Since I'm planning to breastfeed Eden for a long time, probably into an overlap with our next baby, it was imperative to me that I find a breastfeeding wardrobe that was comfortable and efficient as soon as possible.
I started out wearing my maternity tops, since they were what fit best postpartum anyway. Even once the maternity shirts got put away, I continued to use these maternity/nursing tank tops from Walmart, which were cheap and surprisingly durable. (I bought one in white and one in black--mediums--and for size reference, I was 140lbs/B cup prior to pregnancy, 190lbs/D cup while pregnant.) While many commenters noted the annoyance of having the strap fly away after unsnapping it (vs more expensive nursing tanks, such as the ever-popular Bravado, which feature a strap which anchors everything nearby), I found them stretchy enough to just pull down for nursing, as opposed to having to actually unsnap them. I was also lucky enough to get a couple of Bravado tanks as hand-me-downs, and they are awesome--flattering, sturdy, stretchy. They're $45 a pop new (though you can often find them for less on eBay, Craigslist, etc). They do contain a very supportive internal bra (vs just a shelf bra on other tanks/camis, although I have found a shelf bra to be plenty, even at my new cup size), and so while $45 for a tank seems like a lot, if you use it like I do as the foundation to bridge your regular wardrobe into a nursing wardrobe, it might not be so bad.
As far as a nursing bra, I had ordered one of these from Walmart.com and wore it toward the end of my pregnancy. I found it supportive (if with somewhat unnecessarily wide straps--but it was comfortable) though some sort of hidden tag or something left the middle of my back itching like crazy, but that could have just been a fluke. Early on I decided a nursing bra was too much to fumble with, and since it was summer, I was largely wearing my tank tops and camisoles anyway, and so I started wearing those either alone or under another top, basically using them like a nursing bra. Worked like a charm and saved a ton of money!
A few weeks postpartum I invested in some nursing tops from Expressiva. We were taking Eden to church and other places where being able to breastfeed easily and somewhat discreetly was nice. While I can't speak highly enough about doing business with Expressiva, as they're great with returns and exchanges and ship quickly (and props to them for their organic line), I did find much of the clothing to be overly heavy (for many of the shirts, the "nursing option" is a whole second layer of cloth with boob cutouts) and actually somewhat more awkward than just pulling down a regular (V-neck or stretchy) shirt. (Especially if I was also wearing the nursing bra.) Getting the second layer to lie right without looking awkwardly bunchy (like I had a dishtowel under my shirt) , not to mention fishing through the hidden openings to try to hook and unhook a nursing bra with one hand, wasn't easy and usually wound up taking more effort and drawing more attention to myself than the simple maneuver I used with regular shirts. Unfortunately, as a result, I've largely quit wearing them and will probably go ahead and Craigslist them soon.
As noted above, I've now evolved into a system that is based around wearing either one of my hand-me-down Bravado tanks, maternity tanks, OR any reasonably stretchy camisole with a shelf or other built-in bra (I have a number of my sister's castoffs from American Eagle, Express, Target, Maurice's; you can also get them at Walmart.com--never thought I'd be their spokesperson!--for around $5 apiece) under either a top that is a) stretchy, b) low-cut, c) V-neck, or d) button-down; OR under any other top that is loose enough to pull up from the bottom. For the first bunch, I pull the top and the camisole down to nurse, then pull it back. That's it. No snapping, rearranging of layers, or anything like that. Yes, the top of my breast (gasp) is exposed while I nurse, but I'm comfortable with that. For the second group of tops (this includes things like Tshirts and pullover sweaters), I pull the shirt up and the tank down. While not quite as quick and easy as feeding from the top, I like this option for its ability to let me wear a lot of my pre-baby tops without flashing around a bunch of belly and back (which is sort of awkward, and hey, it's December now!).
I'm also lazy and so I like that at the end of the day, I can take off whatever I'm wearing over it and voila: easy nursing pajamas!
If you utilize this system, you can easily take your maternity/pre-maternity wardrobe through nursing with only the addition of a few camisoles (ranging from $5-$45). Compared to $30 and up for a single nursing top, and the fact that this system is overall much more convenient for me, I feel like I've landed on something that really works.
What about breast pads? Personally, I never got used to wearing them. I found them itchy, uncomfortable, and ridiculously obvious under just about anything. I wore While I was sometimes leaky, especially early on, I personally preferred to deal with a few drips on my shirt (which can happen even with breast pads, depending on how messy an eater your baby is) than trying to yank around and readjust uncomfortable breast pads. I also learned quickly, as I'm sure most others do, that clamping my opposite arm over the breast I wasn't feeding with prevents it from spraying through my shirt when my milk lets down. On the whole, I just figure that I am a breastfeeding mother and there is bound to be evidence of it (besides the baby attached to my breast, that is), and I'd just as soon that evidence be milk as giant breast pads showing through my shirt. If I were going to wear them (say if I had a more formal job, and/or an expensive or dry-clean-only wardrobe vs scrubs, tshirts, and tank tops)? I'd definitely go with these wool ones.
From one of my favorite blogs by a breastfeeding mom, her own tips for a breastfeeding wardrobe, along with an excellent post on how to be comfortable around a breastfeeding woman. She's currently breastfeeding a toddler, and is a source of information and interesting anecdotes about that.
I started out wearing my maternity tops, since they were what fit best postpartum anyway. Even once the maternity shirts got put away, I continued to use these maternity/nursing tank tops from Walmart, which were cheap and surprisingly durable. (I bought one in white and one in black--mediums--and for size reference, I was 140lbs/B cup prior to pregnancy, 190lbs/D cup while pregnant.) While many commenters noted the annoyance of having the strap fly away after unsnapping it (vs more expensive nursing tanks, such as the ever-popular Bravado, which feature a strap which anchors everything nearby), I found them stretchy enough to just pull down for nursing, as opposed to having to actually unsnap them. I was also lucky enough to get a couple of Bravado tanks as hand-me-downs, and they are awesome--flattering, sturdy, stretchy. They're $45 a pop new (though you can often find them for less on eBay, Craigslist, etc). They do contain a very supportive internal bra (vs just a shelf bra on other tanks/camis, although I have found a shelf bra to be plenty, even at my new cup size), and so while $45 for a tank seems like a lot, if you use it like I do as the foundation to bridge your regular wardrobe into a nursing wardrobe, it might not be so bad.
As far as a nursing bra, I had ordered one of these from Walmart.com and wore it toward the end of my pregnancy. I found it supportive (if with somewhat unnecessarily wide straps--but it was comfortable) though some sort of hidden tag or something left the middle of my back itching like crazy, but that could have just been a fluke. Early on I decided a nursing bra was too much to fumble with, and since it was summer, I was largely wearing my tank tops and camisoles anyway, and so I started wearing those either alone or under another top, basically using them like a nursing bra. Worked like a charm and saved a ton of money!
A few weeks postpartum I invested in some nursing tops from Expressiva. We were taking Eden to church and other places where being able to breastfeed easily and somewhat discreetly was nice. While I can't speak highly enough about doing business with Expressiva, as they're great with returns and exchanges and ship quickly (and props to them for their organic line), I did find much of the clothing to be overly heavy (for many of the shirts, the "nursing option" is a whole second layer of cloth with boob cutouts) and actually somewhat more awkward than just pulling down a regular (V-neck or stretchy) shirt. (Especially if I was also wearing the nursing bra.) Getting the second layer to lie right without looking awkwardly bunchy (like I had a dishtowel under my shirt) , not to mention fishing through the hidden openings to try to hook and unhook a nursing bra with one hand, wasn't easy and usually wound up taking more effort and drawing more attention to myself than the simple maneuver I used with regular shirts. Unfortunately, as a result, I've largely quit wearing them and will probably go ahead and Craigslist them soon.
As noted above, I've now evolved into a system that is based around wearing either one of my hand-me-down Bravado tanks, maternity tanks, OR any reasonably stretchy camisole with a shelf or other built-in bra (I have a number of my sister's castoffs from American Eagle, Express, Target, Maurice's; you can also get them at Walmart.com--never thought I'd be their spokesperson!--for around $5 apiece) under either a top that is a) stretchy, b) low-cut, c) V-neck, or d) button-down; OR under any other top that is loose enough to pull up from the bottom. For the first bunch, I pull the top and the camisole down to nurse, then pull it back. That's it. No snapping, rearranging of layers, or anything like that. Yes, the top of my breast (gasp) is exposed while I nurse, but I'm comfortable with that. For the second group of tops (this includes things like Tshirts and pullover sweaters), I pull the shirt up and the tank down. While not quite as quick and easy as feeding from the top, I like this option for its ability to let me wear a lot of my pre-baby tops without flashing around a bunch of belly and back (which is sort of awkward, and hey, it's December now!).
I'm also lazy and so I like that at the end of the day, I can take off whatever I'm wearing over it and voila: easy nursing pajamas!
If you utilize this system, you can easily take your maternity/pre-maternity wardrobe through nursing with only the addition of a few camisoles (ranging from $5-$45). Compared to $30 and up for a single nursing top, and the fact that this system is overall much more convenient for me, I feel like I've landed on something that really works.
What about breast pads? Personally, I never got used to wearing them. I found them itchy, uncomfortable, and ridiculously obvious under just about anything. I wore While I was sometimes leaky, especially early on, I personally preferred to deal with a few drips on my shirt (which can happen even with breast pads, depending on how messy an eater your baby is) than trying to yank around and readjust uncomfortable breast pads. I also learned quickly, as I'm sure most others do, that clamping my opposite arm over the breast I wasn't feeding with prevents it from spraying through my shirt when my milk lets down. On the whole, I just figure that I am a breastfeeding mother and there is bound to be evidence of it (besides the baby attached to my breast, that is), and I'd just as soon that evidence be milk as giant breast pads showing through my shirt. If I were going to wear them (say if I had a more formal job, and/or an expensive or dry-clean-only wardrobe vs scrubs, tshirts, and tank tops)? I'd definitely go with these wool ones.
From one of my favorite blogs by a breastfeeding mom, her own tips for a breastfeeding wardrobe, along with an excellent post on how to be comfortable around a breastfeeding woman. She's currently breastfeeding a toddler, and is a source of information and interesting anecdotes about that.
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