Nursing tops? Necessary? what did you wear? Help!

[Quilty]

Getting myself in a right pickle over maternity clothes and nursing tops? Are nursing tops an essential?
Seems most of them are designed to fit over your bump but a few months post birth won't this look a bit odd? I'm very petite and would of thought I'll go back to my normal shape quite easily so I'm worried nursing tops would just look rubbish and I'd end up not wearing them! I really can't afford to spend money on things I don't need.

Any advice for how to dress for breast feeding without wearing special nursing tops would be much appreciated!

[ilovepicnmix]

Vests with a looser top over the top. Pull the vest down and pull the top up. Once you get the hang of it it's very discrete.

[Pascha]

Nope. This time of year wear a vest top underneath your normal top, then pull the normal top up and the vest top & bra down just enough to expose the nipple. With a little practice its really simple to do. In the summer wear lowish cut tops/dresses so you can just pull it down a little. With a cardigan on or a muslin handy to drap over your shoulder you can be very discreet when necessary.

[shelley72]

first time round, i did buy specific nursing tops. BUT i found that my tummy went down quite quickly so that i had a big baggy fabric tummy. nice. since then i have made do with regular clothes - wrap tops/dresses are fab. longer layered vests under normal tops (one up, one down for boob access). would really just try and make do with normal non maternity/nursing clothes. oh and muslins. essential for throwing over your shoulder. when you are feeding, you really aren't that exposed at all!

[WheresMyCow]

Dressing for breast feeding is really easy. You wear two tops - a vest and then your choice of other top. When it comes to feeding time one top goes up and the other goes down so that all that is exposed is what needs to be.

I got vests from primark which had adjustable straps so that they were easy to pull down to sit just under my breast, while I just lifted the other top up. It means that you can pretty much wear your normal clothes which is lovely!

Well fitting nursing bras are essential though so that you can just unhook the cup.

Congratulations by the way

[briochedanslefour]

I wear a cheap h&m vest underneath one of my normal tops... When I feed I pull top up and tuck vest under my bra.. I wear a lot of shirt/blouses over a vest too if i need something smarter/dressier. I didnt like the look or the price of the nursing tops.

[Imsosorryalan]

Just to add, if you do want to buy BF tops, I def. recommend a co called mamaway.

[KatAndKit]

They aren't necessary but I find them handy. Buy some that don't also double up as pregnancy wear perhaps, or a tighter fabric. My H&M ones would not have fitted me at the end of my pregnancy and neither would a couple of my JJMB ones.
Mostly I get by with regular clothes and the two tops method but i do find nursing tops can be handy sometimes. I am large breasted so can not be discreet using the pull down method.

[MrsHoarder]

Cheap Primark stretchy vests and tops one size up from pre-pregnancy to cope with larger boobs and saggy belly. Basically you just always have at least two layers on so they can each go in different directions to access boob.

[BourbonsandTea]

I did the 2 layer thing with plain vests from h&m ( I also wore these in my normal size through pregnancy as they stretch without losing their shape). I found it too hot to do this through spring/summer but alot of summer tops and dresses are easily slipped down one side, unbuttoned or lifted up a muslin or pashmina over your shoulder if you prefer to cover up. Definitely get well fitting nursing bras - I recommend m&s

[pod3030]

i just used a floaty scarf in the end. carried it in my handbag, flapped it over dd when needed, v convenient

[Quilty]

Phew! So glad I asked this before buying anything! I like the idea of using a scarf or cardi as a cover up, v.practical!

[BonaDea]

I have bought one nursing top so far, but actually bought it because it was a nice maternity top more than anything. I think it will soon be waaaay too big to wear after baby comes and also it has a bit that ties around the back which comes undone for feeding to reveal a cut away portion underneath. However, I think it is a pretty stupid design because when you undo the back, the whole front section comes away from both sides.

A friend told me about the vest / other top as described above which I think makes way more sense. H&M have good nursing vests whcih completely unclip at each side and a pack of two is about £12 or so.

[CackleALot]

Hi, I bought a couple of maternity bump bands and wore them under normal tops - the bump band covered my belly while I pulled my top up to feed DS. Alternatively, just draping a muslin or scarf over while you pull top up/down works just aswell.

[Blobby11]

I used these vests
www.breastvest.co.uk/
under normal tops which worked really well

[helebear]

I did the vest under a top method too but as I've got big boobs I liked breastfeeding vests - the ones with clips as it was easier to access my boobs than having to haul them out over the top of a vest! I think I got mine from mothercare but I believe h&m do them too. It's a bit annoying that the clips can be quite visible under some tops though. And I wear lots of scarfs that can be draped over baby to give you some extra privacy and as baby gets older it can stop them getting distracted whilst feeding.

[LarkinSky]

Vest and top, as everyone else, works best for me. Even under a suit at work.

When I'm at home/very hot summer days I just wear a V-neck/low-cut top and flip my boob out over the top - if anyone other the DH is there I put a muslin/scarf over my shoulder and DC's head.

I did buy several nursing tops for DD1, from shops such as Blooming Marvellous and the like, and soon loathed them. Mainly because of the extremely unglamorous design which features an oval hole over your boob, which you then 'post' your boob through for baby to access.
Yuck, horrible, fiddly, unflattering.

The 'vest-top pulled down and top pulled up' way is far more discrete. Although I do miss wearing dresses when breastfeeding, but not enough to wear my breastfeeding dress with its cut-out boob postboxes. (Can you tell I'm a bit with myself for spending £££s on those clothes?!)

[rootypig]

agree with everyone else - I have no BFing clothes (thought they were all ugly, frankly), just do one top up, one top down. but defo buy good nursing bras - you want something that releases easily and properly ie isn't stiff so it doesn't stand up in front of your breast or gets in the baby's way. I really like the Bravado ones I have (from John Lewis), they're really soft and comfy enough to sleep in. I took the padding out though, it was the last thing I needed!

I have also found the large aden+anais muslins I bought DD helpful as they double as scarves / cover that are very light and breathable (bearing in mind your tiny DC will be underneath whatever you use!)

[Triskaidekaphilia]

I bought a bundle of nursing tops quite cheap on ebay for when it's really hot (due 25th July) as well as two really nice lightweight nursing nighties, then I'm assuming by the time my uterus has shrunk, it will have cooled down a bit and I'll do the two tops method others have mentioned.

[Darkstar4855]

Another vote for H&M nursing vests! I wear these with any top I like. Lift up the top, unclip the nursing vest and good to go. I don’t even wear a bra with them as my boobs are small enough not to need it.

[Triskaidekaphilia]

Oh just to add, I'm getting a lot of use out of the vests as maternity ones anyway so was worth the money in this case.