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If you've got it, flaunt it

By KATHERINE SNOW SMITH, Special to the Times
Published April 12, 2007

When Stacey Springsteen began to show during her third pregnancy, she decided it was time to get out the maternity clothes she had worn the last time.

"I pulled out the old stuff from 3 1/2 years ago and it's outdated. Now everything is hip," said Springsteen, a medical software sales representative from St. Petersburg. "Everything is just more fun. . . . The fabrics are all clingy. You want to show it off, baby."

Maternity wear definitely has changed since comedian Lucille Ball wore shapeless tents during her pregnancy on I Love Lucy. The words "sexy" and "hot" are now being associated with pregnancy fashion. One national chain of maternity stores recently touted that "irresistible fashions will have her sexy silhouette looking fabulous."

In fact, in most maternity fashion stores you can find more bikinis, more halter tops and more sheer fabrics than ever before, even denim hot pants.

"It used to be about hiding your pregnancy, and now they really mean to show it off. That is the big change that started five to 10 years ago and really accelerated the last couple of years," said Rebecca Matthias, CEO and founder of Mothers Work, an umbrella company of more than 1,500 maternity stores across the country, including A Pea in the Pod, Mimi Maternity and Motherhood.

But for the rhinestone-studded, black tank tops that read "September Baby," anyone glancing at the racks of clothes in South Tampa's Babes n' Bellies would have no idea she was in a maternity shop.

There are outfits in the oh-so-hip color combination of turquoise and brown, brightly colored tube tops of clingy fabric, a little cocktail dress in a sheer, minimalist black and white print and halter tops that tie around the neck with a low, open back.

"Maternity has come a long way from when I was pregnant 40 years ago," said Sylvia Loomis, who works at Babes n' Bellies. "We had the muumuus, and if you wore pants you just didn't zip them all the way up."

Matthias credits the change in maternity fashion to the high profile pregnancies of celebrities, including Angelina Jolie and Kelly Ripa, who wore clothes that accentuated their pregnancies instead of hiding them.

Celebration of curves

Maria Martinez-Kim, owner of Babes n' Bellies, said she has seen a big shift in the designers and customers in the six years since she opened her store. At first, only a few of the racier designers offered body-hugging dresses or strapless tops. Now, they all do.

"The customers actually request bikinis because they see them in so many magazines. A lot of customers go to the celebrities" to set the styles, she said.

"We want to give expecting mothers the option to go for sexier swimsuits and avoid frumpiness," said Jennie Angel, founder of Bella Diosa, a company that specializes in intimate apparel for pregnant women and is expanding into swimwear.

The company will offer suits in one- and two-piece styles that are designed, according to a press release, "for expectant mothers who aim to make the most of their sexy pregnancy curves."

From swimsuits to office wear, "fashions are more body hugging, which is actually more slimming than being in a big tentlike dress," Martinez-Kim said.

Katherine Arce can vouch for that.

"I kind of like things a little more fitted because then I don't feel so huge," said the Tampa woman, who is expecting her first child soon. "My mom says we all look like exhibitionists and that when she was pregnant people tried to hide it a lot more."

Arce, a sales associate at Saks Fifth Avenue, said maternity clothes mirror what's on the racks for non-pregnant women, so she and many other moms-to-be are bypassing maternity clothes and just buying something a size or two bigger in "regular clothes."

"The style right now is empire waist, so I can find that anywhere," said Jenna Cibron of St. Petersburg, whose first baby is due soon. She has bought a lot of tops at Nordstrom and Forever 21, which cost less than some maternity tops.

But some maternity items are worth whatever the price. Cibron, for one, has been willing to shell out the money for designer maternity jeans.

"I don't scrimp on them because you wear them so much," she said.

Yes, those same expensive designer jeans - 7 For All Mankind, Joe's Jeans and Citizens for Humanity - are sold at A Pea in the Pod for $175 to $265 a pair. Some even have Swarovski crystals encrusted on the back pockets.

That all adds up to an industry estimated at $1.2-billion annually.

For the modest mom

So what about the pregnant women who have no interest in hot pants or body-hugging tops? Or those who secretly dreamed of the time when they could add on extra pounds and hide them under a loose-fitting dress? Do they now have to watch every bite so they can keep up with the latest maternity styles?

"There may be more women comfortable today with showing a little skin, but there is always a range and spectrum," Matthias said. "We still have the basics; we still have the things a little longer or a little looser no matter what you're comfortable with."

She added that pregnant women these days watch what they eat more for their babies' sakes.

"It's not a matter of appearances as much as health," she said. "Doughnuts don't form life as well as vitamins and vegetables."

Katherine Snow Smith is a freelance writer in St. Petersburg.

Fast Facts:

Babes n' Bellies

3805 W San Miguel St., Tampa. Hours: 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. (813) 258-8333.

check it out

On the Web

To find some of the fashions mentioned in the story, and to find a store close to you, check these sites:

www.belladiosa.com

www.motherhood.com

www.mimimaternity.com

www.apeainthepod.com

On the town

[Last modified April 12, 2007, 06:34:07]