Bravo for Bravado!

Hey breastfeeding mommies in Manila! I have super good news for you! My favorite brand of nursing bras - Bravado Designs is now available in Rustan's!

I highly recommend these, because I have and I love this:

Original Nursing Bra Plus in White (P1,950). I have this in white, black and nude, but it also comes in blush, and get this - leopard! Features flexible sizing which accommodates up to 3 rib bands and 2-3 cup sizes. This is perfect because you don't have to worry about buying a size too small or too big because it can work with your changing cup sizes. I also like the wrap style. I can wear this under a dress or a shirt with deep V-neck, and they just blend in like I have a tank underneath.

and this:

Lifestyle Nursing Bra in Pink (P2,250) is for when you've settled into your nursing cup size. This bra has premium microfiber on the outside of the cups and cotton lining inside. Microfiber is fabulous for support and the cotton makes this bra breathable. I also like it that it's pink! It's just fun to wear, haha!

These are all I've been using, thanks to my friend Belle! She was the one who told me to buy Bravado when I was still pregnant with Berry. She also said this was "the line of bras that Angelina Jolie uses! Hihihi!" (Her exact words! Hahaha!).  But seriously, for me, Bravado is really the best in all fronts (no pun intended!). Let's put it this way, the material is soft and breathable, it's super comfortable, and it's so easy to unclasp and clasp! Also, the strap that the flap hangs onto doesn't hinder baby's mouth when sucking!

In my last trimester, I bought one initially, just to try it out. It felt so good! Way better than a cheapo maternity bra I bought in Target for less than $17. I mean, seriously, don't waste your money on cheap nursing bras. Just go for the best, you won't go wrong. In the end, I bought 7 Bravado nursing bras, and it's all I've been using it since the day Berry was born. So see, it lasts a long time too. It's been almost a year now and they still look good.

There are actually more designs to choose from. I haven't tried these but judging from my satisfaction with 2 of Bravado's nursing bras, these are worth checking out as well:

Body Silk Seamleass Nursing Bra in Pink Ice (P2,450) is designed to melt onto a woman’s body. The molded foam cup bra offers a seamless silhouette, lovely shape and great support. The foam cups are removable. You can keep the cups in to hide nipples and breastpads when you need to. It can also fit up to 4 cup sizes!

The Exquisite Nursing Bra (P3,750) beautifully combines fashion and function. This unique bra features thoughtful details like cups that comfortably stretch to fit a woman’s changing shape, lace that isn't scratchy, a unique and nickel-free gold clip, and exclusive Bravado! Cotton FlexTM fabric inside the cups.

The Essential Nursing Bra Tank (P2,450) has a full, molded-cup bra inside a stylish nursing tank. It has phenomenal support, all the way up to a G cup! Perfect for maternity (it'll stretch and come back to its original shape after washing), transition and nursing, this can be worn for daytime, sleeping, yoga, or layering — the possibilities are endless, making this truly the "essential" tank in a nursing mom's wardrobe!

Bravado also has a line of undies to pair the bras with - from Exquisite Boy Shorts (P1,450) to Maternity Bikinis (P1,250) and Maternity Briefs (P1,450). I didn't bother buying these as I just used my regular undies, but if you want to go all matchy-matchy, then no worries, Bravado's got you covered! Well, sort of!


Bravado is exclusively available at Rustan’s Makati, Edsa Shangri-La and Alabang Town Center.

Breastfeeding Style

(Wearing my favorite breastfeeding/summer dress from Cheap Monday)

Hi! Read your blog, it's really interesting!

Could rather relate to it, as I'm an expat wife living in Manila now. Just wanted to know, how'd you dress fashionably when you've got such a young baby around?

My baby's 7 months old now (almost the same age as Berry!) and I'm stuck in the same few breastfeeding tops and berms all day. :(

Plus, I'm always lugging around a huge backpack full of baby stuff... can't ever use a small chic handbag anymore.

Cheers
Jean

One thing I told myself, back when I was still single, was that I will never allow myself to slide (in Filipino, "Ayoko maging losyang!") when I get married and have babies. I want to look stylish, fresh, and smelling clean always. Well, it turns out, it's not that easy when one does not have yayas and helpers at home. That means, yes there are days when I putter about the house and run after Berry in pajamas the whole day. That's real life.

So, I "got it" when I became a mom myself. Mothering can really be a challenge, style wise (and grooming wise, I haven't been to a salon in months!). I totally see where you're coming from Jean.

But since I never was one to sacrifice style, I vowed I would never be caught outside the house wearing "boring" clothes. I still want to be me, I don't ever want to hide behind mommy clothes just because I am a mommy now. That was my philosophy too when I was pregnant. It just didn't make sense to buy maternity and breastfeeding clothes. (First, because I wanted to save. It wasn't worth spending on clothes I would only get to use for a few months. And second, there are just too many cuter clothes out there that are worth spending on!)

So I figured, the best clothes that were still "me" but practical enough to wear for breastfeeding would be roomy clothes (I wear a lot of A line tanks and oversized tees) and clothes with easy access points - button downs, snap-ons and wrap styles.

As you can see below, I have button down clothes in all its incarnations:

A button down dress from Cheap Monday which I wore every chance I got the whole summer with my K. Jacques...


A button down drop waist tunic from Old Navy which I wear with leggings or tights...


A button down flannel shirt from Uniqlo that I wear with jeans and Bensimon sneakers...

A button down onesie from A.P.C. that I wore with flat sandals in the summer and tights and my Golden Goose boots during fall/winter...

And yes, a hand-me-down button down shirt from Dear Hubby that I wear with leggings. I suggest you check out your husband's closet for shirts that he can pass on to you...

I also found this really cool Union Jack dress from Twenty8Twelve...

...that has snaps all the way around the neckline and down to the sides, that I can easily breezily remove come feeding time.

Finally, a wrap/mock wrap dress (or a top) is very breastfeeding friendly too! This one from H&M is pretty versatile. I can dress it down with sandals or dress it up with pumps if I have to...

And it is so easy to pull down the front come breastfeeding time...

My best accessories for these clothes are a breastfeeding cover and my breastfeeding bras from Bravado Designs (which I discovered, thanks to my friend Belle!). So there. I still get to wear real clothes, clothes that I love, and I don't have to sacrifice my style over breastfeeding at all.

Now when it comes to bags, you may have given up on small, chic, handbags, but you can easily replace those with big, chic handbags! I have friends who stuff a Louis Vuitton Neverfull with all their essentials, plus that of their baby's. When I go on short trips out, I put 2-3 nappies, baby wipes, a changing pad, an extra set of clothes, a bib and some snacks in a Rootote tote. And when I can only really just carry one bag, I put Berry's stuff inside my super lightweight bag (a Goyard Fidji).

I bring out the big diaper bags when we're out the whole day. Because when we are out for 2-3 hours, Berry hardly needs to change clothes and she only needs to change nappies once if at all (thanks to Pampers Baby Dry!). So in essence, it doesn't make sense to bring along so many things if it's just a short trip out to run errands.

In a nutshell, shop your closet for button downs, wraps and snap-ons and retire your breastfeeding tops. You can wear "real" clothes. Always bring a breastfeeding cover and use an easy to unsnap breastfeeding bra. Get yourself a nice lightweight and roomy tote or hobo (Longchamp, Kipling and LeSportsac are affordable alternatives to luxury bags) and try to whittle down the baby stuff to the essentials. That way, you don't have to lug around a huge backpack. Hope this helps you Jean!