The Middle Place
Or: what it feels like to have a manufacturer locked but no fabric yet and why that is a good thing
Turns out, that was just the beginning.
Right now, I have a manufacturer. A good one. The kind that answers emails, understands samples, eager to collaborate and believes in the product.
But the fabric? Still searching.
This is the middle place. Between "making progress" and "making something." It's where most of the work happens – but nobody posts about it because there's nothing to show yet. Just waiting. Testing. Rejecting. Starting over.
I could have settled by now. There are fabrics out there. Easy ones. Ones that would let me move forward.
But what touches your body during pregnancy matters. I learned that the hard way. Polyester allergy. Red spots. Itching. On top of everything else.
So when I say I’m looking for the right fabric, I mean:
- Won’t irritate sensitive skin
- Wicks moisture
- Breathes
- Stays soft
- And makes you feel like yourself - beautiful and sexy.
That last one is the hardest to find.
Why ROBE?
The Real Problem With Maternity Lingerie
Scroll through any maternity brand and you’ll see the same thing: a pregnant woman against a white backdrop, wearing maternity underwear, staring softly into the distance. It’s selling an idea of pregnancy that doesn’t exist.
That’s not how life works.
Mums work. Mums have coffee with friends. Mums are awake at 3am. Mums do a thousand things in a day, and none of them happen against a white backdrop.
The current market treats maternity wear as something to endure. Beige. Designs that say “this is just temporary, so here’s something functional.”
I don’t accept that.
Maternity lingerie should be lifestyle-oriented. It should look good in real life – while you’re working, while you’re out, while you’re living. It should support what mums actually do.
Why This Matters
Simon Sinek writes in Start with Why that people don’t buy what you do – they buy why you do it. My why is simple: new mums deserve better.
Peter Thiel argues in Zero to One that the best businesses build something truly new. Not an incremental improvement. Something that didn’t exist before.
The current market isn’t just bad. It’s lazy. I’m not here to make frumpy lingerie slightly less frumpy. I’m here to make something new: considered, beautiful lingerie for mums. The kind you want to be seen in. The kind that doesn’t ask you to wait until “after” to feel like yourself.
That takes time. That means not settling.
So the fabric search continues. The manufacturer is ready. The samples are pending. I’m here, in the middle, waiting.
I’d rather wait for something right than rush something wrong.
What I Come Back To
When I get impatient, I remember what this is actually about.
New mums deserve better.
The current offer is low quality and low effort.
What touches your body during pregnancy isn’t a detail – it’s the point.
I want lingerie that looks beautiful in real life. Lingerie that supports what mums actually do. So I’ll keep looking. Keep asking questions.
The fabric is out there.