Favorite baby wrap/sling/carrier?

[PeterPan]

Ok, it's THURSDAY, and the baby still isn't here. I'm running out of projects and need something new to do. Any suggestions on your favorite wrap/sling that I could sew? I used a sling (NoJo, endorsed by Sears) with dd, and while it was fine, it was hard on the back and just average. Anything better these days? I've read about several and just wasn't sure, wanted some recs. Many of them, like the Moby, have free instructions online, if I just know which one to pursue.

 

:)

[Jami]

I've only had a MayaWrap and an Over the Shoulder Baby Holder. I loved the Maya. So light and simple and versatile. And that's what I plan to use again. The OtSBH was AWFUL, so padded and awkward. Just didn't fit well at all. The baby just got lost down in all the padding. I'm sure there are better ones out there now than my 7 year old MayaWrap, but that's what I have, so that's what I'll use! :001_smile:

 

Jami

[Nicole not in CA]

I have no idea whether these have free sewing patterns or not, but for the first six months I loved the New Native Carrier, and for six months and up I loved the Maya Wrap. The great thing about the Maya Wrap is that it really grows with the kid. You can use it in many ways. My dd is 20 mo., and I could still use it with her if she wanted to be in it. She does not enjoy being restricted now that she is a wiggly toddler :001_smile:, but when she was younger she loved the slings.

[Janna]

I second the Maya wrap. It's also the only one I've used, but honestly, I have no desire to try anything else because this was so wonderful. It's wonderful all of the different positions you can carry baby. And it folds up nicely to take with you. I loved it.

[Janna]

Forgot to mention, that my personal avatar (look on the members list) shows me wearing the Maya with my little guy when he was only about 5 weeks old.

[Country Girl]

I really liked my Mei Tai. There are some instructions on-line that I loosely followed. I couldn't find a set of instructions the exact shape and dimensions I wanted to so I used the specs from companies that sold them to draw my own pattern and went from there. It really wasn't hard (and I'm not a very good seamstress and sew *very* seldom). I think it took about a day to make once I got my pattern and plan figured out.

[~Tara~]

Mei Tai is great. I'd go with a Moby wrap style for a newborn though :)

[emeraldjoy]

Maya wrap here too....also called ring-sling and very easy to make!!!!

If you decide to go with it, be patient until it's comfortable.

e

[Guest]

I don't know about patterns, but some of my friends have been buying some adorable ones on Etsy lately.

[chaik76]

Mei Tai!!!! I love them, and they're easy to sew (and if your baby suddenly appears you can do a no-sew one out of fleece! There are directions on the web...)

[PariSarah]

. . . and pretty versatile. I was planning to make one Maya Sling and one Moby, because dh wanted the first and I wanted the second.

 

I never got around to the Moby. I might still make one, because I could still use it to put Theo on my back. I do that with the Maya, but it's not as secure as I'd like, particularly with as active a kid as he is.

 

Oh, and Dh decided that the Maya was too complicated for him. :rolleyes:

[cjzimmer1]

I have both a Maya Wrap and a Moby Wrap and I like them both for different things. I like the Maya wrap for shorter durations (especially around the house). I can get in on and off quickly and once I get it adjusted just right I can slide it on over baby even if she falls asleep on me. For me it starts to pull a bit on my back after an hour or so which is when I turn to my Moby Wrap. The Moby wrap is more comfortable for me for the longer durations (I can wear a baby for hours on end and never notice) but since it takes longer to put on (not that long but a minute or two) and I can't be holding baby, I don't use it for around the house much. Also because there is more fabric it can be very warm if you are outside in the heat. So I think both are good choices. I have heard of lots of people making MOby wraps and it doesn't sound like it would take more than an hour to make. I think the trick with making your own Maya wrap is to make sure you get really good rings and I don't know if those would be readily available in a local store.

 

Stephanie

[PinkInTheBlue]

With my big guys I tried several wraps and slings and didn't find anything I liked. Personally I didn't like the big long ones with tails and rings. They were to complicated and little babies were just swallowed up in it.

 

With Easton I found both HotSlings and SproutPouch and LOVED them both. Matter fact I used them this past April with a 22mth old walking all over Rome for a week. He took naps in it, ate in it, drank in it, everything. It was great. I also used it for over a week in Australia when he was one. As long as you have it fold right, which is easy, it doesn't hurt my back.

 

They have been so wonderful I'm a bit sad about selling them. :( They are such a sentimental thing for me. I loved being able to carry my baby around while he slept on me. Too sweet. :)

[PariSarah]

I got mine here. I've been very happy with them.

 

And, no, I couldn't find them anywhere locally.

[Mama2Three]

Check out Jan's patterns at Sleeping Baby Productions. She has GREAT stuff, IMHO way more comfortable than my Maya wrap. I have a didymos wrap that was made into a sling by her, and it's incredible. Here's a link. http://www.sleepingbaby.net/jan/Baby/ She has patterns for all sorts of carriers, you are sure to find something that works for you. You can also buy slings that she makes and she does customs.

 

For more info on carriers, including DIY, check out the forums at thebabywearer.com. The babywearing version of these great WTM forums. :)

[Janna]

Ack! I misspoke! I did NOT use the Maya wrap!! I used a MOBY wrap (and that is what I have on the photo). I DID try a Moby wrap once that someone gave me (it had a ring on the shoulder) and ds didn't care for it, neither did I. I didn't feel like he was really in there snug. The Moby wrap was awesome. That's the one I recommend.

 

I'm sorry I messed that up. They both began with M, LOL.

[yslek]

My favorites are: HotSlings for newborns & little babies, Ergo for bigger babies/toddlers.

 

Kelsy

[Parrothead]

Sorry, I saw the words "baby wrap" and though of Saran wrap. LOL

[TexasRachel]

From what pretty much everyone who does slings professionally says, you'll need to order rings. Nothing you'll have locally will work. You could look into doing a no-sew sling until rings get here.

 

There's a whole forum on thebabywearer.com about DIY carriers. You might want to check it out. It has tons of info that helped me when I made my carrier.

[rafiki]

.

[clwcain]

My wife swears by Zolo.

[PameliaSue]

I LOVE my Kozy!! My DH wears.it.all.the.time!

 

 

[Laurel]

With my big guys I tried several wraps and slings and didn't find anything I liked. Personally I didn't like the big long ones with tails and rings. They were to complicated and little babies were just swallowed up in it.

 

With Easton I found both HotSlings and SproutPouch and LOVED them both. Matter fact I used them this past April with a 22mth old walking all over Rome for a week. He took naps in it, ate in it, drank in it, everything. It was great. I also used it for over a week in Australia when he was one. As long as you have it fold right, which is easy, it doesn't hurt my back.

 

They have been so wonderful I'm a bit sad about selling them. :( They are such a sentimental thing for me. I loved being able to carry my baby around while he slept on me. Too sweet. :)

 

I'm also a big fan of pouch slings. I have a couple HotSlings, and a PeanutShell, and loved them both. They are very minimal, so easy to carry around with you everywhere, and super simple to use. No dragging fabrics like with ring slings or wraps. (Or straps like a Mei Tai, which I also like, but not nearly as much as my pouch slings.)

 

Here is one website with a pattern for a pouch sling. You can google and find more. I don't sew, so I have no expertise when it comes to whether a pattern is good or not.

[nmoira]

I LOVE my Kozy!! My DH wears.it.all.the.time!

I loved my Kozy too. I haven't quite convinced myself to sell mine yet, even though we're done having kids.

 

It's not really appropriate for the first three or four months though. For those early months, I'd highly recommend a wrap like the Baby Bundler (not recommending that product specifically, I just can't think of any other brands off-hand).

[3lilreds in NC]

I've really enjoyed my Ergo. I don't have a sling or other wrap; I used a Baby Bjorn with Abbie and couldn't have lived without it. My only issue with it was that my kids outgrew it too quickly (Isaac was 29 lbs at his 1 year checkup). The Ergo is recommended up to 40 lbs, but they say it's been tested on kids up to 90 lbs so you can really use it as long as you need to. Frelle uses hers more often with her preschooler than her baby, in fact.

 

Honestly, I don't have a baby who wants to be carried a lot, so I don't use it as much as I could. He doesn't mind it though and there are times that it's been a real lifesaver.

 

FWIW, I think Frelle votes for the Mei Tei, but she said she hasn't figured out how to get it on her back when she's out and about so that it's safe, so she uses the Ergo. The Mei Tei is what she always uses at home though.

[susie in tx]

I have several Mei Tai's and I love them, though I didn't start using them with a newborn.

 

For this baby, I have the Mei Tai's and then I am going to try a hotsling. I may also try a wrap, but I've never been good at them.

[kat19]

I love my Mei Tai.

 

 

I would like to try a ring sling, but I have no idea how to sew.

thebabywearer.com is a great place to find used items and DIY items.

 

I did buy a pouch off of there but I think it's too tight and I don't feel comfortable in it. I would like one with a little stretch but not sure where to look for it.

[jenadina]

my favorite was a SPOC...a Simple Piece of Cloth.

 

check out

http://www.mamatoto.org/

for all the options for using one. There is nothing more versatile or, IMO, more comfortable.

 

I also used an over the shoulder baby holder, which was fine for the first couple months, but then started to hurt my back because all the weight is on 1 shoulder.

[Jenny in Atl]

I was a Maya fan. I still have both my OSBH and Maya tucked away as keepsakes.

[Desert Rat]

I always used 3 yards of gauze type fabric and knotted it.

[PeterPan]

Thanks ladies!!! I hadn't heard of the Mei Tai, so that looks really interesting. Will it work with a newborn? I'm following up on all your links. Thanks! :)

[Jami]

Thanks ladies!!! I hadn't heard of the Mei Tai, so that looks really interesting. Will it work with a newborn? I'm following up on all your links. Thanks! :)

 

I'm glad you asked that, I was wondering the same thing. :001_smile:

 

Which style (pouch/wrap/ring-sling/mei-tai) works best those first 3 months?

[NancyNellen]

The only one I tried and liked was the Peanut Shell. Absolutely LOVED it!

[Janna]

I used the Moby wrap for the first 3 months. I have stopped using it regularly though - only because I have older kids who entertain the little guy, so he's not so clingy to me so far. I think I started using it when he was about 3 weeks old.

 

In case it hasn't been linked yet (I haven't looked at all the posts), here's one.

[Aubrey]

I have both a Maya Wrap and a Moby Wrap and I like them both for different things. I like the Maya wrap for shorter durations (especially around the house). I can get in on and off quickly and once I get it adjusted just right I can slide it on over baby even if she falls asleep on me. For me it starts to pull a bit on my back after an hour or so which is when I turn to my Moby Wrap. The Moby wrap is more comfortable for me for the longer durations (I can wear a baby for hours on end and never notice) but since it takes longer to put on (not that long but a minute or two) and I can't be holding baby, I don't use it for around the house much. Also because there is more fabric it can be very warm if you are outside in the heat. So I think both are good choices. I have heard of lots of people making MOby wraps and it doesn't sound like it would take more than an hour to make. I think the trick with making your own Maya wrap is to make sure you get really good rings and I don't know if those would be readily available in a local store.

 

Stephanie

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[mom2mea]

I use a padded ring sling by Parenting Concepts and a Baby Hawk mei tei. I have an older Baby Hawk; the new ones now have a raised neck thing to support baby's neck.

 

For my newborn(s) the mei tei was awkward; the sling was better. Just my experience. :D

 

Hope you find one that works for you :)

[PeterPan]

Wow, those Baby Hawks are pretty amazing!!