Squeaking in at just 5’ tall, finding clothes is always a wee bit more difficult for me than for the ‘average’ or tall womenfolk around me. I have to say now that I am not someone that enjoys clothes shopping at all– I often get cranky and tired. Yes, stores have petite sections, but sometimes I find two flaws– 1- the petite clothes are more geared toward middle aged or older women, and 2- some petite clothes assume that you are super-duper skinny just because you are short. This leaves us short, more curvy ladies with even fewer options. As I progressed throughout my pregnancy I was not at all looking forward to buying maternity clothes– if ‘normal’ clothes were an annoyance to find, maternity wear would prove to be even more difficult.

taken from buzzed.com

I swear I’m not a cheapskate, but I was surprised when I saw how pricey maternity wear could be. Furthermore, I was dismayed when I saw the complete lack of petite maternity wear that was sold in-store. Yes, online shopping is great, but I really wanted to try on maternity pieces in person. No such luck. More about that below.

I was able to hold out and wear my normal clothes for a pretty good amount of time. This was thanks to a few nifty things:

First up, the Belly Belt Combo Kit, which I got from Motherhood Maternity.

taken from Google images

These ‘bands’ were helpful when the top of my pants were getting a bit snug, but everywhere else they fit just fine. With a short and longer band in both the button and slack style, I was able to wear my own jeans and slacks for a very long time.

Next up, the Maternity BeBand from Target.

taken from Google images

I loved this product! Again, when the button just won’t make it into the hole, slip on one of these bad boys to hold those pants up. Later in the pregnancy I liked wearing these because I found that they offered good support for the growing belly.

Eventually, the time came when I didn’t want to look like sausage stuffed into casing– I had to bid adieu to my normal clothes and join the maternity world. My lovely friends gave me some items that were small in size, but sadly it wouldn’t be enough to get me through every day of the rest of the pregnancy.

Here’s what I found in terms of petite sizes:

Old Navy- Offers maternity jeans and slacks in petite sizes online. While there weren’t as many options as the regular length maternity pants, it was good enough for me! The pants were pretty true to my pre-pregnancy pants size and the prices were very reasonable! Old Navy is perfect for tanks and long sleeve cotton shirts– not expensive and great for everyday wear/lounging around.

Love these bootcut black pants– great for work and very comfy.
The skinny jeans are perfect for fall– throw on some boots, maternity tank top, and a big sweater and you’re good to go!

Target- I really liked what I saw in the maternity department of Target as the clothes were quite cute. It was a bummer that nothing was petite, and the regular Extra Small size just didn’t fit right. However, Target was awesome for loungewear, tank tops, and basic long sleeve shirts or sweaters– all for low prices.

The tanks and leggings are from Target’s Liz Lange line. I got the tanks in several different colors and wear them with my cardigans– good for work or weekends.
The leggings are so cozy, great for around the house!

The Loft- Let me start by saying that I love The Loft. 90% of my closet is from there because they offer Extra Small petite shirts and petite pants that are truly short in length! Again, they have maternity wear online and had a good variety of tops and bottoms. More pricey than Old Navy, but quality clothes for sure. I ordered 3 pairs of maternity pants from Loft in my usual size and was so sad to return all three. The pants themselves were a great fit– the maternity band that goes over the belly was so tight it was cutting off circulation. I didn’t read reviews before ordering the pants, but after going back and doing so this seems to be the #1 complaint.

The Gap- Petite maternity wear is sold online– some stores might have some in stock, but neither of the locations near me did. The tops and bottoms are very comfortable and again true to my pre-pregnancy size. I was very pleased with my purchases, and several of my friends have lived in GAP products during their pregnancies.

I really like these pants for work. They were more expensive than Old Navy’s slacks, but they fit great and are a quality product.

Motherhood Maternity- I could not find any petite sizes (tops or bottoms) in the locations near me. I found that some of the regular Extra Small shirts worked fine, but for bottoms it would have to be an online purchase. As a maternity store, they had the most options for petites online– if you can hit up an Outlet store, or catch a sale– you can get good deals on otherwise pricey clothes.

 
I’m sure that there are other places to mention, but these were in the right price range and the most convenient for me. Maybe in the future we’ll see more stores start to carry petite sizes in-store– that would be great! With 8 weeks left to go, I’m clearly getting lots of use of my maternity clothes right now. Do/did any of you have some go-to stores for maternity wear? I’d love to know!