Babywearing moms--what are/were your favourite stylish baby carriers?` - YouLookFab Forum

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Babywearing moms--what are/were your favourite stylish baby carriers?`

Ariadne

Veteran

From a couple of my other recent threads, it sounds like more than a few of us have worn our babies to some extent at one time or another. What are your favourite carriers that either harmonize with your style or even up your style factor?

I have a black Ergo Sport that is very comfortable and not too unstylish, but it's definitely more on the "gear" side of baby carriers (which is what it's meant for).
http://www.ergobabycarriers.co.....tem/BC6SP/

I also have a sage green CuddlyWrap that I mostly wear around the house. I'm actually considering dying the CuddlyWrap to some more interesting colour. The good thing about the sage green is that my husband can wear it too.
http://peapodcreations.ca/

My most stylish carrier is a black and ecru floral-patterned Hotsling (thanks eBay!). I love how it looks, but it's not the most versatile carrier, nor the most comfortable for lengthy babywearing.
http://www.hotslings.com/baby_.....cru_floral

I'm hoping to eventually get a beautiful BabyHawk or Kozy mei tai style carrier. The BabyHawk comes in so many cool fabrics! I love the Amy Butler ones that are slightly Asian-inspired. My favourite so far is black straps with Clay Temple Garland fabric (camo on the reverse for DH!)
http://www.babyhawk.com

I've also heard that saris/sarees work well as wraps, and I'm hoping to go to Little India soon to look for a lightweight one to use as a pretty summer wrap.

I've seen beautiful silk ring slings. Those are tempting. I've also seen DIY silk warps on thebabywearer.com, which might be more in my price league

And then there are the expensive wraps, like EllaRoo, Storchenwiege, and Didymos... those come in so many colours and patterns! I've never tried one, though, and I'm wondering if a mei tai will be better anyway because it's less fuss to put on and take off.

I'm so curious about what everyone else has worn!

Dressing

17 replies

Latest reply was from Vani

Patience

Veteran

Fun fun fun. I have a Baby Bjorn (a gift), a Baby hawk, a sling eze and a hotslings. I get a new sling for each baby because it's a keepsake. The hotslings was the most stylish but not as comfortable, partly because it just wasn't quite the right size. I'm thinking for the new baby I might just go back to the sling eze in a solid color because it was comfy and the perfect size. However I'm also considering the Maya sling with padding because they seem fairly popular. We actually have people locally who will custom sew a sling for you out of whatever fabric you like. I'm sure you can find someone to do the same for you.

I also hope to get an ergo this time around. The babyhawk is comfy and stylish but not very convenient if you need to remove baby at all. The wraps are just so long and they drag on the ground when putting it on. (Well, I am short.) Also, you have to put baby down to make the first tie. Slings are much more convenient this way. But it is convenient to have a baby carrier that distributes some of the weight to your waist and both shoulders-- easier on the back. I would say these are good for long walks and slings are great for everything else when baby needs to go in and out.

I hope this helps.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I had a Baby Bjorn and a Nojo Babysling- that was a loooong time ago, though!

Vani

Veteran

Khris, what kind of fabric are you looking for in saris? I think I might have a few saris and chunnis (pronounced choo-nees, are essentially humongous scarves) in cotton that are either new or very used once or twice that I would happily pass along. I will let you know tonight after I do inventory on my Indian clothes

cciele

Veteran

Oh gosh, I was such a babywearing junkie. Here's a partial list of what I've had:

- Mei tais: Babyhawk, Colibri (LOVED this, too bad they don't make them anymore. The Scandanavians do a great mei tai).
- Soft-structured carriers (basically a mei tai with buckles): Connecta (chocolate pseudo-suede with sheepskin inside), Ergo (one 1st generation, one 3rd generation)
- Wraps: Didymos (Julian, Aqua Waves, Aqua/White Indio), Storch (Leo Rouge -- my fav), Ellaroo, Girasol
- Rebozo: Ellaroo, some Scandinavian brand whose name I can't recall
- Slings: Oopa Baby (GORGEOUS), SleepingBaby.net (custom made by Jan -- does great work at reasonable prices), p-sling (avant gradation --- DROOL), zolowear (great workhorse slings, both silk and cotton), Maya Wrap
- Pouches: Peanut shell, Hotsling

Ok, that is most of them (although I'm sure I'm forgetting some). If anyone has any questions about any of the brands or styles of babycarriers, let me know! Although my info might be a few years old

Oh, a few comments about wraps:
- Saris can work, but if the fabric is too thin, the edges can cut into your skin. Also, the fabric needs a certain amount of give to mold around you and your baby. That's one reason why wraps like Didymos and Storchenwiege are so expensive -- they're hand-loomed and have a very supportive weave.
- wraps vs. mei tais: wraps are very adjustable to different body sizes and you can do tons of carries with them. However, they have a higher learning curve than mei tais, and can be hot in warmer weather. It's a matter of customizability vs. convenience, I think.

Patience

Veteran

Oh, I forgot:

http://www.thebabywearer.com

I don't know if you've discovered this site yet but it's overwhelming how much info they have.

Patience

Veteran

Brianna, if you want you can borrow my babyhawk for ~6-9 months until I need it for baby 3.0. Mine has cherry straps and the black calaveras fabric (in the punk category). Of course, the babyhawks are nice to have for the older baby but this would at least give you time to keep looking for a good deal. Email me if you're interested.

Vani

Veteran

Brianna, I don't what made me think it was Khris looking for saris ! Let me know what you are looking for and I'll look in my collection to see if I can help

shana

Veteran

I loved wearing my baby (sounds so funny when you put it that way) and my older son loved it too. The younger one not so much unfortunately.. I especially appreciated using them when flying - I remember running through airports several times with a baby in the carrier which made things so much easier! Last year, I flew to Europe alone with both children and I had the baby in the carrier & my older son in a stroller.

Anyway, I had a variety of carriers - a plain black Maya wrap which I found a little cumbersome so I actually never ended up using it, two cute printed Hotslings which I actually enjoyed immensely - the first one was actually custom made to my measurements (this was back when Kristen from Hotslings still made them herself!) and my favorite was a Kangaroo Korner adjustable fleece pouch. Since both my babies were born in the winter, the fleece pouch was perfect for keeping us all snuggly & warm - probably not the most stylish but very practical! Since it was adjustable, I could change the size depending on what I was wearing. My husband used the fleece pouch a few times but eventually bought a Kelty backpack carrier once the baby was a little older. I was tempted by the gorgeous silk ones (zolo) but I'm not sure how practical they are - my oldest son constantly spit up so I was happy to have something washable.

carissa

(website)

Children 1 and 2: baby bjorn carrier.
child 3: sling, ecru & lightweight - kangaroo korner.
child 4: hand dyed ergo carrier. the color is called brazillian nut and matches one of my purses so well. i felt stylish with the combo together but honestly never considered style when wearing my babies, I just considered the comfort of the pack/sling. The sling really hurt my shoulder, while the ergo is great. I wear my babies to the year mark at least so they get heavy.

i've seen friends with those wraps and they look so cumbersome.

lwc

Another Babywearer.com member here. Although, I haven't been active on that site in a while. Still, it rocks!

I had an organic cotton Taylormade sling. Leann, who makes them, lives about 15 min. from my house. You could order from her website though.

I also was given an orange herringbone patterned Baby Bjorn by my next door neighbor. She used it once and was going to donate it. I was happy to accept her donation.

I also have a Leo Marine Storch. I haven't used it as much lately, but it is 100 degrees out...

I wanted to get a Babyhawk, but never got around to ordering one. My son is 1 year old...have I missed the bus?!?!?!

With the economy being the way it is, I would imagine that you could find some killer deals on FSOT at Babywearer.com. Some of the ladies there have tons of carriers in their stashes.

Good luck!

cciele

Veteran

I love thebabywearer.com (as evidenced by my 700+ posts there :); if you take a look at my avatar there, you can see me carrying my 8-week-old on my back in an Ellaroo Jeri wrap.

Lesley -- you can absolutely use a mei tai for your 1 year old. As a matter of fact, I usually recommend mei tais for older babies (younger ones often don't have legs long enough to fit comfortable in one, and there's that awkward froggy leg in the carrier stage). Mei tais are great for babies and toddlers that want to be up, then down, then up, etc. because they are quick to put on.

Silk slings: you can wash many of them (e.g., Zolowear, Sakura Bloom) in the washing machine on gentle cycle, and hang dry. They lose their sheen but they get softer.

Wraps: Long wraps can be cumbersome, but they are really good for evenly distributing the weight of a baby, and are great if you are carrying a baby for a long time. For example, if you do a front cross carry, you can leave it tied and pop the baby in and out as needed. Shorter wraps (around 3.7 m and shorter) are really convenient for back carries. You can do a rucksack carry with a short wrap way faster than doing the same with a mei tai.

Brianna, you should look and see if there are any babywearing groups local to you. Where I live, there's a group that meets in the South Bay once a week, and has a different type of carrier as a topic each week. Then there's a period where more experienced members will help newer members try out new carries and different types of carriers. Great fun!

BLB

(website)

Wow, what a wealth of info! Not that I'm surprised. YLF is amazing.

Niva--what an amazing offer--I'd definitely be interested in the saris/chunees if you have them. It sounds like just about any material would work, with some being better suited for some situations and others for other situations.

Has anyone tried gauze wraps, like Gypsy Mama/Wrapsody Bali Breeze or Sassy Wraps? Or done DIY gauze? I'm finding the Moby REALLY hot for the Chickadee and me in this weather. It's more comfortable than the sling for long wear, but I find it a lot more fussy and bulky.

I've been on thebabywearer.com quite a few times--it's an amazing resource, but it's also pretty overwhelming! I've been using wearyourbaby.com (the new Mama Toto) to figure out some carriers. I also check the babywearing section of mothering.com. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on the FSOT section of thebabywearer.com for a high-quality wrap or a mei tai. The convenience and ease of the mei tais really appeals to me.

I forgot--I also have a few rebozos I bought in Guatemala that I haven't had a chance to figure out yet. They're the real deal.

I found a Yahoo babywearing group for my area and am hoping they'll have meetups. I think I'll also look for an attachment parenting group, since AP and babywearing tend to go hand in hand.

I am really tempted to get a silk ring sling!

Patience--I'll email you.

Ariadne

Veteran

Oops, that was me--I signed in under my old account.

Vani

Veteran

Brianna, so sorry for the late response. Would you like me to post pictures here or email them to you?

Ariadne

Veteran

Niva, no worries! Why don't you email them so they don't clutter up the board. My email is brashnyberg AT gmail DOT com.

Vani

Veteran

Brianna, I hadn't forgotten

Here are a few dupattas I have that seemed to seem like they might work for babywearing:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....attas1.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....attas2.jpg

Just quick intro to dupattas: They are like scarves, only bigger and are paired with the tunic+pants suits you might have seen on a few Indian ladies. Here's a wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dupatta

I am hopelessly sucky at describing fabric, sorry!

This is a black floral print dupatta that is 94" long and 43" wide. Kind of a chiffony, drapey fabric:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....floral.jpg

This one is cream and red with alternating dotted paisley print. The body is cream with red print and the borders at the wider ends are red with cream print. The fabric is a little heavier and coarser than the one above. It is 94" long and 43":
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....andini.jpg

This is a light olive-ish colored dupatta with a lovely black-green print. I love the fabric, very soft and silky. This one is 86" long and 43" wide:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....green1.jpg

This is a deep maroon dupatta that is soft but in a heavier, slightly coarse fabric. It has little cream dots on the body and a yellow-cream border. This one is 86" long and 40" wide:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....andini.jpg

This one here is a deep pinkish-purplish dupatta with a sort of tie & dye blue and white dot pattern. It is 90" long and 22" wide:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....ndini2.jpg

This is a heavy cotton dupatta in a lovely mustard color (the picture above shows the right color) with a slight pink border and tassles along the shorter ends. It is 86" wide and 33" wide:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....ustard.jpg

This one is another purple-blue combo. A very nice soft silky fabric with thin silver border. The body is mainly purple, blue is just in the border. This one is 90" long and 22" wide:
http://i273.photobucket.com/al.....e_blue.jpg

I hope I have been helpful

On another note, I am headed to India on an unexpected trip tomorrow.
My grandmother isn't doing very well. If things get better with her I
might take some time to go out shopping. Are there any particular
fabrics, styles you are interested in? Do let me know. I will be
checking my email regularly.

Vani

Veteran

Bumping for Brianna!