Hmmm. Forever 21 you say.

I have never stepped foot in a Forever 21, ever before. I never had even looked at the website. I just assumed it was for 15 year old girls, and thus, I was too old.


That is until I started needing maternity clothes and Forever 21 came up as an option in a google search. Say what now?


How do I feel about this? Very indifferent. How could a store that is geared towards teens have a maternity line, I thought to myself. I'm not sure how I feel about the fact this store put the maternity clothing line in city locations where there was a high percentage of teen pregnancy; but what I can see and appreciate is the affordable option for clothes that a pregnant woman will only wear anywhere from 3-8 months (depending on size, etc). So I decided to give it a shot. I proceeded to the website, searched for maternity and well, there my options were.


I was pleasantly surprised. You all know I always splurge on clothing and accessories. And I still do. But now I just splurge on pieces I will wear ALL the time- think jeans, flats for my tootsies, and maybe another signature piece or two. Luckily for the momma's to be, things like Ts, dresses, and cardigans seem to be a specialty of the store; and at the prices they offer, you really can't beat it.


My first purchase was this Boho Floral Maternity dress. I purchased it when I was about 12 weeks pregnant in a medium, and there is definitely room to grow. Now at nearly 20 weeks, I have a small bump and still plenty room to grow. I've worn it once to work with a pair of camel colored boots and once out to dinner, and received many a compliments on how cute it is. $22.80

Next on my list to try was a maternity top. Ugh. A maternity top I thought. I've tried the Old Navy shirts and they are WAY too big on me, not to mention, ridiculously unflattering. I then purchased this shirt. A peach ruched maternity top. I have just started to "pop" by this point and some of my normal fitted shirts that I normally wear just aren't cutting it, while some still do. Wow was I thrilled when I found this one. It is made from comfortable fabric with plenty of room to grow. It's fitted, and the shape is great, so even if you're not showing that much, it will work with you. Now if they only had it in different colors. The price tag?  $13.80

Next up I decided to try a pair of jeans. Sigh. I mean, as much as I want to spend 75-150 dollars on every pair of my maternity jeans (see above comment about my splurges), I really a) shouldn't and b) can't, I mean, I do have a baby to save for! So I purchased the Forever 21 Maternity Skinny Jeans. When I bought them, I got them on sale for $13.80.  The result? Jeans that were a *tad* too big but happily shrunk just a smidge in length and width with one wash and dry and are crazy comfortable with, yes, you guessed it, room to grow. They have a small panel in the front for stretching and real pockets.


Now for Valentines Day and/or my wedding anniversary in March, I picked out this number. 
I want to dress up and look pretty for my husband, and this may do the trick. Simple? A little. But there is some lace trim at the bust, and paired with my Tory Reva Silver Snakeskin flats and some sparkly jewelry, this will do just the trick. The cost when I bought it? $24.80


Lastly, these dresses I got for the spring and summer. I'll be honest. I can't wait to wear them! Price tags for these? $10.99 on sale (maxi dress) and $22.80 for the bib dress.

Considering all of these cost me just over $100; not too shabby. Of course I did grab some other staples such as tunics and tanks- all ranging in price from $8-$12 a pop.


The verdict? Check it out. I'm truly pleasantly surprised with the options that are fashionable, cute, and will make you feel pretty.