UppyMama Deep Waters Fuchsia weft 4.2m



When I first learned about wrapping, Uppymama was the epitome of luxury at the time. I drooled over these beautiful handwoven wraps, and was so excited when I won a ring sling by this amazing Canadian company (see: Uppymama Linen RS).

I stalked, and entered draws, and watched prices, and agonized... and finally I pulled the trigger and bought an UppyMama wrap in my base size from a swap page. This wrap is Deep Waters, which was a custom colourway for a small group of parents, and only five of these wraps were woven. Of those, mine is the only one that has a fuchsia weft, so all of the others are pre-dominantly blue, whereas mine has more of a purple hue to it.



My Uppy "stash" when Deep Waters (top) arrived, frosted rainbow cake (bottom)



At the time it arrived I was primarily wrapping my son, who was about 18 months old. We mostly did front carries with this wrap for bedtime walks and snuggles, as he was not much of a fan of back carries at the time. I did not find any digginess with this wrap at all, despite it being relatively thin. For back carries, I often used it in a ruck tied knotless, and found it comfortable for relatively long periods of time.

When Little Miss arrived on the scene, this wrap was immediately a favourite. It is soft and was immensely comfortable for front carries at the ittybitty stage. It is the perfect colour and length for us, even at over a year old now. We still use it nearly daily for fwcc and double hammock tied at the shoulder with a candy cane chestbelt (our fave!).

Squishy, tiny, Little Miss... oh my ovaries.

This is an older Uppy, and they are known to be slightly heavier weight than newer Uppys. This wrap is strong, thin, and resilient. It has the perfect amount of grip, glide, and cush. I do not worry about wearing it on any occasion, as it is easy to wash and comfortable for any period of time, with any size of child. It has comfortably rucked my now three year old son in parking lots, and dragged its tails along wilderness paths. We will keep this wrap until our wearing days are done, and at that time might even keep it as a cherished momento of all of the snuggles it gave us.


Prices have significantly declined and rare unicorn Uppys such as this one pop up all the time at insane prices, under retail most times. If you see an old cotton uppy and are on the hunt for a versatile wrap that can take anything you throw at it, then I strongly encourage you to buy it!


Little Miss is all smiles in our fave carry



The verdict:

Pros: Beautiful, comfortable, classic, and fun

Cons: None, now that prices have dropped

Recommended for: Everyone. Seriously. Buy the old Uppys.

 

Cloth of Kin - Doula Love 4.2m

A local mama offered a contest for her business to submit a wrap design based on doulas, which would then be mocked up and created through a Cloth of Kin custom slot she had. Though my submission didn't win, I did end up purchasing a semi-custom of the winning entry, which was called Doula Love.

The colours of this wrap were so vibrant. I had a hard time deciding what weft to pick for it. I ended up choosing a cotolin weft in peacock (turquoise), as I wanted something supportive and colourful for my chunky monkey. I chose a yellow stripe middle marker, for contrast.

The weaver kept us updated with photos throughout the weaving process, and it was completed near the timelines promised. The anticipation of owning a wrap that I had so much input into was so exciting, the wait felt so much longer than it was!

The first thing I noticed when I received my wrap was how incredibly soft it was right out of the package. It didn't feel like linen blend to me at all, and wrapped nicely, without the hardness I have come to expect from linen. It measured slightly longer than the 4.2m I had asked for, which isn't a bad thing in my books. I sent it to SewFunky to be hemmed when it arrived, as the 'lengths of fabric' from Cloth of Kin all arrive unhemmed. 

I used this wrap in the heat of the summer with my young toddler, and enjoyed the support it gave, while also appreciating how thin it was. I would compare it to UppyMama in thickness, possibly a touch heavier in weight than the UppyMama linen I have tried. 

I always received comments on the beauty of this wrap, and felt great wearing it in any condition, because it was so easy to launder. I only moved this wrap along to another home when I received a wrap in very similar colours in the same length and appreciated the wrapping qualities of the new one better (review to come on that one... my very first full length UppyMama!).

The Verdict:

Pros: Canadian handwoven, affordable, custom slots are attainable!, great communication, great design, fabulous wrapping qualities (for linen especially!).

Cons: I have none for this wrap and CoK experience. 

Recommendation: I would recommend this wrap to anyone looking for a well-priced Canadian handwoven. The linen blend was comfortable and supportive, without the 'dig' I usually experience in linen.

Cloth of Kin Secret Rainbow Alpaca Silk Blend (Size 6)

I saw a beautiful rainbow coloured wrap posted on the swaps one day and was too slow to snatch it up. It was a Cloth of Kin Secret Rainbow in linen weft, and I lusted over that wrap for several months before I finally had the opportunity to try one for myself. I traded with a lovely mama for her size 6 CoK Secret Rainbow in alpaca silk grey weft. When I received it I couldn't believe how ridiculously soft it was, more than kitten belly soft, it was absolutely divine. I wrapped my son with it for a short time in a ruck, and the bounce was lovely, though I did notice a bit of sag, as I wasn't used to wrapping with such a bouncy wrap at the time.

I used this wrap in double hammocks for longer walks mostly, and found it very warm and comfortable. This blend is on the warmer side, even though it is very thin, so I found it a bit awkward to wear in the summer heat in multiple layers.

I was very impressed with the weaving, as I had not heard the best things about the quality of Cloth of Kin wraps before this time. There were some small skips in the weave, but nothing major that could be seen without really looking for it. The colours were so beautiful, really having to been seen in person to appreciate. I also really enjoyed that this blend was machine washable, which made the fibre fluff up even more.

Being alpaca, it did shed a little bit, which wasn't a big deal for me, but did bother the mama who I traded for it from, as she had wool allergies and found this to be a trigger.

The Verdict:
Pros: Soft, beautiful, warm, affordable handwoven, Canadian weaver
Cons: Sheds, not the most supportive
Recommendation: This would be an amazing newborn wrap, in fact, I have a custom in the works in the same blend because I loved this one so much!

Mama Minnow Wild Rumpus (Size 4)

I saved one of my very favourite wraps, by my very favourite weaver to be posted on this special day... today is my birthday!

After staring at a longer version of this wrap on the swap, hemming, hawing, and eventually missing out on it, I vowed that I would buy a Mama Minnow Wild Rumpus wrap should I ever see one again. Thankfully, one came up in a size 4 (3.8m), and I snatched it up. 

The inspiration for this amazing neutral wrap came from the book "Where the Wild Things Are", specifically on the photo (below) of the Wild Rumpus that Max and the Wild Things had while he was on his adventures. Having loved this book for a good long time, this wrap called to me from the moment I saw it.

Chandra, the amazingly talented weaver, is Canadian, and has based a line of her handwoven wraps on children's literary classics such as WTWTA, calling it her "Wrap & Read Literary Lineup". Other inspirations include Freight Trainbow and Pete the Cat.

When I received this package in the mail, I was shocked at how small and light the package was. This wrap is without a doubt the thinnest handwoven I have ever tried. I could nearly see the writing on the envelope of the package through this wrap in the sunshine. I was a bit worried, as my boys are chunky monkeys, but thankfully, this wrap proved that thin doesn't have to mean diggy!

I took a look over this wrap with a fine-tooth comb, and Chandra's attention to detail is just amazing. The colours melded together so well, there were no mistakes in the weaving that my human eye could see, and her selvedges were the very definition of razor sharp.

I was able to eke out a front wrap cross carry with this when my son was a bit younger, and wore him for naps in it, and on downtown adventures with no digging or sagging. This wrap was delightfully supportive and comfortable! I also loved it in a reinforced ruck, and could squeak out a Christina's ruckless with it, with some careful tying. The colours were so lovely and neutral, it was such a classy wrap.

I was so very fortunate to win a "Golden dibs ticket" for another Mama Minnow wrap, and sold this lovely piece of art to a mama in my local babywearing group, as a legacy wrap for her son. I definitely would have held onto it if I didn't know I was secure in owning another Mama Minnow in the future!

The Verdict:
Pros: So thin, Canadian weaver, amazing neutral, amazing weaving, beautiful all around.
Cons: Small batches make it difficult to score a Mama Minnow, so if you see one BUY IT!
Recommendation: This lovely mama is a very talented weaver, and I would recommend her wraps to anyone looking to try a well-made, Canadian handwoven.