Baby carriers - what's in your stash? - Page 3

[eilonwy]

My very first sling was a deep magenta Kissasling; MIL bought it for me at the LLL conference we went to when BeanBean was 12 months old. At that time, I had a boy and was just a few months pregnant with BooBah, who's sex was unknown. It never phased anyone. BeanBean is very "pretty" and many people have mistaken him for a girl even with short hair, jeans, and t-shirts. I think that he looks like a boy, but apparently big eyes and long lashes just says "GIRL" to people. Whatever, he's cute. I'm with the others: the sling is something that I am wearing, the sex of the baby inside of it is completely irrelevant. It's always nice when sling matches my clothing, but I don't feel badly if it doesn't. I'm also one who likes to have slings which Mike is comfortable wearing, but there is a huge size discrepency between us (Mike is 5'11" and pushing 300, I'm 5'1" and fat but so short that I come out much smaller, sling-wise) so it's not like we need particularly unisex slings.

newbie_mary-- as far as I know, Sarita doesn't have a website. You can send her a PM here-- she's "saritasmile." She's very nice, and her slings are beautiful; I think she has pictures online.

I vastly prefer ring-slings to pouches. The Kangaroo Korner adjustable pouch is about as close as I could come to a true pouch, because I like being able to adjust the babies and wear them differently as they grow. Even though BooBah was born in June, I got plenty of use out of the KK; the temperature dropped and in she went! It was perfect for naps, like wearing an extra sweater with a warm water bottle inside of it (like I said before ). I'm always freezing, so it was absolutely brilliant. I'm sure that the KK will get plenty of use with BellyBean, too. In fact, I'd be wearing that sling right now if BellyBean didn't make slinging BooBah extremely painful for me. I've got a sweet, sleeping BooBah in my lap, and we'd both be a lot more comfortable with her up a bit higher...

So where can I buy Solarveil, and how much will I need to attempt to make a sling? Also, where can I find appropriate rings? Does Solarveil require plastic rings, rather than metal? How can I be sure that they're sturdy enough to hold a little person?

[pfamilygal]

I have some uber girlie print slings that I'm going to try and trade before Luke arrives. Our first ds had such delicate features and pretty curls that he totally looked like a girl. I don't want to be constantly saying he's a boy. That said, I'll probably go for stripes or a subdued print. I don't do camo and I can't stand little kid type prints. I bought some KC Chiefs fabric, so I need to find someone to make me a black sling with a KC pocket.

[Black Orchid]

We've got the obligatory Baby Bjorn (which I really like in the 2-4 month window) and I have an organic cotton Zolo Wear ring sling and a khaki stretch Hotsling and a Ergo carrier. I plan to get another Hotsling in one of her funky new fabrics and a solarveil ring sling. I also want to get a cool mei tei when this babe gets bigger.

[2+twins]

Originally Posted by eilonwy

So where can I buy Solarveil, and how much will I need to attempt to make a sling? Also, where can I find appropriate rings? Does Solarveil require plastic rings, rather than metal? How can I be sure that they're sturdy enough to hold a little person?

I bought the material direct from Solarveil (it aint cheap!). Here's the link. I'd recommend asking around on any co-ops you're on if they'll run one for the fabric since, if I remember correctly, the shipping was outrageous (IMO) for such a small amount of fabric. I believe I ordered 2 yards and ended up having some leftover (the directions I followed said to use 1 to 1.25 yards of 45-60" fabric - Solarveil is 61"). I ordered the rings from SlingRings - the nylon type (small I think but I'm not sure). I'm pretty sure using a metal ring wouldn't be a problem. Just a forewarning if you haven't felt Solarveil before - it's a little scratchy. If it's not going to be used in the sun, you'd probably be better off with mesh of some sort.

[eilonwy]

Originally Posted by love_homebirthing

If it's not going to be used in the sun, you'd probably be better off with mesh of some sort.

It would be used in the sun, but primarily in the water (pool, shower, lake, etc). What sort of mesh would you recommend?

[nighten]

Originally Posted by Black Orchid

We've got the obligatory Baby Bjorn (which I really like in the 2-4 month window) and I have an organic cotton Zolo Wear ring sling and a khaki stretch Hotsling and a Ergo carrier. I plan to get another Hotsling in one of her funky new fabrics and a solarveil ring sling. I also want to get a cool mei tei when this babe gets bigger.

At the risk of being redundant, here's an earlier post:

This is just about the Bjorn carrier, not the others you mentioned, though I'm not sure what the generic one is, but would assume it's a dangly one too.

I hate to do this to you but the Bjorns can actually be harmful to baby. They force baby to dangle with all her weight on her spinal column base, and it's not good for her back and can cause problems later. It also can place too much pressure on little boys' scrotum area. Stick with one of your others that lets baby's legs be wider apart and not dangling, so they're in a more natural position (think of how baby looks riding-on-your-hip: that's actually much better posture for them than dangling).

Anyway it's just a thought. I was getting ready to buy a dangly carrier 'til I started reading articles on children and back problems. Now I'm sold on the Asian Style Carriers, because they place less stress on your back than some slings. But that's just me. Good luck.

I'm happy to send you some research info on it if you'd like, but I urge you to reconsider the Bjorn.

Sorry to be a pooper, but I'm really thankful I found out before I used one.

[2+twins]

Originally Posted by eilonwy

It would be used in the sun, but primarily in the water (pool, shower, lake, etc). What sort of mesh would you recommend?

I haven't tried mesh yet, but KK's are made from 100% nylon, athletic jersey mesh. I just figure it's probably a lot cheaper than Solarveil if you don't need the UV protection (and less scratchy, although my baby didn't complain). But the info on their site does say that when dry, the baby will tend to slip against your body (but not when they're wet). This is not an issue w/Solarveil. HTH.

[aprilushka]

With DS we first had one of the Baby Bjorn knock offs (Evenflo's I think) which I don't like and I don't think DS did either when he was little. I really wish I started with a sling. I got the Nojo sling when he was about 3 months old and much preferred it, but I don't like the shoulder pad thingy so I'm in the market for a new one, will probably go Taylor made.

Everyone keeps asking me if I'm going to buy one of those double seater strollers. No offense to those that use them and like them (and for more closely spaced babies I could see the need), but they give me the willies and I refuse to shell out for them, not to mention the fact they usually are for 6 months + anyhow. DS will be 2yrs9mo when this one is born and I figure for a good year I can do sling plus umbrella stroller for DS when needed, and buy the time the little one is getting heavy in the sling DS will be almost 4 and rarely in need of a stroller (and when he is, I won't be alone for the most part so we can do two umbrellas). I already don't do stroller with DS for mall trips and any other walking an hour or less, which means some picking him up but in increasingly shorter intervals. My mom said at Christmas that she thinks "I should" buy one which almost gave me the same gut revulsion feeling that someone questioning slinging or extended breastfeeding would. I don't know why I have such a revulsion to them, but I do, on a gut level, I can't stand the thought of buying one. I've become more of the mind that I want to minimize stroller use for babies under 6 months anyway for various reasons, it sort of bothers me sometimes that some people think that strollers are more necessary than breastmilk (comment from a poster on another board I'm on, that she'd rather shell out big bucks for a stroller than for a pump). I know I'm going to have this issue with MIL if we go to Russia after the birth. Sigh.