Homemade Nursing dress / Breastfeeding Fashion

I have finally found a way to combat the boring post pregnancy / nursing wardrobe - make your own! Homemade, made to fit, made to feed nursing dresses are so easy that even an absolute beginner like me can make!

Breastfeeding and fashion are two words rarely put together.  Having to get your boobs out at any moment limits what you can wear, and the inevitably flabby post baby tum is best kept covered.  After 7 months, I have perfected the art of dressing to feed, but there are still those lovely knitted dresses at the back of my wardrobe that have now gone unworn all winter.


There are very limited places to buy feeding friendly clothes, and they are usually complete with high pricetag, and boring colour options. When I first went searching,
 Mamas and Papas was the only place on my high street to sell feeding clothes, and they did two different styles, a plain vest, and a plain top, both coming in only 3 colours.  I was not impressed.   With the baby being born in the summer, I could wear a vest and pull it down quite easily though.


Once the weather turned, far earlier than we hoped of course as this is the UK I am talking about, things got trickier.  Vests were no longer sufficient to keep me warm, and getting the belly out was still not an option.  I discovered that Primark vests, at only £2 were the perfect solution.  Stretchy enough to pull down to feed,  I am still wearing the same ones 6 months on for this purpose.  Basically, for the last seven months, I have worn a plain white vest under every top for the purpose of  tummy coverage.


I am not one of those girls (no offence meant) who wears leggings instead of trousers.  I feel too self conscious and on display.  I am by no means conservative in my dress, and happy to wear the tiniest of hot pants, but I will not brave leggings without a top or dress that covers my bum.  This meant the end of dresses as there was no way to feed the baby without stripping.  As I said, serious limits in the wardrobe department.


I have always considered myself to have a creative side, but it is eclipsed by my lazy personailty traits.  When Dylan was about 5 months, I realised that all those clothes sitting unworn in my wardrobe could be utilised.  My lovely sewing machine could come out of hiding, and I could 'adapt'.  My first project involved a stretchy maternity dress.  I cut it to the right length to be a top, and hemmed the bottom.  I then cut along the front from seam to seam just under the bust.  I attached a piece of pre-sewn material ( long enough to go round my body and tie up at the back) along the top of the cut, and hey presto, a feeding friendly top.

My homemade breastfeeding dress

Simply tie the material round, and you have a lovely top with bow on the back.  Undo the tie and you can lift up to expose bra, whilst keeping your tummy well hidden.  Why didn't I think of this earlier?  Since then I have customised an old dress to make a lovely new one- practical and stylish,  and I can ditch that bloody vest for a day!

It lifts up once you undo the tie

lovely bow on the back

I have found that this works best if you also sew a piece of elastic to the material under your bust to stop it sagging over time, and the patterned material keeps it well hidden.  You can use any plain or patterned fabric to match in with the rest of your dress and there is no reason at all why you can't carry on wearing this once your nursing days are over!


Stupidly, it has taken me months to work out how easy this is, and now I am planning when to stop breastfeeding.  On the plus side, I will be very prepared when we have another baby.  How did you tackle the problem of looking good and being able to breastfeed?