I'm so excited to share with you my experience of postpartum style! I'm a DIY design blogger with two kids. I love sewing my own clothes, playing with my kids and teaching calligraphy.
No one prepared me for the sheer terror of the postpartum bod. I had great self-image and a great relationship with food.
Postpartum hit me like the atom bomb.
Nothing looked right. About a month after I had Penelope I went three days without eating more than water and a couple carrot sticks. I knew it was unhealthy, I have two sisters with self-image issues, but I hated looking down at my naked body. Heck! I hated my clothed body, too. I was desperate to do something to get back to where I was before Baby.
Thing is, no diet or exercise is going to shrink that stretched uterus down to size. The body needs time to heal from the kind of physical trauma childbirth induces.
The other thing? I was so sick of my pregnancy clothes, I wanted something new and flattering. I didn't want to spend money on clothes that would not fit in a few months. I also felt if I bought new clothes for my postpartum bod it was a sign that I gave up hope that I would go back to my pre-pregnancy size.
That's a lie. You can buy things that will flatter you both postpartum and when you hit your goal size (I say size because weight is so deceiving!). Here are some items I had not discovered when recovering from my first pregnancy.
When recovering from Penelope, I tried to fit back into my old clothes as soon as possible. I didn't realize that I had been spoiled by my pre-pregnancy size. I could get away with wearing just about anything.
But after, I looked horrible in shapeless scoop neck cap tees (you know the kind). See the above picture? Even though I was close to my goal size, I look amorphous having no shoulders, no waist, no hips and no legs. At one point, Chris hid that olive green top of mine because he hated it so much. He had no idea the favor he did for me. I was 1 month postpartum here.
Fast forward to my second postpartum recovery, I learned a few things. High-waisted jeans are a lifesaver. Semi-fitted muffin hider sweatshirts make you look skinny again. I didn't have any peplum tops, but the tunic tops were magical, too.
This was me 9 days after I had Felix. Looking at me from the front, you'd have no idea that I had a huge pooch. right? That muffin hider is my favorite even two years later. Those pants? They were super high-waisted and stopped right above the belly button. They helped keep it all in. Sporting heels never hurt, either. The difference is night and day in my opinion.
You know what else is most flattering to a changing body? Real sleeves. When I say real sleeves I mean a sleeve that goes past the arm pit an inch or two. It's a shame they're so hard to find in dresses and most tops these days, but those are postpartum gems.
Here are some real, live examples of perfect postpartum wear. These will look amazing on you no matter matter if you're a few days or a few years after baby.
was my life!!!! I had to wear it or I couldn't stand or walk. Even after I was able to do those activities comfortably, I still wore it at home. I bound it as tight as I could to squish all that flesh in. And you know what? I saw my waist whittling down a little each day. Plus, if it worked for 
