Where to shop for Maternity Clothes in Israel
You’d think that with Israel’s relatively high birthrate, and every woman you pass on the street being pregnant (doesn’t it seem that way?) there would be far more choices of maternity clothes in Israel than there are. As my belly, and most noticeably, my belly button, start to protrude, the hunt is on for nice maternity clothes in Israel that aren’t too expensive. Ha! As it turns out, this is a contradictory request, right up there with other things in Israel that are totally overpriced like cottage cheese, organic milk (only in health food stores), decent sheets, and deodorant. Here is a review of the maternity wear that I’ve come across.
What I learned along the way
My first piece of advice would be to ask all your friends for maternity clothes.
My second piece of advice is to invest in long tank tops or the belly band to keep your belly covered, especially for tall ladies like me.
If you have the opportunity to go to the United States or can have someone bring you clothes, I recommend ordering from Motherhood Maternity, Target, and Old Navy (sign up for the email and get discounts).
Note about sizes: I thought that as my belly grew I’d start wearing bigger and bigger sizes. But apparently that’s not true and you’re supposed to get your regular size when ordering from a maternity selection. I ordered a pair of pants from Old Navy that I thought would be my size but they were huge! Try ordering one size lower than you normally are if you’re ordering from Old Navy, their stuff runs big!
Warning about stretchy pants: I think it may be hard to go back to regular pants. I don’t know yet, but I am lovin’ me the stretchy pants, stretchy skirts, stretchy everything and will be very tempted to continue wearing my maternity jeans after giving birth.
Here’s my review of maternity clothes in Israel:
Ramilee: Probably the most well-known maternity shop in Israel, they have ok clothes, nothing special or trendy, and the prices are moderate to high. I did splurge on a really awesome pair of jeans from Ramilee. List of Ramilee stores in Israel
Fox – Mom-to-be line Often compared to the Gap, Fox conveniently started carrying a small maternity line, just as I became pregnant! What are the chances?! i found a cute shirt and some long tank tops, but the selection is pretty small. List of Fox stores in Israel. Call first to see if they carry the mom-to-be line.
H&M Mama line. The excitement has finally calmed down, and you no longer have to wait in line to get into the store or a dressing room at H&M in Israel. I wasn’t so impressed with their maternity clothes, but did notice that they had some good basics like nursing t-shirts and nursing tank tops. All 3 branches (Malcha Mall Jerusalem, Azrieli Mall Tel Aviv, and Grand Canyon Mall, Haifa) carry the Mama line. List of H&M stores in Israel
Tamnoon Although they don’t officially have maternity clothes, I have found regular clothes that are very flattering on a pregnant belly, at really good prices. Almost all the clothing in the store is under 100 shekels and the quality is pretty decent. They have good deals on long tanks tops. Here are pictures of 2 things I got from there: stretchy skirt and flowy top – each under 70 shekels. The Tamnoon stores tend to be tiny with all the shirts stacked to the ceilings so you can’t actually see anything and feel bad asking somebody to get on a ladder for you. However, a new branch opened in Jerusalem’s Hadar Mall in Talpiot which is the biggest and roomiest branch I’ve seen yet. Tamnoon is in just about every mall, but you can check out their website to see the full listing of stores.
Avishag is a high end, designer maternity store. The truth is that I haven’t been inside because I’m afraid I’ll like something and it’ll cost me a month’s rent. store listing
Matimli features larger sizes and a maternity line, for2. Their clothes are very Israeli style. i took a peek but couldn’t find anything I liked.
Jerusalem
If you live in Jerusalem, there are a few cheap clothing stores in Talpiot that have some pants with stretchy waistbands – Big Shop (on HaOman) and World of Fashion (on Hatnufa across from Kanyon Ahim Yisrael in Talpiot).
You can also try the hippie-type stores like Autenti on Yaffo St in downtown Jerusalem for stretchy skirts and dresses.
Also, there are some stores in the religious neighborhood of Mea Shearim area but I didn’t exactly think they’d have my style so I didn’t venture over there. Here’s the listing in the yellow pages.
Leave comments about where you’ve been successful in finding maternity clothes in Israel. Thanks!
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The Big Felafel 
Hello,
It seems logical to me that something in high demand would be expensive–there’s a captive audience in need and few choices.
Autenti has at least three stores; two on Yafo and one at the end of Agrippas. The second one on Yafo is just past the point where the street splits to Shlomzion. One note: as much as I think of myself as an overgrown hippie, I hesitate to call that store a hippie store, given the number of religious non-hippies–young and older–who patronize it. The fact is that their clothes are well-chosen, versatile, and incredibly reasonably priced, and their service is some of the best that I’ve experienced in this country.
Shabbat shalom,
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoYehudit
Great article, I plan to link to it. You might like a guest post I wrote on getting free and inexpensive breastfeeding help in Israel: http://shomershekalim.wordpress.com/2010/06/12/breastfeeding/
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoWishing you an easy rest-of-pregnancy and birth.
Hannah, that is really helpful advice about the La Leche League and breastfeeding. Thank you and I’m happy to hear any and all advice.
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI would venture into Avishag Arbel if I were you… they are no more overpriced then Ramilee and the clothes are well made and very cute. Plus they run nice sales and have a good membership program. It never hurts to splurge a little on something attractive that makes you feel good!
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoThanks Ruth, I think I just might have to venture into Avishag now in the name of “research”!
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI bought most of my maternity clothes on Ebay. You’d be surprised how many women are selling a whole barely-worn maternity wardrobe because they had their one child they are intending to have and now they’re finished with the clothes. Shipping rates really vary by the seller, but it’s way cheaper if you send a package to a friend who’s coming here.
A lot of my Ebay purchases weren’t used clothes at all… it was last-season new-with-tags clothes from Gap Maternity. My best purchase was a black wool wrap-around maternity winter coat. In the middle of winter, I could not find a winter coat in any maternity store anywhere in the city.
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI would add that a lot of women think they need to buy maternity clothes right away- but that is not the case, and for most first-timers you don’t even start to show until 4-5 months in. I am in my 7 months and still wearing some of my regular shirts. The best pants are the ones with the big extra elastic tummy stuff that basically goes up to your boobs. You can fold it down and it really grows with your stomach. Finally while jeans are great, if you are pregnant in the summer you must have Capri’s, kakis or some kind of light pant. But what Becca says is true- the best deals are in the US and sometimes online- so buy it and cross your fingers that it works out- chances are it will…if not is there a rule against maternity clothes re-gifting?
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI have very conservative and american style – i found beautiful things in home stores that I saw advertised in the newcomers guide – Europeans and Americans selling maternity clothes in their homes. Not cheapo but reasonably priced for the quality.
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI’d suggest going to Salon Marie on Emek to try on all kinds of maternity lingerie. Note the brand, style and size, and then buy them on http://www.figleaves.com – they ship free to Israel!!
Personally I found Emma-Jane Maternity to be the best range.
Good luck
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agob’shaa tov !
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoI found that many times you can buy certain clothes that will double as maternity clothes and after that as every day clothes – when you get those you can get the best prices. Those clothes fit me much better than some maternity clothes I got from my sister. Pants and skirts made of stretchy material on top, that did not slide down like the similar maternity clothes did.
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agoIn http://www.agora.co.il people give away things- including maternity clothes, also for religious women there are “gemachs” that carry maternity clothes (of course non religious women can also shop there!)
The Discreet brand has many clothes that are very good for maternity, and not too expensive either (cheaper than Ramilee)
shilav also has
| Posted 12 years, 10 months agogreat article! really helpful.
| Posted 12 years, 9 months agoFor nursing bras and all kinds of maternity/baby related stuff, check out http://www.hanakatova.com
| Posted 12 years, 8 months agoThis online store is run by an American olah, who will make housecalls in the Jerusalem area to fit nursing bras.
TopShop has branches in Arena Mall (Herzliya) and in Ramat Aviv Mall. They’re a little bit expensive but I got an amazing pair of jeans there, and a couple of tops. They have nice stretchy sides to their jeans and trousers, not necessarily panels, so they’re a bit less pregnancy-looking. Keren, if you’re still around – or anyone else – where can I find Discreet brand clothes? I haven’t noticed a shop by that name. I’m in Tel Aviv/Givatayim area.
| Posted 12 years, 8 months agoDiscreet brand, as far as I know, caters to religious women so many styles are both stretchy and not as form-fitting as other brands.
| Posted 12 years, 7 months agoThere is a website http://www.lilomaternity.com/ That has really nice casual modest comfortable maternity clothing. They ship for a low flat rate. Check it out!!
| Posted 12 years, 7 months agoWish I had so much choice of clothing when I was pregnant rather wish I knew a lot about stuff like this…I have a friend of mine in Israel and she is of course pregnant ,she prefers H&M Mama line says they give her the best fit…
| Posted 12 years, 7 months agoI had a time finding clothes for me during those days. How lucky you guys are nowadays.
| Posted 12 years, 5 months agoI would strongly dicourage purchasing from Avishag Arbel. I did buy a pair of rather expensive trousers (expensive by Paris standards) and a 42 days later the waistband stitches fell apart. I called the shop on Mamila St. and Janicka, the seller, was far from helpful. Clothes are expensive and they won’t last through the pregnancy. I would strongly suggest buying elsewhere.
Gap has a wonderful maternity line and clothes are simple and pretty good quality.
| Posted 11 years, 3 months agoCheckout imanimo.com/shop
| Posted 10 years, 7 months agoDiscreet brand, as far as I know, caters to religious women so many styles are both stretchy and not as form-fitting as other brands.
| Posted 10 years, 2 months ago