe a scarf' so I guess that's another vote for option 1. :)
posted by sexyrobot at 11:27 AM on January 23, 2018 [3 favorites]

Best answer: I would vote for option 1 or 2 with tights instead of leggings. Target should have maternity tights, but if you can't find them, I also wore regular tights just with the waistband folded down under my baby bump far into pregnancy.
posted by rainbowbrite at 11:57 AM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: Go with the wrap dress, plus whatever kind of (thick) tights or slim-fit leggings you feel comfortable in. If all else fails, knee high would work, too. Wear the flats, and either the tights or thin black socks. Make your focal point some sort of warm scarf, in a bright or moderate color.

Anyone in your meeting who isn't an asshole is going to understand (1) non-binding clothing and (2) warmth are the priority, and chances are they won't even notice what you choose to cover your legs with.
posted by stormyteal at 12:03 PM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: I vote option 1 or 3. I was pregnant through a Northeast winter, working in a conservative office. Go to outfit was: wrap or sweater dress, cardigan or open front blazer, knee high flat boots with tall wool socks. I wore tights until they became uncomfortable in last month or so, and then went bare legged. Maybe 2" of leg showed between boots and bottom of dress.
posted by jennypower at 12:03 PM on January 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I think option one with a blazer or nice cardigan is definitely your best bet, and tights instead of leggings with the flats. But if you have some taller (calf or knee-high) boots, those would be fine over either leggings or tights and probably warmer as well. Also, if you can't find tights that work, you could wear the leggings with some thick warm socks en route to the site and take the socks off and go bare feet under the flats once you're inside--but since the meeting site is cold that may not be comfortable.
posted by karayel at 12:12 PM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: I would buy tights, honestly. Tights and the wrap dress are going to make you look very put together. Most maternity places have tights but I remember buying mine on amazon the one time I had to go to a work gala while 32 weeks pregnant. I’d go for nude tights with that dress, just so it doesn’t get too monochromatic. Colorful flats and some accessories and you’re golden!
posted by lydhre at 12:32 PM on January 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Came in to say I had an interview when I was pregnant and wore a wrap dress over opaque maternity tights (the tights were pretty warm.) If your chukkas are dressy-looking, then add those for extra warmth.
posted by Everydayville at 12:43 PM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: H&M sells maternity tights.
On the GAP site, this silky dress in green or navy costs the same as the black one you're considering, and to my eye, it looks more put-together (although I'm not sure what kind of jacket would be good to layer with it- but you could hide a fitted shirt underneath for warmth).
posted by pseudostrabismus at 2:03 PM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: I have been in this scenario! I wore maternity pants and a non-matching blazer. I got the job.
posted by JuliaJellicoe at 2:49 PM on January 23, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Tights hack: just buy non-control top tights in your current pregnant height and weight. As long as they are not low rise, they should fit over your belly. Easier to find and cheaper than maternity tights. I did this with drugstore pantyhose as well. (Though I also owned the H&M maternity tights and liked them.)

I think a suit jacket is warmer and a great choice if you're mostly visible from waist up anyway. I vote for it over either dress (if black dress, with a scarf for a touch of color).
posted by beyond_pink at 3:06 PM on January 23, 2018

Best answer: I went to an (internal) work event at 32 weeks pregnant where I wanted/needed to wear something nicer than jeans-and-tshirt combo I otherwise lived in, and I ended up wearing a Pea in the Pod dress with black leggings and flats. I felt very cute but it also read as significantly younger than I expected once I was in a room with a lot of other people wearing slightly formal business casual. (And I'm in my mid-30s, for context.) If I had been at a client- or customer-facing event I would have felt super-uncomfortable. So, I'll n-th the suggestion to look into opaque maternity tights instead if you go with the dress, since I think that won't read young/casual in the same way that leggings do. Plus your feet will be a lot warmer in flats if you go with tights.

In situations where I've needed to dress more formally but didn't have a full suit that fit--which was the case for the entire first year postpartum--I've gotten a lot of mileage out of a good-fitting pair of black pants paired with an obviously non-matching gray or tweedy blazer (something like this or this). I'd avoid matching black pants with a non-matching black blazer, but if you have a blazer that fits okay across the shoulders and drapes naturally when unbuttoned, that's probably what I'd pair with black maternity pants. Otherwise the dress + blazer.
posted by iminurmefi at 3:06 PM on January 23, 2018

Response by poster: Thank you everyone! I really appreciate the advice to be comfortable and see what feels most professional to me; nice to know pants and a non-matching blazer are okay if they fit. I will be a senior staff person at this meeting so need to feel super professional and on my game (hard with pregnancy brain!). Iminurmefi I especially appreciate the comment that leggings made you feel like you read young - I need to not give that impression so I guess I will go look for maternity tights, ugh. (am I the only pregnant woman that can't stand having stuff go over my belly? ugh so uncomfortable.) I will report back next week on what I wore! (I have a few other slightly less formal but still more formal then jeans events, so several of these options will come into play over the next few weeks.)

Phunniemee I love you BTW.
posted by john_snow at 11:50 AM on January 24, 2018

Plush sells fleece-lined maternity tights that are great - I wore them postpartum for awhile too
posted by sestaaak at 8:29 AM on January 25, 2018 [1 favorite]