Pavo San Diego Stripes (Size 6)

I was ISO Pavo Stripes in pretty well any colour or size for awhile. I liked the simplicity of the design and how it was described as "like a favourite t-shirt" in feel. I missed out on a couple on the Canadian Swaps and finally found a great deal on San Diego Stripes in a size 6.

The sweet mama sent me a lovely thank you card with the wrap, which came in the original Pavo envelope also. The colours were absolutely perfect for me, and I likened it to a floppy beach towel in feel. It was very soft to the touch, but remarkably sturdy feeling too, as most Pavo wraps are.

I wore this wrap mostly in a double hammock or front wrap cross carry, although I did try a couple ruck variations with is also. I found the sturdie-ness (it's a word now) of the fabric led to it feeling hard on my shoulders, no matter how carefully I tied it. It looked super moldable and supportive, but to me it just felt HARD.

I tried really hard to like this wrap, because I really liked how it looked, and the colours were just right for little man and I. However, the wrapping qualities were not working for us, so I had to let it go to another local mama, who very much loves Pavo WQ. 

The verdict:

Pros: Beautiful, affordable, easy to care for, sturdy

Cons: Sturdy (yes I know I listed it as both)

Recommendations: If you need a solid, reliable, beater wrap that will hold up to whatever you can throw at it, while also looking cute, this is it. If you have picky shoulders, or generally dislike Pavo's WQ, give it a pass.

Pavo Plume (Size 5)

I read a lot of reviews online and through Facebook, and had seen many amazing things said about a relatively new company (at the time) Pavo Textiles. I perused their website and was excited to see a size 5 Pavo Plume available for sale, so I scooped it up. Usually, most colourways and patterns of these wraps are sold out within seconds of being added to the site, so I was excited to be able to try one.

I received the wrap with a lovely tote bag from Pavo on the same day a custom handwoven arrived... one of my most epic fluffy mail days ever.

Epic fluffy mail day 

While waiting for it to arrive, someone pointed out on a chat board that the pattern reminded her of big blue vaginas. You can't unsee that. So, I affectionately referred to this as my lady bits wrap.

Out of the bag, this thing was burlap. No, cardboard. Cardboard mixed with burlap overlaid by burnt toast. It was beastly. I washed it according to directions and tried it out. It was certainly very supportive, and I could see right away the amazing stretch that people had been raving about. However, I found it very difficult to get a nice chest pass or to make my passes land in the right spot because of the grip.

I spent a couple weeks dragging this through rings, braiding it, and hammocking with it. It began to get much more malleable, and I began liking it a lot more. I took my two and a half year old for a spin in it also, and found the support to be great even for a heavier child.

However, the grip was a bit too much for my liking, and it was a bit too thick for a long wrap for us, so it moved along to another home. I've tried many Pavos since this first one, and have found the grip and weight of them to be too much for us, so perhaps we just aren't Pavo people.

Horrible chest passes

The Verdict:

Pros: Beautiful, great diagonal stretch, great support

Cons: Beastly to break in, difficult to obtain new

Recommendation: If you like thickness, support, and grip, you should try out a Pavo. If not, maybe Pavo isn't for you. I've felt a couple of their newer blends that had much less texture including some of the menagerie line, but I still haven't found the Pavo love.