A Fashion Question.

A few weeks ago I received the following email from a reader who is due to have her first little man any day now. 

Anonymous said...

YM-
I have a only tangentially related fashion question for you. I am about to become a first time YM in April. About 10 weeks later, my sister is getting married. The good news is that there are no bridesmaids, so no dress to squeeze into, but I'll still need to find a dress that will be forgiving of the paunch I imagine will still be there in the tummy area, and that will allow easy access for b-feeding. The wedding is casual/cocktail on the Maine coast in the evening in June. Boston is where I shop, and I thought you might have some ideas about what would be the ideal dress and where to procure it in Beantown. This is your challenge should you choose to accept! Thank you for any help you can give me!

My response? A formal wrap dress. This is totally the way to go for a number of reasons. 

• First and foremost the breast feeding issue. Because she will be breast feeding all strapless/ halter/ and spaghetti strap dresses should be immediately nixed for the simple reason that it is really hard to find the right bra which will allow you to wear these type of silhouettes and stack yourself full of nursing pads. Also if you are at a semi-formal event it is very unlikely that you will feed/ pump in public so I like the idea that you can just take the whole dress off in one easy swoop and hang it on the back of the bathroom door while you do your moma cow business (hey, no one said motherhood was pretty.) 
  
• Second I love the wrap dress for the reason that it totally disguises any mummy tummy that you have left over from growing that little human the last 9 months. Not only can you suck yourself in with the ribbon but that bow can always be positioned to hide any unflattering areas. 
• The wedding is in Maine and is not totally formal. I think the dressy wrap dress is the perfect dress for such an occasion new mommy or not. It's classy, doesn't show too much skin, and you know you will never be too overdressed or under dressed which means you can be totally comfortable and confident in your choice of attire. 
• It's Maine and it's June, things can get a bit chilly up there so this is a great choice simply for the fact that it has sleeves!

Here are a few of my favorites. 

This dress is from JCrew and is actually my favorite of the bunch. 

A DVF classic, this dress would fit the bill perfectly.

This one is DVF and is a but pricey but is a good look. I love the neckline and the textured bow.

This is a little more casual with a nautical feel and is by Marc Jacobs.

This DVF is also perfect for this occasion and could be worn multiple times with some fun accessories. 

Click the designer for a link to see where to purchase. All stores are local. 

Good Luck Anon with the baby and the wedding!