Mumbai-based homegrown fashion label Block Hop's maternity wear is a blend of style and functionality

Pregnancy is a huge milestone — as a pregnant woman and a mother, one ensures to put every effort to make sure their little one is comfortable and taken care of. But, more often than not, mothers forget that they too need to be taken care of and feel comfortable. Unfortunately, the comfort of an expectant or a new mother is seldom a priority for anyone, including the mother herself.

As the body changes throughout the pregnancy, so should her wardrobe with the right clothes to ensure comfort for the mother. Fortunately, brands like Block Hop make some stylish, comfortable, and affordable maternity clothes available for every mother who proudly wants to flaunt their baby bump and embrace motherhood with all her grace.

Co-founded by two childhood friends, Ankieta Kothari and Natasha Agarwal, the brand came into being essentially after coming across their own motherhood journeys, and the lack of options for basic essentials. “There are only a few pairs of clothes that you wear throughout the pregnancy and most clothes come with a lot of fabric. You are already carrying a baby and don't want any more weight on yourself. So comfort was the centre of our clothing,” says Ankieta.

Made of thermo-regulating bamboo cotton, the collection that consists of co-ord sets, everyday dresses, wrap co-ords and several tops and pants, is high on both comfort and style and absolutely functional for expectant mothers who wouldn't want to compromise on anything. With sustainability in mind, each of their pieces has the flexibility to be used for breastfeeding, pumping or to wear just as not restricting you to just maternity wear.

“The idea was to build a sustainable maternity label and something that's used during pregnancy and after that as well. It is nursing friendly and if you are not pregnant you can also wear and carry it with you after the child is born,” says the mother of two.

Their USP is to offer styles that are high on quality, and trendy, and encourage women of all body shapes to express themselves creatively. Hence, their latest collection is vibrant and made with a classy colour palate. The consciously designed wrap-style garments easily adjust to changing bodies. Uncomfortable zips, concealed cut-outs and embellishments are done away with so as not to irritate the wearer or their infant. The cut of each pattern is such that it would provide plasticity even when a mother goes through a C-section. In addition, the cooling and UV protection properties of the bamboo fabric ensure comfort and functionality. “Comfort is at the heart of everything we do,” Ankieta insists.

Redefining maternity in the Indian context, where showing off a baby bump is no more a taboo, the label aims at making the period of conception to delivery to feeding smoother and effectively giving more ease.

“We are no more in the time when women would want to hide their baby bump. Now, women want to flaunt it and celebrate their pregnancy, so why not have comfortable clothing,” she says, adding that next in line will be an athleisure collection made with bamboo fabric apart from their existing line of nightwear for kids, twinning suits for children and parent, adult's pyjama sets and more.

“We are trying to expand and reach out to more people. At our label, we focus more on the customer's standpoint of what would suit them the best. There should be a long-lasting product in your wardrobe and our maternity wear is versatile,” says Ankita in conclusion.