The ultimate guide to lingerie for new moms

Today, we’re embarking on a special journey into lingerie for new mothers! As purveyors of both luxury and comfort, we understand how important it is to choose the right present for a new mom in your life. Whether she’s your wife, partner, best friend, or sister, Angela Friedman is here to help you treat your special someone to the ideal post-maternity gift.

Shopping for lingerie for a new mother can be a beautiful gesture of your profound admiration and care. An intimate and thoughtful gift will ensure that she feels cherished and supported on every step of this incredible and often difficult journey. From silk sleep masks to cozy bralettes and panty sets, and even elegant robes and camisoles, every type of lingerie gift can be adapted for a new mom to make her feel extra special and pampered.

As you begin your quest to find the perfect gift for the new mother in your life, let us help you with our expert insights and guidance:

A boxed gift set of gorgeous lingerie would make a welcome gift for a new mother!

First, does a lingerie gift have to be sexy?

I know what you’re thinking: “She’s just given birth, so should I really be giving her a sexy gift?” Well first of all, lingerie is a catch-all term for all things underwear, and it does not have to be sexy in order to be a great gift. Maybe a beautiful lingerie gift for this new mom just means something shiny and new that feels luxurious against the skin - or hey, maybe it does mean something strappy with a little sexy black lace! It can absolutely go either way, depending on whether your special someone wants to feel flirtatious or just comfortable for right now. You know her best, so go with your instincts!

That said, gone are the days when maternity and nursing lingerie meant compromising on style. Today, designers have masterfully merged sensuality with practicality, offering a stunning array of lingerie pieces for new mothers that seamlessly transition from day to night wear. She can have her cake and eat it too, and she does not have to endure boring white cotton every day if she doesn’t want to. Instead, she can enjoy soft lace, colorful designs, and even a strappy detail or two. So when you’re shopping for maternity lingerie, consider the small details that will make her feel extra special.

The Rosalind 2 knicker gift set is an ideal gift because they're size-flexible and easy to care for.

Practical tips for lingerie shopping for new moms:

1. Prioritize comfort: Choose lingerie crafted from breathable fabrics that provide gentle support without constricting her movements. You’ll want to search for 100% silk lingerie, cotton, rayon, or bamboo fibers. Look for features such as adjustable straps and soft, stretchy materials that easily adapt to her changing body.

2. Consider nursing accessibility: If she’s breastfeeding, opt for bras designed with nursing-friendly features like discreet clasps, allowing for easy access throughout the day. If she’s transitioning out of nursing, she may prefer wire-free bralettes with pull-aside cups for easy access without all of the extra hardware and fuss. In this case, look for soft and stretchy materials like mesh and stretch lace that can easily be pulled aside.

3. Size matters: Ensure a perfect fit by taking accurate measurements, snooping in her underwear drawer, and carefully consulting size charts provided by the brand. (See our expert guide on how to measure for lingerie at home for more tips!) Keep in mind that her body may undergo a lot of changes post-maternity, so consider adjustable styles that accommodate fluctuations in size. The right fit is more important than seeing her “usual size” on the tag, and often sizing up from her usual underwear or bra size will be much more comfortable than squeezing into something that’s too snug.

4. Invest in quality: Choose ethically handcrafted lingerie, designed with precision and attention to detail, and prioritize quality over quantity. You may think of maternity lingerie as a short term stop-gap, but for such a special time in her life, she deserves the best! Invest in timeless pieces that transcend fleeting trends. Even if someday she doesn’t fit into them anymore, they will still serve as cherished mementos of this transformative period. Plus, if she has another child in the future, then she’ll already have a beautiful selection of luxury lingerie items to treat herself!

5. Care instructions: Familiarize yourself with the proper care instructions for lingerie to ensure longevity and durability. Opt for hand washing or delicate machine cycles to preserve the integrity of delicate fabrics and embellishments. Bear in mind that if you’re treating her to designs with high-end materials like pure silk or French lace, they may require special care like handwashing – and she may want to wear her luxury undies with panty liners or her luxury bras with leak-resistant nursing pads. (You can buy these for her too - but we recommend checking with her on which brands, styles, and sizes she prefers for liners and pads.) Better yet, when you buy her a lingerie gift, do all of the hand washing yourself! Imagine how perfect a gift it would be if she knows that you’ll also handle laundry day, so that she can dress up in fancy things without having to even think about filling the sink.

6. Go custom! Maybe you can’t find the exact thing you’re envisioning, or you think she might need a custom size to accommodate her baby bump or her new bra size. Well, you can always ask brands for custom sizes or custom design features! At Angela Friedman, we make custom pieces for new moms all the time. Learn more about our bespoke designs or reach out by email with your dream request. Don’t forget to allow some extra time for your custom lingerie gift to be handcrafted.

Learn how to properly hand wash her delicates, and you can give the gift of no more laundry days, too!

The art of gifting lingerie

Presenting lingerie gifts to a new mother is a wonderful thoughtful gesture... But you can do even better than just handing over a gift - turn it into a real art form! Try these bonus tips for making her gift even more extraordinary:

1. Add on little extras: Treat her to an extra gift by adding on a silk sleep mask. (Trust us, she’ll need all the help she can get with catching some extra sleep once the baby is born!) Or add on a luxury magnetic gift box for an indulgent unboxing experience. Extras like chocolates, scented candles, perfume, bath bombs, or skincare are more great additions for some much-needed self care.

2. Personalize your selection: Consider her individual style preferences and personality when selecting lingerie gifts! Does she always talk about how she wished she were the kind of person to swan about in silk caftans and robes? Or perhaps you’re going to take her on a special baby moon holiday, where you can lay out her gifts out across the hotel room. Or maybe she just loves a certain shade of blue, and you can find a unique selection, all in her favorite color.

3. Create a luxurious gifting experience: Elevate your gift by presenting it in exquisite packaging, adorned with a delicate ribbon and even a coordinating love letter. Write down all the reasons why you’re thrilled to be on this journey together, and tell her how much you want to treat her to a gift that’s truly just for her! Remember, throughout her pregnancy and for long after, everyone else is going to give her things that are really for the baby. This is your chance to make it just about her - and she will really appreciate that difference.

4. Choose the things that she would choose, not what you would choose: It’s easy to get carried away by imagining what you would want her to wear or look like, but stop first and think about her needs. Does she want to dress up in a sexy little number and feel like “her old self” again? Or does she want to wrap herself up in layers of cashmere and feel cozy and more covered up? Does she always wear classic neutral colors and never tries anything more daring? Does she have the time and energy for hand washing delicate pieces (or can you take this task off her list entirely?) or does she want to be able to chuck everything in the washing machine? Does she want to wear something completely indulgent and impractical like a floor-length dressing gown, and just forget her cares for 5 minutes? These are all really important things to consider!

A silk sleep mask is a small but perfect gift for a new mother. Every extra minute of sleep helps!

Our expert gift recommendations

Selecting lingerie for a new mother will be a testament to your admiration and appreciation for her, so make sure that you’re doing this for her and on her terms. Whether you treat her to soft and comfy bralettes for transitioning out of nursing, or you indulge her in an exquisite silk robe to make her feel like a queen while she’s getting ready in the morning, whatever you choose will serve as a symbol of your dedication to her.

So here are our top recommendations for specific lingerie gifts for new moms:

1. Sleep masks are much-needed and an inexpensive way to say you care!

2. A wrap-around robe or dressing gown will feel like an indulgence no matter what else she’s wearing. Buying a 100% silk robe is definitely a way to level up, but consider whether or not it’s practical based on whether she’s actively nursing - milk stains would be a shame on silk.

3. Wire-free bralettes are a must for comfort! Look for nursing clasps if needed, or opt for comfortable styles that have soft elastic and stretchy materials like mesh or stretch lace.

4. For underwear, she may need to size up for either width or length. If it’s something very fancy, panty liners can help protect the garment from any surprises, and you can really step up the gift by purchasing a specially formulated delicates wash and offering to do the hand washing for her. (We like the delicate soaps from Eucalan and Soak the best!)

5. Soft loungewear like camisoles, tap pants, and soft lounge pants are perfect for cozy at-home days when she feels like nesting. Look for high quality materials like silk, bamboo, and cashmere.

Treat her to a gorgeous silk robe, made from the ultimate in indulgent textiles.

We hope that this quest for lingerie gifts for new mothers will be a lovely and enjoyable experience for you both! In the end, this is supposed to be fun - so make sure you keep that in mind while shopping. With Angela Friedman as your guide, let your love shine through in every exquisite detail, and we hope we can help you find the perfect treat just for her. If you’d like any personalized recommendations for her style, size, or maternity needs, please reach out using our contact form, and we’ll be happy to offer our expert advice.