Being Pregnant
5 Ways to Expand Your Pre-Pregnancy Jeans
When it came to maternity wear, I used every trick in the book to extend my pre-pregnancy clothes. Partly because I didn’t want to buy an entire wardrobe to wear for mere months and also because maternity clothes seemed to swim on me. (And I wasn’t financially able to buy a slew of designer maternity jeans.)
So I became a master at manipulating my pre-pregnancy jeans right up until I delivered. The most inexpensive, easiest trick is to simply use a hair elastic to expand the waist on your pre-pregnancy jeans. Take a hair elastic and stick it halfway into the buttonhole on your jeans. Looking down at the elastic, take the end that’s in your left hand and loop it through the end that’s in your right hand, and then pull tightly to secure. Now, instead of buttoning your jeans, just loop the elastic over the button.
Besides that trick, there are several more products designed to keep you out of the maternity wear section:
1. BellaBand
This is for covering up the elastic hair tie that’s holding your jeans together. The popular Bella Band is also designed to cover exposed skin, hide unbuttoned jeans and even hold up maternity jeans that are a little too big. ($26)
2. B Buckles
If you want a more subtle trick than a hair elastic, these B Buckles ($20 – $22) are designed to do the same thing as the elastic trick: expand the waist of your pre-pregnancy jeans. The band comes in plain denim or embroidered with various designs and words.
3. Denim Therapy
If you have a favorite pair of maternity jeans that you simply can’t live without for 9 months, Denim Therapy will insert expandable side inseams to expand with your growing body for $60. And then when you’re back to your pre-pregnancy size, Denim Therapy will remove the inseams as if they were never there.
4. Instant Button Jeans Extender
This instant button is a good fix for those early weeks of pregnancy, when your pre-pregnancy jeans are snug but maternity jeans are just too baggy. The Instant Button allows you to easily snap in a button wherever you might need it, extending the waistband without it being too noticeable. In fact, the Instant Button comes in different styles to match the original button. ($15 for two buttons.)
What are your tricks on expanding your pre-pregnancy jeans?
Go Back To Being Pregnant
7 Comments
[...] See more at: http://blogs.babble.com/being-pregnant/2011/01/31/5-ways-to-expand-your-pre-pregnancy-jeans/ [...]
Ways to Expand Pre-Pregnancy Jeans | BlueJeanClassifieds.Com commented on Feb 01 11 at 2:10 amMadeleine Isadora commented on Jan 31 11 at 2:50 pmcheck out kmmaternity.com for the same extending of work wear for the pregnant working mother
WildernessBarbie commented on Feb 01 11 at 12:10 amSorry, but while I love the BellyBand, the last one is a total gimmick and a waste of money. The small increment of space it may give you is negated by the fact that the fastener on the back is a big knob that painfully digs into your belly. Very bad design.
Katie Coldwell commented on Feb 01 11 at 9:45 amAlso check out the new designer maternity jeans range by Mama Jeanius. Designer maternity jeans without the price tag. Jeans that last the whole pregnancy and are adaptable. http://www.mamajeanius.com
Kristin Forselius commented on Mar 30 11 at 12:53 pmMy sister-in-law and I invented the Loopsie– because we found that elastic bands were restricting and could snap. http://www.oopsieloopsie.com
Loopsie are the easiest solution to the challenge of staying in your pre-pregnancy jeans.
Missmaia commented on May 18 11 at 11:24 pmHaha i used the same exact hair ties to “button” my work pants, never thought about a belly band to cover it! Thanks for the idea!
Taz commented on Sep 19 11 at 6:21 pmi use the elastic/rubber band trick, but instead of buying a bella band i i just chopped the top off of and old tight tank top and wore it over the top of my jeans to add length under too short shirts. if you don’t have an old stretchy/tight tank you’re willing to sacrifice i suggest going to a salvation army to pick a few up or a pretty girl or an old navy (wherever is cheap in your area) it will save you money since most of those band things are $30 or so. i didn’t even sew the cut side of mine and it hasn’t frayed!
Add your take:
Note: Babble is a supportive, diverse community. We encourage a range of opinions,
but any unduly hostile comments will be removed.
Comments are delayed up to 15 minutes
Aela Mass 
Casi Densmore-Koon 
Rebekah Kuschmider .jpg)
CaitlinHTP (Caitlin Boyle) 
Michelle Horton 
Ceridwen Morris 
Katie 
Devan McGuinness 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
7