Outfit Details:

Gal Meets Glam Makenna Dress, Manebi Espadrilles, Straw Bag (similar here)

One of the questions I’ve received frequently since announcing that I’m pregnant is if we’ll be expanding Gal Meets Glam Collection to include a maternity line. We actually design each month’s pieces almost a year in advance, so even if we did start designing maternity dresses, I wouldn’t get to wear them during this pregnancy! While we don’t have plans to create a dedicated maternity line at the moment, that certainly hasn’t stopped me from wearing most of our pieces. I could easily wear most of them through the first trimester (sometimes in a size up for a comfier fit), but now that I’m 20 weeks, I’ve been gravitating toward pieces that naturally fit my growing bump better. Even though we designed these dresses before I was pregnant, I’m grateful that there are serendipitously plenty for me to choose from, including one of my March favorites, seen here: the Makenna dress (more sizes here).

Spring is my favorite season for maxi dresses. The longer hem keeps legs warmer than a midi or mini would on cool mornings, but a lightweight dress is still a very welcome change from the layers I’ve been piling on all winter. The Makenna is made of cotton, so it’s breathable and incredibly comfortable to wear on its own or with a jacket thrown over your shoulders. While I love the vintage-inspired rose print and the feminine shoulder ties, I have to admit that the elements that make it work perfectly as a maternity dress—the high waist and smocked back—are my current favorite details. I know I’ll be wearing this breezy piece well throughout the summer as our little lady grows…and the temperatures in Charleston rise. Friends who have experienced their third trimesters during summer assure me I’ll be living in dresses more than ever over the coming months! We also have this dress coming out in a new print and color, exclusive to Anthropologie this month- stay tuned!

If you’re pregnant and on the hunt for non-maternity dresses that work with a bump, keep a close eye out for high waistlines, fabric with a touch of stretch, smocked backs, and wrap silhouettes. I’ve been living in Aurora (as seen in our pregnancy announcement!), Angelica, Maxandra, Genevieve, Sydney, Seraphina (also available at Nordstrom in Fern and Dillard’s in Paris Blue, Marianna and Violetta. We have more bump-friendly styles coming up in our spring collection too—here is a sneak peek of one!