Baby Sling Recommendations

[lindsrae]

Ok Mommas,

 

I'm working on the third baby here. I have a Maya Wrap, which is good for a variety of reasons. I use it a lot when the baby is a little older--I have never felt totally comfortable using it when they are newborn. I know they won't suffocate, but it always looks like they are! And I would like to wear the baby most of the day, and the Maya, since it is just on one shoulder, starts to really pull after only 2+ hours. I have one shoulder that is lower than the other, so I have to be really careful. I've been looking at the Moby Wrap on Amazon because it looks like it goes over both shoulders and could still be used multiple ways. What wraps do you all use? Is the Moby a good one? Or do you have other recommendations?

[funschooler5]

I loved my Hotsling http://www.hotslings.com/. I'd tried several other slings that were too padded and/or complicated for me (never could get my older two into any of them when they were babies). When my 3rd was born, I bought a Hotsling and LOVED it. She was in it constantly while I was working (I was running our business at the time) and it was so convenient for me. Very easy to use also. Can't say enough good things about them. :)

[Ritsumei]

I got a MobyWrap with Monkey, and we both LOVED it. He spent a huge part of his first 6 months in it, in spite of my back problems. With scoliosis I just can't do the 1-shoulder varieties. There is a bit of a learning curve to it, but once you get the hang of it (took me 2-3 uses) it's pretty easy. I just wore it as an extra layer most days, which worked fine since he was born in Sep & I'm always cold all winter. I could usually put him in & out 2-3 times before I'd have to re-tie it because it got too messy. I'm too busty to do it, but there are a lot of people who love it for discrete nursing as well. I always felt like I was going to smother him, but I got HUGE when my milk came. I tried out my sister's hotsling last week when she was over & I could feel right away the strain on my back even though her cutie isn't even 12 pounds, so I'm sticking with my Moby. I'll probably get another one for the baby I'm expecting, so I can have one to wash & one to wear.

 

ETA: We used it off and on when he wasn't feeling well until he hit the 35 pound weight limit about 18 months. By then he didn't want it anymore anyway.

Edited March 3, 2010 by Ritsumei

[Ravin]

I used our maya from newborn on, constantly! If you spread the fabric well across your back, it's great for distributing the weight, esp. when the baby is small, and I found it easy to nurse in. If you lay them with head toward the rings, facing in or up, and put most of the extra fabric under them so that there's just enough outer rail for support, it works great.

 

That said, I wish I'd had our asian-style baby carrier sooner (mine is a Kozy Carrier). The asian-style can be used for back carries more readily, and for front carry can be used easily with a newborn. I was able to nurse DD in it, too, but that wouldn't work with a newborn; they've got to be able to nurse sitting up/hold up their head to nurse effectively in it.

 

Between the Maya and the Kozy, I had all the baby carrier I needed (though I experimented with others).

[stripe]

Does a Maya wrap have a ring? If so, I understand where you're coming from. However, I tend to prefer the smaller styles w/ newborns; I find them too floppy to do the other wraps, until they're 6 mo or so old. The Moby wraps are giant -- I find the larger size a bit overwhelming with a newborn. The advantage of them is that they are stretchy but then they aren't so supportive above 25 lb or so. I would think of looking at a smaller (lengthwise) wrap or a pouch style like the Hotslings or something similar.

 

Thebabywearer.com has some very knowledgeable people on it; there are reviews as well as a forum

[Donna T.]

I loved my Over the Shoulder Baby Holder. It was very comfortable to wear and the babies would just lodge right down in it and nestle. It has a little extra padding which I enjoyed because once you get the hang of it you can use it (the support of the padding) to place the baby in various positions.

 

http://www.babyholder.com/

[k2bdeutmeyer]

I hated my hotsling, thought the ring sling was okay, but cannot speak highly enough of my Moby!! Oh....I love it so much. It was perfect when DS was a newborn (he's 9m now). He loved it too!

 

Best part?? You can make your own for about $10!!!

 

Wanted to add that there is no sewing involved in the making of your own! I'd be happy to share how if you're interested :)

[TexasRachel]

Okay, so I'm a little overboard, but I have 4 ring slings, 1 pouch, 2 soft-structured carriers and 2 mei tais. And I'm probably going to get a few more for this little one. :D I had to get rid of my woven wrap because I just couldn't get it to work for me, although I know of a lot of people that prefer a wrap because of it's flexibility. I think ring slings and pouches work well for small baby stage, but after about a year or so I could never wear DS for long in one. I definitely prefer SSC or MT once they get bigger. The more well-known names are Ergo or Beco for SSC (which have padding) or BabyHawk for a MT.

 

So to sum it up: I don't think I helped at all, except to say you need one of each. :lol: But with my 2 DS my ring slings were necessities because otherwise I couldn't get anything done.

 

The important thing to remember for any carrier is to watch your baby and make sure their airway isn't blocked. Some of the older ring carriers didn't do such a good job of positioning babies. There's actually a good article on the Maya Wrap website about positioning safety.

[justamouse]

I had the New Native Baby Carrier and loved it so much I sewed myself tons for all of the other runts that came along.

[Dinsfamily]

I love my peanutshell!

[k2bdeutmeyer]

I wanted to add the REASON I didn't like the hotsling and the ring sling.

 

Hotsling: It hung too low to nurse in (even for my poor saggy boobies, LOL), there was no way to adjust it (yes, I had the right size), and it swings away from your body when you lean forward making it feel as though I still had to have a hand on the baby.

 

Ringsling: Loved the adjustability and I was able to nurse in it to some degree, however, again, it swings away from your body, so I never felt 100% hands free.

 

With the Moby I was able to have baby tight to my body making it truly 100% hands free!!

[stripe]

I had the New Native Baby Carrier and loved it so much I sewed myself tons for all of the other runts that came along.

I had one of these too, and used it for the younger months -- but I gave it away to someone else. Did you make your own pattern or find one somewhere?

[Ritsumei]

I hated my hotsling, thought the ring sling was okay, but cannot speak highly enough of my Moby!! Oh....I love it so much. It was perfect when DS was a newborn (he's 9m now). He loved it too!

 

Best part?? You can make your own for about $10!!!

 

Wanted to add that there is no sewing involved in the making of your own! I'd be happy to share how if you're interested :)

 

:bigear: I'm *definitely* interested in that! The "real" ones are plain, and quite expensive, so do tell: what did you do? I thought about just getting a long piece of fabric, but the Moby seemed to be of a thicker knit than what I can find at the store, and I liked that. Though it did get pretty warm in the summer. Something lighter weight for the hot months would be nice. However, my baby got BIG, fast. We have tall, thick genetics. I needed to feel secure in the fabric holding him. Happily, by the time it got warm, he was ready to be out and moving on his own most of the time.

[Laurel]

I prefer pouches - I have a Peanut Shell and a couple of Hotslings. They're small, so easy to throw in a purse or diaper bag, and easy to use. We traveled a lot when the 4yo was a baby, so having something small (we had tons of luggage already) and quick (could pop him in and out of it easily) was important to me.

 

I bought a Mei Tai when he was a toddler, because he was getting big and it was hard on my shoulder/back, but I still preferred the pouch sling.

[k2bdeutmeyer]

Any knit is great, though jersey knit is usually recommended for newborns. Gauze is another suggestion I've seen for a less stretchy & cooler option. Really, you can use anything you like as long as you make sure it is slightly stretchy & curls on the cut edges vs fraying (unless you feel like hemming the edges).

 

You need roughly 5yds of 60" wide fabric (more or less if you're bigger or smaller). When you get it home, cut it in half so you have 2 5yd strips of 30" wide fabric. Voila! You have TWO moby wraps :) I left one in the car & kept one at home.

[elw_miller]

My favorite, aside from my Maya Wrap ring sling (which you have), is my BabyHawk mei tai. It goes over both shoulders and can be used on either your front or your back. With my high need second baby, I used it for the better part of every day until he was old enough to walk (even then he often slept in it).

[Mommee & Baba]

I swore by the Pouch Sling until I found the love for Moby..NEVER turning back to a pouch sling again!!

 

MOBY wraps all the way!! PLUS I love it that I didn't have to fork out a leg to get one..since I sew ;)

 

I currently can be caught wearing my lil guy in the Gauze Moby Wrap that I made...LOVE IT!

[lindsrae]

Any knit is great, though jersey knit is usually recommended for newborns. Gauze is another suggestion I've seen for a less stretchy & cooler option. Really, you can use anything you like as long as you make sure it is slightly stretchy & curls on the cut edges vs fraying (unless you feel like hemming the edges).

 

You need roughly 5yds of 60" wide fabric (more or less if you're bigger or smaller). When you get it home, cut it in half so you have 2 5yd strips of 30" wide fabric. Voila! You have TWO moby wraps :) I left one in the car & kept one at home.

 

Is there a website where I can learn how to wrap it?

[k2bdeutmeyer]

check youtube! I found a ton of great instructional videos on there. It really is easier than it looks and sounds initially! Once you do it 2-3 times it's pretty simple.

[justamouse]

I had one of these too, and used it for the younger months -- but I gave it away to someone else. Did you make your own pattern or find one somewhere?

 

I bought one years ago-1990? They had just come out. I used it as a pattern and just made myself about 10 of them. I loved it as they got older. My daughter sat on my back in it while I cooked, my other children rode on my hip in it.

[LittleIzumi]

I have bad shoulders, so I like a woven wrap (stretchy ones like the Moby--I made my own--pull too much for me by two weeks old). I love Storchenweiges and Girasols for woven wraps. You can get different lengths. I also love the Psling ring sling, as it sits in a different place on the shoulder than most ring slings and doesn't hurt even with my 2-year-old, yet is totally adjustable for a wee one. :D

[eternalknot]

Is there a website where I can learn how to wrap it?

 

In addition to the youtube suggestion, consider www.thebabywearer.com

 

Not only will you find a wealth of help in-house, but you'll get access to a number of online vendors - many of which have their own instructions available, too.

Edited March 4, 2010 by eternalknot
linked to youtube channel specific to wrapping