Five tips to create a wardrobe of used nursing clothes
Buying preloved is always a good option. And when you’re on statutory maternity pay, your bank account will thank you for choosing used nursing clothes over new. But sifting through hundreds of thousands of clothes to find what you’re looking for can be overwhelming. So we’ve put together our top tips to help you find second hand breastfeeding clothes.
1. Where to look for second hand nursing clothes?
Vinted has been life changing for clothing your baby and with thousands of preowned nursing clothes, it’s the first you should look.
Other online platforms to look for second hand nursing clothes on include eBay, depop and Facebook Marketplace.
And lastly, don’t rule out charity shops. As long as you know what makes a dress nursing friendly or not, it should be easy to find a few breastfeeding friendly dresses.
2. Start your search with preowned maternity clothes
Just because you’re not pregnant, doesn’t mean your maternity clothes no longer serve a purpose. The roominess of a maternity blouse can trump an awkward double layered nursing top, especially in the early days of breastfeeding.
Plus, many maternity dresses or jumpsuits are made for postpartum. These are the clothes you’d ideally find in the later stages of your pregnancy but, hey ho, you can find them preloved online at great prices.
3. Which are the best used maternity clothes brands to search for?
As we’ve said, maternity clothes are often dual purpose, they’re the gift that keeps giving. Some of our favourite maternity brands to search for on Vinted, eBay and depop included Seraphine, Ripe, Beyond Nine, Frugi, JoJo Maman Bebe, and Juno Jacks.
4. Don’t impulse buy and set yourself a budget
Avoid the overspending trap. Even though you’re buying used nursing clothes, it doesn’t mean they’re free. A mistake many people make is treating used clothing the same as fast fashion.
It’s all too easy to click buy but I recommend that you don’t.
Instead, set a budget and put a list together of items you need. Bookmark anything you like and the algorithm on Vinted will start to tailor what it shows you.
5. Audit your wardrobe
When you get a moment, ask yourself the following questions:
- What do I already own that can be used to breastfeed without any issues?
- What fits me and feels comfortable to feed in?
- Which items would complement and update my wardrobe?
After you’ve been through your wardrobe, I recommend doing the following:
Pack away clothes that don’t currently fit or can’t be worn while you’re breastfeeding - it’s much easier to get dressed in the morning, especially when you’re time poor.
Look at creating a capsule wardrobe with a few items. Neutral crew necks, boxy fit jumpers and oversized shirts. Items that can be worn together and layered in winter.
Then create a list of items that would fill any gaps in your wardrobe.
If you have any top tips that would help new breastfeeding mothers find used nursing clothes, please leave them in the comments below.