Gift Guide: Mum and Mum to Be Under $50

The ultimate gift guide for a mum or mum to be, under $50! I thought it might be helpful to compile a list of budget-friendly gift ideas for your pregnant friend or new mum, with things I recieved or wished I received when pregnant and some mum-approved picks.

I know not everyone loves gift guides so I'm only going to do a couple this year just like last year, and you can always check out my previous post if you prefer just seeing outfits.

Pregnancy Gift Guide Under $50

Pampering is key here. Pregnancy is an incredible miracle, but you don't always feel like you're glowing and floating gracefully through your pregnancy!

Pictured in the guide:

Pregnancy Style on a Budget eBook

The ultimate guide to having a stylish pregnancy on a budget, gift this to your pregnant friend to help her continue to stay true to her personal style through pregnancy, and start each day looking and feeling great! Plus it's under $5! (I think it's the best value ebook ever but I may be biased, being the author!)

Pregnancy Body Pillow

$50 at Overstock
I got through a pregnancy without this and thought it was maybe a little gimmicky, but when I was given one for my last pregnancy that all changed - they are SUCH a good way to have a comfortable sleep! Highly recommend these!

Body Moisturiser Gift Pack

The Body Shop Shea Butter Set or Body Butter Gift Set both under $35
Whether you believe it helps stretch marks or not, a daily ritual of moisturising the growing bump becomes an essential part of pregnancy. It's a good way to sooth stretched skin, so a little pamper pack like this will gt a lot of use. Just be sure to double-check before you buy - pregnancy aversions may mean previously loved scents aren't tolerated any more. Bio-oil and shea butter are pretty popular but any lovely moisturiser can be used.

Confetti Water Bottle

Under $30 at Shopbop
Pregnancy is thirsty work, and it's easy to get your increased daily intake of water when your water bottle is as cute as this! I have the confetti tumbler version at home and love it, so sparkly.

Organiser/Agenda

Kate Spade Under $40 at Nordstrom
Essential to record all of those appointments, track pregnancy milestones and keep a daily-to-do list. Baby brain is real, having things written down helps.

Happy Wishes Jar

Gift Boutique Happy Wishes Jar at Shopbop
A cute jar to start recording happy wishes for baby - this makes a nice idea for a baby shower too.

Cute Sleepwear

'Mama Bird' maternity sleepwear set from BooHoo
Not for in labour, because that gets messy, but something nice she can wear now and pack in her hospital bag for later. There are a lot of cute bump-specific slogan sets, but 'mama bird' works for pregnancy and afterwards! More cute sleepwear at The Iconic.

Cosy Cardigan and Blanket Scarf

Open knit purple cardigan under $50 and tartan blanket scarf under $50
Because cardigans you don't have to button don't have to be maternity ones, she can wear them open over the growing bump. Add in a cute scarf to keep her warm while the cardigan is open and she'll be able to see through a cold weather pregnancy in style. As a bonus, the scarf can double up as a breastfeeding cover-up post baby!

A Roomy Handbag

Monogram stripe tote under $50
A big tote is a nice idea - to hold the snacks, bottles of water and to-do lists that you cart everywhere with you in pregnancy. Something monogrammed is a nice personal touch. You could even consider buying a baby bag too if you know what one she's picked out already.

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Mum Gift Guide Under $50:

When you're a mum it can be hard to find time to yourself or to justify splurging on yourself instead of your kids, so little things to make her feel special are a good idea. And with any time-consuming activity, an offer of free babysitting to accompany it is so incredibly thoughtful! It's much easier to use movie tickets or spa vouchers if you know your kids are in good hands.

Pictured in the guide:

Coffee Mug

But First Coffee Thermal Mug under $25
A mug is nice, but an insulated tumbler that will keep coffee warm for longer is a mum essential, especially in those sleep deprived early days. Coffee vouchers are a good idea too for caffeine on the go.

Line a day journal

Sentence a Day from Kikki.K under $30 or Sentence a Day for mothers under $20
It's hard to find time for anything when you're a mum, but recording a sentence a day is definitely doable, and a sweet memento to look back on when the kids are bigger. A good way to keep track of things even in the early days of motherhood!

Treat Yourself Voucher

Little book of love vouchers under $10
Movies, spa treatments, mani/pedis, personal style sessions, there are so many options. A personal stylist session is a great gift for a mum who is feeling a little lost in her wardrobe post-baby! As mentioned above, make sure to include an offer of babysitting with your voucher, or find a local child-friendly beauty salon.

Beauty Advent Calendars

Under $20 at Target
There are so many nice ones around - The Body Shop do a lovely all-rounder that contains a few different beauty products, and I won a very luxe Charlotte Tilbury advent calendar last year. Something with lots of little beauty things to try in sample sizes lets mum work a new product into her routine whenever she has a moment, and the advent calendar idea is a good way to encourage her to take an extra few minutes to herself each day. If mum's not a fan of beauty products, what about a tea advent calendar? A nice spin on the traditional chocolate calendar.

Silicone Teething Necklaces

Under $30 at Nibbly Bits
I love gifting these to my mum friends! Find ones made with food grade silicone that meet Australian safety standards like Nibbly Bits, and they are the perfect accessory to wear safely around kids. Both my babies loved gnawing on these, and as you wear them you always have quick access to them when they get grizzly. Perfect for teething too. You can find some nice handmade ones on Etsy.

Scented Candles

Wish upon a star candle under $40 or patterned jar candle under $35
These might not be the best idea for mum friends with inquisitive toddlers, but for those with older or younger kids a great scented candle (I love Glasshouse vanilla caramel) is a sweet gift idea. It's a nice way to make a house feel more relaxing, no matter how many toy trains are scattered around.

Sentimental Jewelry

Initial disc necklace on Etsy, Mother Alex and Ani bracelet
There are so many options here from initial necklaces to personalised bangles. Anything that has charms to represent her family is a nice idea, especially if it can be added to later if her family expands.

Chocolate

Lindt 100 Chocolate Balls Gift Pack or Chocolate Coated Oreos
Covering off all the mum essentials, with coffee before and now chocolate - a little stash of chocolate she can enjoy once the kids are in bed for the night is a lovely idea! Lindt is my go-to for luxe chocolate treats.

A Cute Scarf

Kate Spade Scarf Under $50 or a cute neck scarf if it's summer
A big blanket scarf doubles as a breastfeeding cover for a breastfeeding mum, or can simply be added to an outfit to hide spit-up and other baby related marks you don't always notice until after you've left the house! Really handy to keep in the nappy bag.

Cross Body Bag

Leather Cross Body Bags Under $50 at Asos
A small cross body bag is perfect for any mum - it can hold all her essentials nice and close while keeping her hands free for kid-wrangling, and can also be slipped easily inside a nappy bag when her kids are babies. Rebecca Minkoff is a good luxe choice here.

Hope you got some good Christmas present ideas from my post. Everything selected still has plenty of time to be purchased and shipped to you or your recipient before Christmas, especially if you buy it this week!

Is there anything you would add to either gift list?


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30 Ways To Wear a Striped Maxi Skirt - White and Navy #30Wears Series

Another month, another #30wears achieved for a piece from my wardrobe. This time it's another maxi skirt. It's interesting that there are only a few jeans that I've hit 30 wears on but I've easily hit that on so many of my maxi skirts. I've always thought I was more of a jeans than skirt person, my style has definitely evolved over the years. It's useful having the blog to look back on and see what I've worn over the years, and it's great that I can compile my outfit pics together into posts like this.


I have started to look up pieces I'm close to 30 wears on and wearing them a little more regularly, as you've probably seen on Instagram. I do want to wear more of my wardrobe, but I'm also enjoying the challenge of thinking up more ways to wear things to hit 30 wears.

#30 Wears: Navy and White Striped Maxi Skirt

While I don't wear a lot of white, I find this maxi skirt so easy to wear. Being machine washable helps! The stretchy elastic waistband has stretched through to the third trimester of two pregnancies and still fits perfectly post-baby. Non-maternity clothes with elastic waists are wonderful in pregnancy. In fact the very first time I wore this skirt I was pregnant, it's a great pregnancy piece.

It's not just pregnancy this works well for though! Stretchy skirts are great postpartum and incredibly comfortable post-baby. It's easy to see why I've hit 30 wears on this. In fact, half of them were during pregnancy and the other 15 were when I wasn't pregnant. Really funny to see the perfect split when I counted up the 30 wears.

Stripe Maxi Skirt With Printed And Embellished Tanks

A printed skirt doesn't mean you have to wear it with plain pieces! I've enjoyed doing a little print mixing by pairing the striped skirt with printed tanks. If you're looking for something slightly different you can add something extra to the stripes with embellished tanks with beading or sequins. The benefit of the beaded and sequin embellished tanks were that they draw the eye up and away from what was an early second trimester baby bump. Of course as you can see with the brown floral tank, you can only disguise a baby bump for so long! Get more ways to hide a baby bump here.

Navy Stripe Maxi Skirt and Matching Top

Since the white maxi skirt has a navy stripe, it's good to be matchy-matchy and wear a navy tee with it. It's a quick fool-proof outfit technique you can use for any printed piece. Grab a plain piece in a similar colour to one that's in the print to wear with it for an easy outfit that is perfectly co-ordinated.

Stripe Maxi Skirt and Grey Tee

A grey tee is another one of those fail-safe outfit options with a printed maxi skirt. I have quite a few grey tees in my wardrobe, as you can see above as each time I've worn this skirt it's been with a different grey tee! I like them when I need a neutral piece to wear with a print. A grey tee and a maxi skirt is a favourite frequently worn combination of mine. A grey tee will always be a classic to me. A nice neutral grey tee lets you be a little more bold and adventurous with your accessory choices and I like to wear a bright handbag often with grey tees as the colour really pops.

Stripe Maxi Skirt and Colourful Tanks

While grey tees are a great neutral with prints, and you can easily pick a navy top for an easy coordinating outfit, I like wearing bright and colourful tanks with this stripe maxi skirt too. I love this in pregnancy, as my colourful fitted tanks really work nicely to show off a baby bump. Because this skirt is a non-maternity piece, there is a limit to how far the elastic will stretch around a growing baby belly. When it hits its limit, a maternity tank comes in helpful as the longer bump-covering length lets you wear the skirt lower with the waist band under the baby bump like in the last photo.

Maxi Skirts and Light Layers In Cooler Weather

I try to wear most of my wardrobe year-round, but with the slit up the side it gets a little too cold to wear this maxi skirt over winter. I make it work outside of summer by adding a light layer, something as simple as a scarf or denim jacket, or a little more colourful with a printed kimono or colourful knit. Just that extra layer can make it easier to wear this skirt for spring or autumn. You don't have to keep maxi skirts just for summer!

Maxi Skirt and Ruffle Camis

Sometimes i's nice to add some extra texture to your outfit. The close fit of this jersey maxi skirt means voluminous tops are a good pairing with it, and my ruffle camis are such fun pieces to wear. You can even add in some print mixing like I've done in two of those three outfits above. Stripes really do go with so much, and a strappy cami is a wonderful piece to wear in the summer heat.

Maxi Skirt and Tees

As you can see above, I love my grey tees and my navy tees with this striped maxi skirt. Any kind of tee pairs beautifully with a maxi skirt though, and as well as some brightly coloured ones it's been fun wearing graphic tees with this striped skirt. It makes a great casual outfit for places like playgroup if you're wanting to dress a maxi skirt down a little. A simple outfit formula like this can continue on in pregnancy as well!

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Striped Maxi Skirts Under $50:

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A striped skirt can be surprisingly versatile, and this was definitely good value for money! I bought this Atmos & Here maxi skirt back in 2013 for $17.45, so it's now down to 58 cents per wear and still going strong 4 years later.


Want more outfit inspiration? All the 30+ ways I've worn this striped maxi skirt.


Previous 30 Wears posts:

• 30 ways to wear a black maxi skirt
• 30 ways to wear red Balenciaga velo bag
• 30 ways to wear gladiator sandals
• 30 different ways to wear striped maxi skirt
• 30 different ways to wear skinny jeans
• 30 ways to wear a grey Rebecca Minkoff MAM bag
• 30 ways to wear a printed leather jacket
• 30 ways to wear black ankle boots in multiple seasons
• 30 ways to wear mustard yellow Rebecca Minkoff bag
• 30 ways to wear a classic denim jacket

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30 Ways to Wear a Classic Denim Jacket: #30Wears Series

First up, #noSpenderSeptember was achieved - nothing spent on fashion purchases last month! I did attempt a shopping trip but a minor accident derailed my plans. So no new purchases to report.



10 months into my #30wears challenge, and I've still worn very few items of clothing 30 times. I was sure by now I'd have a few dresses, maybe some tops that I'd hit 30 wears on, especially after not shopping for 7 months, but it's been mostly accessories like bags and shoes.

If you look at the maths behind 30 wears (this post has an amazing breakdown of it) I'd have to wear something every other week for 14 months to hit 30 wears on it. And I don't wear things that often, unless we are talking accessories. I'm still keeping up with my challenge, but I think I'm going to have to start wearing some favourites more frequently to hit 30 wears. Pieces I think I've worn a lot seem to only be around 12-15 wears. It's definitely an eye-opening challenge for me, making me realise just how much I have in my wardrobe already and how little I've worn even my favourite pieces.


A denim jacket is a classic piece most people have in their wardrobe so it's no surprise I've hit more than 30 wears with it! As it's spring I thought now was a good time to feature 30 ways to wear a denim jacket.

#30Wears: Classic Blue Denim Jacket

This jacket is one of the old pieces in my wardrobe. I remember where I bought it and who I was with (my sister) but not when exactly I bought it. Something I've easily worn more than 30 times as I've had it at least 10 years, and I've only been blogging for almost 6 years.

Denim Jacket in a Double Denim Outfit

I find double denim tricky to wear. When I was younger I wore similar denim jackets and jeans together for a double denim look without thinking twice about it! Now though, I find it a little harder to pull off. Probably after that famous double denim moment. I even had a denim bag! Not as embellished as Britneys, but it was my favourite bag for a while.

The standard advice for an easy double denim look now is to wear different shades or washes together. I take that a step further and like to wear my denim jacket with completely different coloured jeans. I love my blue denim jacket with my red or purple skinny jeans. Black is another good colour too, for an easy double denim look without looking like you tried too hard.

Denim Jacket and Dresses

This is a go-to spring and autumn outfit for me. For those days where it's just a little cooler and you need an extra layer so you're warmer in the cold mornings or evenings, a denim jacket is perfect. It's nice having a plain layer like this to wear with printed dresses too - you don't have to worry about clashing prints or colours, as blue denim goes with everything!

Denim Jacket and Maxi Dresses

I felt this was worth calling out separately from the other dresses above. A denim jacket works with maxi dresses for many different reasons:

• a sleeveless summer maxi dress you want to add a warmer layer to to get more wear over spring and autumn,
• a spaghetti strap maxi dresses you want to cover up in a formal setting like church, a denim jacket is perfect.
• to make a more formal maxi dress look more casual.

When I need to make a maxi dress work for a cooler day, a denim jacket is my first go-to, and I can even add a scarf if it's really chilly. I like maxi dresses and leather jackets together, but a denim jacket is my favourite way to layer with a maxi dress.

Denim Jacket and Maxi Skirts

Just like above with the maxi dresses, I find a denim jacket works really nicely with maxi skirts. It's a good way to make your maxi skirts work for cooler weather, when you just need a little extra layer on a cool spring or autumn day. Although maxi skirts are perfect in warmer months and ideal for summer, you can easily layer them up a little to work for the rest of the year.

Denim Jacket in Pregnancy

As I usually wear my denim jacket unbuttoned, it still worked perfectly in pregnancy. Having it unbuttoned left plenty of room for a growing baby bump, and it was just the right layer for a pregnancy over autumn. It was nice to have some non-maternity pieces to wear during pregnancy to help me feel more like myself, and a denim jacket unbuttoned is a piece that works in all three trimesters. You can get more pregnancy outfit tips in my book, Stylish pregnancy on a Budget.

Denim Jackets Under $50:

Want more outfit ideas? Check out the 40+ ways to wear a denim jacket in the blog archives.


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