Maternity Jeans: The Hunt for Hot Mom Denim

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The right pair of maternity jeans can make all the difference when it comes to comfort and style

How to find winning maternity jeans: the most challenging and essential maternity wardrobe staple

Since I’ve recently joined the club, I want to focus on the style challenges faced by expecting mums. Maternity wear, particularly maternity denim, is the ultimate maternity shopping challenge. Yet you’ve gotta have jeans; jeans are a sartorial staple that dress up and down. And unlike bump-friendly, elastic-free cotton undies, which you can grab by the handful at the maternity store without trying, jeans take work.

Sadly, most maternity stores don’t have cool jeans. After that easy first trimester when your regular stretch denim will still do the trick, you’ve got to search them out. Then you must give them a test run just to make sure they’re comfy and chic.

Pregnancy is a time when comfortable clothing matters most, what with the itching, stretching and circulation issues. It’s also a time when you’d like a little help highlighting pretty, new curves which can so easily turn into lumps when draped in the wrong material and cut.

Since motivating yourself to go shopping when you’re pregnant isn’t easy – most of us feel like we’re carrying the weight of the world on our abdomen – I’ve done maternity denim research for you. I hope they will save you hours in the wrong fitting room trying to see if you put your boot of the right foot, somewhere under that mountainous sea-monkey swimming tank. Here are my picks for the most comfortable and best looking maternity jeans to help you waddle with bumpitude.

Top 3 Picks for Maternity Denim

J Brand maternity denim in skinny leg with side panels. (Image: J Brand)

Topshop Maternity Denim

Topshop maternity denim is the easiest fix. The jeans come in a variety of styles (skinny to boyfriend) and colours (indigo to black and even pastels). Some varieties have more stretch than others and all have a low, unobtrusive elastic panel.

The only downside is their tendency to slip south, but for under $65, the occasional hoist is a small price to pay for the silhouette and wearability.

J Brand Maternity Denim

J Brand, the cult denim label, has some of the best maternity jeans out there, with a sexy below-the bump waistline featuring two stretch side panels. The panels are comfortable on your growing belly, and sleek everywhere else. The downside is the price tag.

At over $200, it’s no wonder these are the celeb maternity denim of choice (Beyonce, Gwyneth Paltrow, January Jones, Jennifer Garner).

Seraphine maternity denim fit guide. (Image: Seraphine)

Seraphine Maternity Denim

Seraphine maternity jeans are so revered, some women prefer them to their pre-maternity, every day denim. Not suprisingly, the maternity wear brand was launched by a French woman, who tested the fits during her own pregnancies.

Seraphine jeans come in stretch denim in three lengths with an elastic band in the front. They come in all colours, including aqua and tomato red. The options range in price from $50 to $80 and ship from the UK.

There is no catch here. Seraphine has a handy fit guide, offers worldwide shipping and returns are easy. The brand is favoured by celebrities (Kate Hudson, January Jones, Jessica Alba and Dannii Minogue), but doesn’t sport a celeb price tag.