Lenny Lamb Babywearing Fleece

I really enjoy trying various babywearing accessories, and managed to score a great deal on a Lenny Lamb babywearing fleece coat after making a purchase of one of the soft structured carriers (they offer a discount towards future purchases!) As usual, the package arrived quickly, and was not hit with duties (so far I'm four for four with LL purchases!). 

I ordered the size small, as I am usually about a size 6, in a blue colour. I didn't realise it at the time, but it also came with a little dickie for baby to wear to keep their head toasty warm while wearing.

My first impressions were the fleece was very soft, and nice and thick. It doesn't feel cheaply made at all, I was quite impressed with the quality for the price I paid.

My three year old tried to help me out by modelling the dickie. It didn't fit him so well (my children have giant heads). :)

Big guy helping model the front carry.

He also helped me model a front carry for this coat. As you can see, my 98% three year old was a bit long for this jacket, but we squeezed in there anyway.

For back carrying, you just turn the coat around. I took this coat out for snuggly walks with my toddler on several occasions, in early Winter and late Autumn weather in Ottawa. We both wore toques, mitts, and boots and we super warm. I would highly recommend this fleece coat to anyone as a cheap option for a mildly cold weather (0 degrees Celsius-ish) babywearing coat!

The verdict:

Pros: Affordable, available, well made, comfortable.

Cons: None I can think of

Recommendation: Great fleece for wearing in Autumn, Springtime and early Canadian winters.

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.

Didymos Lisca Sambuco

I bought this Lisca used from a local mama, as I wanted to try a Lisca for myself to see what all of the hype was about. My first impressions were that it was incredibly soft, and the colours were lovely. It was also much more thin than I was expecting.

I really enjoyed the purple and orange colours together. These are two of my favourites, and they made for a delightful Autumn blend, which was especially lovely close up. I don't have any photos handy from our time with this wrap, so here is a lovely stock photo.

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This wrap was a size 6, which is a bit long for me, but for how thin these are, I think it is good to have a longer wrap. I tried a ruck in this and it felt very thin and diggy, but in a double hammock it was much more comfortable.

I think this would be a really great newborn wrap. It has the stretch that would hold a tiny squishy baby in place solidly, but is very soft and has a slight cush to it that a stretchy wrap would not have. Unfortunately, we got it when little man was well over 20lbs, so it left quickly.

The Verdict:
Pros: Super soft, lots of stretch, lovely colour
Cons: Too thin and stretchy to be super supportive for larger babies
Recommendation: This would make an amazing newborn wrap, and does fine in multi-pass carries for larger babes, but wouldn't be my first choice for a larger babe.

Update: Found a photo!

Oscha Strato Aequus Lambswool Blend Size 5

I have been in love with Oscha's Strato pattern for the longest time, and have been a lover of wool also. I was ISO Aequus for a long while, and managed to find one while perusing the Canadian Swap one day for an amazing deal. 

When it arrived, I could tell it wasn't very broken in, it was much more scratchy and thick than the Didy wools I have grown used to, so I worked on it a bit with some steam and love. I don't think it helped that I received this beauty in the summer, when it is definitely a cooler-weather wrap.

I wrapped my toddler with is a few times for short outings, he was not wanting to be up long at the time, and it was quite a warm wrap. I found it very supportive, but a bit hard on my shoulders. I don't usually mind itchy wool, but this was even a bit itchy for my tastes. I ended up selling it very quickly, as I still couldn't find the Oscha love, even after lusting over this beauty for so long.

Blurry park ruck

The pattern is just so lovely though, I wish I could have liked it better. I thought it would have been more of a blue colour, but it was very purple, which I tend to be drawn to.

Stock photo to show beauty

The Verdict:
Pros: Beautiful pattern, beautiful colour, great warmth for a cold weather wrap, super sturdy.
Cons: Itchy and beastly new, not enough give and bounce for my taste.
Recommendations: If you don't mind itchy wool, and are looking for something to keep you and bubs warm during long winter walks, this beast is up to the task. This is not a light wrap by any means, and not my recommendation for new wrappers or summer heat.

Didymos Brown Cashmere India Ring Sling

As you can tell, I really like Didymos wraps. I've tried most of their blends and styles, in a variety of lengths and types of carriers. One blend I really wanted to try last year was cashmere. I am a lover of wool in general, and cashmere seemed to me at the time to be the epitome of luxury for a wool lover. I read many amazing reviews of cashmere india, but as I don't tend to gravitate towards thicker wraps, I was intimidated by the specs of this beautiful beast.

Luckily, a local mama ended up selling her ring sling made from Brown Cashmere India right around the time I was ISO. I literally posted this on her post, I was so excited....

Thanks Nemo.

This sling was in pretty well brand new condition when I received it, and was still a bit itchy to the touch. It softened up very nicely with a bit of gentle breaking in at home. It was very supportive with my toddler, rock solid, but with a bit of cush on the shoulder. There was not very much bounce to it at all though, which I generally prefer in a carrier.

Beautiful bronze rings

We enjoyed this sling for a short while, but the support just ended being more than we needed. If you are a lover of thick wraps. this would probably be right up your alley. I wish I had liked the qualities of this wrap better, as I love the India pattern so much, and the colours of this sling were just right for me.

The Verdict:

Pros: Beautiful, understated, elegant, supportive

Cons: Itchy and somewhat beastly brand new

Recommendation: If you love cashmere and India print, you will love this. If you are looking for a rock-solid beast of a wrap that you can tame into a cuddly soft, yet supportive workhorse, this is for you. If you like bounce and right-out-of-the-box wrapability, maybe this isn't for you.

Didymos Sambia Size 8 --> Long size 4 and ring sling

As part of the wonderful mystery box I received from Birdie's Room, I owned a size 8 Didymos Sambia. This wrap felt a lot like Orient fresh out of the box, and I believe it was a prototype using the same weaving techniques used to create Orient. The colours were much more earthy than those of Orient, so it was more understated. I really liked the colour on the "right" side, but wasn't too fond of how the "wrong" side of the wrap didn't show a reverse pattern, as was seen in Orient. 

As size 8 is clearly too much wrap for me, I sent it off to be chopped into a long size 4 and size medium gathered ring sling by the ever-talented Tanja at SewFunky.

My lovely trio of mystery box wraps.

This lovely stock photo shows the "right" and "wrong" sides of the wrap better.

I wrapped with the wrap portion of Sambia only once, but found it to wrap nearly exactly like my Orient, which I already owned in a size 5. Since they were so near in size, I decided to sell the wrap and keep the ring sling.

Sambia made an AWESOME ring sling. I paired it with bronze rings and had a gathered shoulder. I took it on trips to the beach and around town. It didn't seem to pull quite as easily as Orient did, which was nice. I found the material supportive enough for my 27lb toddler, but thin and light enough to be a great summer-time option for wearing at the beach. The colours were also perfectly beachy. 

Sharing an ice cream

The Verdict:

Pros: Light, airy weave, easily washable, beautiful colours

Cons: "Wrong" side doesn't have full pattern

Recommendation: If you like Orient, you will like Sambia! It is a great, all around, light-medium weight cotton wrap, with nearly the identical wrapping qualities of Orient. I really enjoyed this sling while it lived with us.

Lenny Lamb Checked Wild West Wrap Conversion Ergonomic Carrier - Toddler sized

I have never been a fan of buckle carriers, they never seem to fit me well and I always find pressure spots that I can never quite get comfortable. I had been hoping to try a wrap conversion buckle carrier for a long time, as I prefer the floppiness of wraps to canvas in general, but could not wrap my head around all of the options and price of those. I was so excited when I saw Lenny Lamb was coming out with a buckle carrier... at a great price too! There were many colours to choose from, and I decided on Checked Wild West diamond weave, as I love orange and blue together. I purchased a toddler size, as my youngest was a large 15 month old at the time.

It arrived within two weeks from Poland, which I thought was super speedy. I tried it out for a long walk with the little man on my back. It took me a little while to figure out how to adjust all of the straps, as there are PFAs and the buckles pull both to the front and the back. Plus, I was used to the Tula waistband which is more structured than t

his one, so I had to find a good spot on my waist to set it. Once I finally figured it out though, I was very comfortable. My son was able to sit up nice and high, and I had the shoulder straps on one of the tightest settings (I am 5'4 and size 6 or so, for reference).

The material was super floppy right out of the bag, and it didn't seem to get stuck on my son's back like the canvas of the Tulas did when I was pulling the panel up over him on my back. It was very soft, and the colours were so vibrant.

I had trouble figuring out how to put the carrier on for a front carry with the straps crossed, but when I figured it out I found it much more comfortable than other SSCs I had used without crossable straps. My son had some great naps in this carrier, and at no point did I feel digging from the straps on my back as I was accustomed to with other buckle carriers.

Even preschooler approved

I had some friends try this carrier out who were very petite and the straps did not adjust tight enough for them, so this would be something to keep in mind if you are tiny.

I sold this carrier after using it for most of the Summer. So far it is my favourite buckle carrier, but I am still a WCMT/wrap lover at heart, and found myself using those options over this lovely carrier.

The Verdict:
Pros: Affordable, beautiful, comfortable, crossable straps, folds up small
Cons: Does not cinch very small for super petite adult wearers
Recommendation: I recommend this carrier to almost anyone looking for a comfortable and beautiful SSC. As long as you aren't super petite, this carrier will likely work for you!