Mothers-to-be have more sophisticated fashion choices to make these days, writes Deirdre McQuillan
When high-profile expectant celebrities such as Cate Blanchett, Julia Roberts and Kate Hudson demonstrate how sexy and glamorous an expanding waistline can be, being pregnant means being in fashion. Maternity wear has undergone a revolution as mothers-to-be, proud of their changing shape, no longer hide or disguise their bumps, but prefer to emphasise their new contours with confidence. New shops are springing up everywhere to cater for the demand, and many of today's most successful maternity wear brands have been started by women unable to find the sort of good-looking clothes they wear when not pregnant.
"If you look good, you feel good," says Catriona Merry, an Irish designer based in Paris who is newly responsible for the well-known French maternity wear brand Veronique Delachaux. Her own two very different experiences of pregnancy - she has two daughters aged seven and four - informed her approach to transforming what had become a somewhat staid French label (part of the childrenswear line Jacadi), and giving it a sharper, more contemporary edge. The results can be seen in her winter collection, her first, which was shot in Brittany.
"In France, 70 per cent of women work, so you do have to cater for the pregnant working woman," she says, explaining the well-chosen mix of day, evening and sportswear. One of the best selling items is a pinstripe suit with a slim shoulder and well-cut jacket, with Lycra giving it extra stretch. "Outside Paris, where we sell a lot, women tend to dress up a little bit less," she says, so casual jeans and jackets come in soft, washed needle cords. Chic tracksuits in chocolate and pink velour are designed with antenatal classes in mind, while for evening sexy, black halter-neck tops in silk chiffon, satin and velvet are shaped to "hug the tummy nicely".
So what makes Veronique Delachaux different to hip maternity labels such as Liz Lange and others? "Our fabrics and our cut are the best," she claims without hesitation. "None of the others have put as much research into quality and fabrics at our prices. Our pinstriped suits are in wool, our sweaters are cashmere and our prints are exclusive to us. If you want decent trousers that work, you are not going to get better than ours. What I hope is that women don't feel they are disguised, that they feel at home in the clothes and not that they are changing their style because they are pregnant. These are comfortable clothes for fashionable women."
Having moved from Dublin after a year's foundation in NCAD to study at the Esmod school in Paris in l992, Merry worked briefly for Morgan, before joining Paco Rabanne, where she remained for seven years, gaining invaluable experience and insights into the French fashion industry. "It was interesting to work in a house with a heritage that was not completely luxury, but not basic ready-to-wear either. I learnt a lot about quality and attention to detail."
That has helped in her work on Delachaux, where much effort has gone into the treatment of jeans, for example, and the selection of fabrics that feel as good against the skin as they look on the body. One of the key items in the winter collection is a double-breasted quilted coat trimmed with velvet ribbon; perhaps the best compliment she got was that (non-pregnant) store buyers bought it for themselves. Now that's a real endorsement.
Veronique Delachaux can be found in Nelo maternity shops in Clarendon Street, Dublin and Robert Street, Limerick