Maternity clothing is worn by women as an adaptation to changes in body size during pregnancy. The evolution of maternity clothing began during the Middle Ages, and became fashionable as women became more selective about style and comfort in the types of maternity clothing they wore. Fashions were constantly changing over time, such as the high-waisted Empire silhouette style maternity dress that was fashionable at the turn of the 19th century, and the "wrapper" style dress of the Victorian era that a woman could simply wrap around herself and button up. The commercial production of maternity clothing began at the start of the 20th century, and continued to evolve. During the 1990s in the U.S., relaxed laws such as the Family and Medical Leave Act, which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton, helped to protect the jobs of pregnant women, and served as a form of liberation that afforded women the freedom to wear fashionable maternity styles that emphasised their pregnancy.
History
Dresses did not follow a wearer's body shape until the Middle Ages. When western European dresses began to have seams, affluent pregnant women opened the seams to allow for growth. During the Baroque period (roughly 1600s through the 1700s) the Adrienne, a waistless pregnancy gown with many folds, was popular. At that time women wore men's waistcoats. Some styles had laced vents in the back that allowed the wearer to adjust the girth of the coat as needed. From the 1790s through the early 1820s a style well-suited for pregnancy, the Empire waist, was popular. The Empire, a style which has a fitted bodice ending just below the bust and a loosely gathered skirt, was made popular by Napoleon's first wife Empress Joséphine. Bibs could be added to permit breastfeeding. The 1960s saw a revival of the Empire waistline which lasted for a few years as a general fashion, but remained popular for many years as pregnancy wear.
Victorian era During the Victorian era, women spent more time in pregnancy compared to the 21st century, giving birth to an average of eight children with five making it through infancy. Queen Victoria herself had nine. Pregnancy was considered a private matter not to be discussed in "polite" conversation. A garment called a "wrapper" worn by women at home before they dressed for the day was well-suited for pregnancy as well since it wrapped around and could be worn loosely or more form-fitting as needed. At that time women were used to wearing corsets and maternity corsets with laces for adjustment were available. High-waisted gowns remained in style until about 1830 but when waists returned to normal levels maternity wardrobe planning became more difficult. In the 1840s and 1850s a fan pleated bodice was popular. Some styles were gathered at the shoulder with a drawstring at the waist which could be let out as needed. Separates were introduced in the 1860s with boxy jackets and gathered center bodice panels. Some outfits had linings intended to lace over the belly for support. Fashion magazines showed maternity clothing, though the word "pregnancy" or similar was never mentioned, instead wording such as "for the recently married lady", or "for the young matron" was used.
1900 to present The first commercial ready-to-wear clothing for pregnant women was sold in the US by Lane Bryant in the 1900s. Lane Bryant offered shirtwaists with an adjustable drawstring waist, and dresses with an adjustable wrap-around front. The next competitor, Page Boy, offered a patented skirt in 1937. By the 1930s, wrap-around skirts with a series of buttons were available, but the new Page Boy skirt was constructed with a window over the area of the expanding abdomen which allowed the hemline to remain stable rather than to hike up as the woman's abdomen increased in size. In later years when stretch fabric became available it was used to fill in the window. Their clothing, usually a slim skirt with a wide smock top, became fashionable during the 1950s after Lucille Ball popularized the style in the first TV episode to show a pregnant woman in 1952. Celebrities such as Jackie Kennedy and Elizabeth Taylor were later known for wearing Page Boy clothes. Slacks with adjustable waists became widely available in the 1950s. An Aldens catalog from 1952 shows a pedal pusher and matching blouse outfit priced at $5.98. Designer blue jeans became available in the '80s.
Cultural trends
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