It’s finally Spring, hooray (at least in the Southern hemisphere) which means maxi dress, floral prints and Baby Showers and Weddings aplenty. Even if you don’t have a special occasion coming up, you don’t need an excuse to dress your bump in a gorgeous new dress!
Ahead of the launch of the new Spring Summer range from Maive & Bo I caught up with founder Mallory Welch to talk about the new SS19 Flower Child Collection:
Talk about your inspiration for starting your maternity label Maive & Bo?
I started Maive & Bo two years ago. I’d gone through two pregnancies and struggled to find clothes that suited my changing body and tastes, so I started designing my own. We started with only five dress styles and a low budget but people seemed to love the brand and what we stood for – feeling amazing during pregnancy and embracing the change rather than hiding away from it.
Before we approve any design it must tick three boxes:
Does it flatter and complement the pregnant figure?
Is it priced affordably and/or can it be worn after pregnancy?
Will it make the wearer look and feel amazing?
You’ve talked in the past about building the confidence of pregnant women. Can you tell us a bit about that?
It’s something I feel very strongly about. I had very low confidence during my pregnancies, I struggled with the weight gain, not being able to exercise (I had terrible nausea) and when my normal clothes stopped fitting, I was forced to shell out for clothing that didn’t fit my style. I don’t even have any photos to look back on, not even from my baby shower!
It was the total opposite of ’embracing the bump’ and a terrible way to spend pregnancy. I remember thinking, this isn’t right. I don’t want other women feeling this way. I simply wanted to feel beautiful and there weren’t a great deal of affordable, flattering dresses available.
What’s the inspiration behind the new Spring/Summer Flower Child collection?
I wanted to re-create the natural feeling of motherhood, connecting with nature and letting your body do what what it was born to do – nourish, grow and birth a baby. Flower Child is a celebration of this process. The pieces are a little more bohemian than we’ve seen in the past but encompass our signature fresh florals, feminine details and flattering silhouettes.
Is this collection maternity only?
When I started the brand I had no money to buy my own clothes so I made sure almost everything I made could be worn after pregnancy. So maybe there’s more of a selfish reason behind that fact you can wear most of the pieces after pregnancy – particularly the wrap dresses (as worn by stylish Mama Roxanne Cambridge, below) which you’d never know were maternity.
I also found nursing wear difficult to find – while the wrap dresses are easy to nurse in, I’m bringing in more nursing-specific styles for the new mummas looking for another variation. I’m really excited about these dresses! I’ve worn one of the samples out in public a few times and had mothers stop me in the street to ask where the dress came from.
Are you bringing back any favourites from previous collections?
Two of our bestsellers – the Harlow Wrap Dress in Navy Floral and the Luella in Aquarelle – will be coming back in a matter of weeks. We asked our Instagram and Facebook followers what they wanted back in a full size run and these two were the clear winners.
What are your favourites from the range? Right now, I can’t get enough of the Marley Wrap Dress in Navy Floral (pictured below) for day wear and and the Luella in navy ribbed for important meetings and nights out with my man.
Snuggling up to Mamaway Award Winning Pregnancy Pillow, superior rebound with ultimate support and comfort. Get extra pillow case now for a limited time only.Click to learn more.
Baby bags and stylish accessories for mamas and babies. Save 10% with the code STYLISHBUMP
Leave a Reply