Laura & Natalie from Mum’s the Word explain why they’re�bringing MUMSY back
We all know that becoming a mum changes your life forever there’s no getting away from the fact that sleep will become a distant memory and you will be more familiar with the repertoire of Mr Tumble than MistaJam. But when new mums are described as ‘mumsy’ as if that is a bad thing – we have to take a stand!
Now don’t get us wrong, we’re not claiming to be fashionistas in any waybut we’ve always loved clothes (as sisters we’ve shared/borrowed/stolen from each others wardrobes since we were kids) so why should your love of fashion change when you become a mum?
To be honest it didn’t change too dramatically during pregnancy, thanks to the brilliant range of maternity wear that you can find on the high street (ASOS & Topshop were our favourites). Plus there are some amazing online independents, such as Clary & Peg, who make beautiful maternity dungarees and dresses that will make you look and feel like YOU (just with a growing bump).
But sadly once we’d pushed those little ones out, it was as if the clothing retailers thought we had also pushed out any style we’d once had too.
The majority of ‘breastfeeding tops’ available were seriously ugly and frumpy (you couldn’t have paid us to wear them) but due to a lack of alternatives we didn’t have much choice! And to be completely honest at a time when you’re feeling quite vulnerable as a new mum you can feel even worse when you look in the mirror and don’t recognise the person staring back at you.
Fashion Re:Boot. Mollie Manning
You sometimes feel like you lose your sense of identity amongst the daily pressures of raising a child (tiredness, feeding schedules, piles of laundry, Drs appointments etc etc) and the fact that we couldn’t find a decent nursing bra, or dress that we could feed in and feel good in, made us feel even more detached from our pre-baby selves.
This was nearly seven years ago and we know that things are definitely changing for the better. There are now lots of independents that have curated nursing tops and bras that look like the types of clothes/underwear that you wore BB (Before Baby).
Instagram has also helped massively – there are some fantastic mum fashion bloggers out there, giving brilliant advice about buying regular clothes and making them work for breast-feeding, bumps and beyond.
One of our favourites is Zoe de Pass, AKA Dress Like a Mum. Zoe set up DLAM three years ago because she wanted to change the bad rep and perception that mums can’t dress; that we automatically lose our sense of style and our passion for fashion just because we have a kid or two, because we don’t
Zoe’s mission is to make the high street a better place for mums and mums-to-be to shop – she feels like mums are an ignored demographic and one that massive assumptions are being made about (e.g. we do not want to be fashionable while pregnant/ nursing).
Being ‘mumsy’ can be such a derogative wordso we think it’s time to reclaim it. Mum style is whatever you want it to be – there are no rules, you can still shop in all the shops you did before (thank goodness for online shopping), you can still wear bikinis, leopard print, trainers and skinny jeans – whatever floats your boat – mum style is your style.
And if a lack of budget is holding you back (this can be a major issue when you’re on maternity leave) then don’t forget the wonder that is eBay, facebay, clothes swaps and pre-loved sales like Fashion Re:Boot curated by Mums and magazine/fashion editors Ciara Elliot and Erica Davies.
So what are you waiting for? It’s time to get shopping Mamas!
Fashion Re:Boot pre-loved clothing sale takes place on Friday April 20 from 7.30-10.30pm at The Secret Manor (Mabledon) between Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge. Tickets are just a fiver and the first 100 through the door will receive a free Fashion Re:Boot tote bag and Adnams Gin and Tonic www.mumstheword.online
