The MaRee Story
What to wear? Will it fit? Alterations? Time? Money? How will I breastfeed in it? Where will I breastfeed? Bottles? Pump? Yay or Nay? These are only a few of the many questions I asked myself, four months after my first little boy arrived five years ago, when wedding season was at its peak for me!
One of the many challenges I faced when having to attend these events was picking out what to wear to enable me to breastfeed comfortably. If I chose to wear an outfit, I would have to wear a vest top underneath or have it altered. I chose to go down the vest top route. I felt hot and bothered throughout the event and got pretty tired of hogging the ladies toilets to undress 2/3 times in order to breastfeed comfortably in. Fail.
I then turned to my existing saree blouses. I thought yes, hooks in the front this should work. However these needed altering. Having multiple events in one month would mean taking multiple blouses to a tailor to have them altered (with a new baby might I add!) to only have to re-alter them, back one day. This was an expensive option and very time consuming however I went with this, in the hope it would all work out on the day.
As I was also combination feeding at the time, the fewer the breast feeds I did, throughout the day, led my upper body to fluctuate in size. The blouse did not fit perfectly on the day and did not give my body room to breathe. This resulted in me having blocked milk ducts i.e. Mastitis. A very painful outcome. Another Fail.
From being quite a sociable person that loved meeting family and friends, taking every opportunity to getting pampered whether it be to get my hair done or even buy a new outfit, to not wanting to go to the event at all, was just not me.
If this sounds familiar to you, you are not alone. I have found that many mothers have felt this way and have had to deal with the pressures of society, expecting mothers to be coping perfectly well whilst looking great. This only leads to greater levels of anxiety which is not healthy for you and ultimately your baby.
I needed to find a solution.
So I did! I created Ma-Ree Blouses. A simple maternity saree blouse designed to provide easy access, extra support and comfort to you and baby whilst breastfeeding. A cost effective option that provides flexibility in size via its adjustable back strap feature. The blouse can be worn at different stages throughout pregnancy, post pregnancy and future pregnancies.
Five years on and three babies later, I can proudly say, that Ma-Ree Blouses has provided the same solution to so many mothers that have been faced with the taboos of breastfeeding at cultural events, to this day. The proudest moment for me was that I could wear my own creation to my best friend’s wedding and reception in 2019, heavily pregnant with my second born, partying like there was no tomorrow.
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This proves that Ma-Ree Blouses is suited for ALL stages throughout your pregnancy journey and there is nothing stopping YOU from being YOU when you wear a Ma-Ree with your Saree.
Since launch, Ma-Ree has achieved a 5* rating on Google and generated nearly 3.5k followers on Facebook. Not only have we been successful in the UK but we have tapped into International markets, such as Germany, Singapore and the USA, helping mothers feel good and look good globally. Having had the fantastic opportunity to exhibit at the Hey Gorgeous Event in 2019, this generated mass awareness amongst the Asian community and we have received positive feedback on our product, purpose and service. This has continued to grow via social business platforms such as RecommendAsian, MiniAsian and ProfessionalAsian founded by Zamiha Desai.
The next step.
The last year has been life changing in more ways than one for me, from losing my full time job to losing loved ones, all whilst pregnant with my third born. This has amplified what the purpose of life is. Good health, happiness and living everyday like it is your last. I am thankful for all of the support I have had from my husband Kunal, family, friends and consumers throughout my journey so far.
Living through this pandemic has led to many innovations and changes in mind-set enabling all generations to be able to use great forms of technology, whatever age you are and whatever stage you are at in your life.
Rebranding Ma-Ree Blouses to MaRee Style will aim to provide solutions to ALL women to regain confidence in how they look and feel at their fingertips. The demand for easy access to blouse styles and fabric styles has grown and is ever changing, even more so, post pandemic, giving you just what you need without having to worry about losing those ‘lock down handles’ and being able to feel comfortable and confident.
MaRee Style will continue to be the home of maternity saree blouses as well as bringing customisation, new range of lines and a perfect fit via the BUILD YOUR OWN BLOUSE model, inviting ALL women to find their own solution in 4 easy steps.
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Make MaRee Style, Your Style.
Contact Rakhi@MaReeStyle.co.uk for further information.
Rakhi Dattani
Founder of MaRee Style (formerly known as Ma-Ree Blouses)