Who needs maternity¹ clothes when your baby bump looks this good? The works of art have been painted on expectant mother's stomachs by Carrie Preston, 27, from Cornwall.

 

The artist has painted more than 130 baby bumps to provide women with a unique memento²（纪念品） of their pregnancy³. Her intricate designs include birds, animals and film scenes.

 

Carrie said she tries to make her pictures personal to the mother-to-be, whether it be related to their favourite book, flower or colour.

 

She said: 'Sometimes mums know exactly what they want from the beginning. The cow bump lived on a farm and their whole family history related to working with their jersey⁴（毛线衫） cows. There are often stories behind each of the bumps.'

 

The craze（狂热） for painting baby bumps started in the US a few years ago and has started to take off in the UK.

 

Carrie, who has a degree in Early Childhood studies, said she chose the creative career path two years ago after becoming a mother herself to Maisy, eight, and Oliver, five.

 

Wanting to spend more time with her children, she decided⁵ to pursue her passion was for art. She taught herself how to paint and set up her website, My Little Sweet Pea, to display her artistic⁶ talent and services.

 

She explains: 'My original plan had been to become a primary school teacher. But I soon realised that being a mum and staying true to my dreams meant that I wanted to pursue my art. My business started with murals（壁画）, creating spaces for children to play in and it progressed to face painting, gifts, watercolours and then bumps.'

 

On how she came across the idea to paint on pregnant women she said: 'I was trawling through the internet for inspiration and I came across this new craze in America called belly⁷ painting. My friend who happened to be pregnant at the time became my muse⁸（沉思，冥想）, and that is where it all started.'

 

Since then, as well as making a living as an artist, Carrie has raised more than £8,000 for charities including Comic Relief and her local neonatal unit through 'bumpathons' where expectant mothers sponsor her to paint their bellies⁹.

 

Carrie said the bigger the bump the better the canvas so she usually paints on women when they are 32-36 weeks pregnant.

 

She only uses safe face paint designed for the skin and says the two-hour painting sessions can be a pampering¹⁰ experience for the mothers-to-be.

 

She said: 'The two hours are very relaxing, the brush strokes and sponges sooth the bump. A lot of mums say that they have nearly fallen asleep. Babies also kick lots during the session which is obviously a comfort for the mum.'

 

Carrie thinks belly painting is a wonderful way to show off the special time.

 

She said: 'I really believe the pregnancy should be celebrated¹¹ as much as possible. Even lucky ladies are only pregnant two or three times in their whole life, so I think we should make the most of every moment.'

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