Sunday 29 December 2013

COTW #48 - Giselle's Back Carry

by Aline Kelly
 
 
Giselle's Back Carry is an invention of babywearer Giselle Baturay of Granola Babies, and combines concepts of different carries that she liked into one comprehensive carry. The end result has reinforced passes over baby's bum, a pass under each knee (making it good for wigglers and kickers), and ruck straps in the front. You will need a mid-length woven wrap.
 

General instructions:
- Get baby onto your back and create a seat. One tail comes over your shoulder, the other comes under the opposite arm. 
- Taking the tail coming over your shoulder, bring it around back, over the first knee, spread it over baby's back and bum, and tuck it under the second leg. 
- Using the other tail, flip it up over your same shoulder, spread it across baby's back and bum, and tuck it under the opposite leg. 
- Tie in front or tie an alternate finish of your liking. 
 

Video instructions:

Tuesday 24 December 2013

COTW #47 - Norwegian Wiggleproof Back Carry

by Aline Kelly


Norwegian Wiggleproof Back Carry is a doppelganger for the Double Hammock. It has a spread chest pass and looks nearly identical, but has different back passes and can be tied with a shorter wrap. This carry is also very similar to Jordan's Back Carry but may be more supportive due to the addition of the chest support. You will need a mid-length woven wrap. 
 

General instructions:
- With your wrap centered, get baby onto your back and create a nice seat. One pass comes over your shoulder, the other comes under your opposite arm. 
- Take the tail coming over your shoulder, tuck it back under baby's knee, spread it across his bum and back, and bring it up over your opposite shoulder, creating a cross pass. Secure this tail. 
- With the tail coming under your arm, spread it across your chest, bring it around back and OVER baby's first knee, across his bum, and over the second knee to create a horizontal pass. 
- Tie at shoulder, tie a candy cane chest belt, or do a knotless finish (see video below for demos). 
 

Variations: 
- You can tuck the final pass under baby's second knee if you'd like a bit more symmetry in the knees. 
- Passes can be tied in reverse order if preferred (ie start with the chest pass). 

Video instructions:

Finishing options: 

Sunday 15 December 2013

COTW #46 - Front Double Hammock

by Aline Kelly






Front Double Hammock (FDH) is a carry that is almost identical to the Front Cross Carry, the only variation between them being how baby is positioned into the pre-tied passes. Some find Front Double Hammock to be the more supportive of the two because of extra layers over baby and greater ability to spread the fabric. You can tie this carry with a size 4 or 5 woven wrap.



General Instructions:
- Center the middle marker of your wrap on the middle of your lower back.
- Bring each tail around to the front and up over the opposite shoulder, creating an X in the front of your body.
- Cross the tails in the back, creating an X in the back, and tie a loose knot at your belt buckle area in front.
- Situate baby into the inner layer of your X on the front. As opposed to the FCC where you would situate one leg into each pass, with the FDH both of baby's legs go into the inner pass. The result is baby's bum is supported by two rebozo passes. If it helps, keep baby's legs together when getting him into position.
- Once baby is situated, move his legs into the spread position with knees above bum, and create a nice seat from knee to knee. Spread the passes over baby's back.
- Take time to tighten all your passes, remove excess slack, and tighten your knot. Spread your back passes for extra comfort.
- Tie under bum or do leg passes and tie behind your back.

Video Instructions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCLWJaVT6h0 (MyFluffBaby)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZFIL4gOa-A (aporteedebisousvideo)- silent demo

Tuesday 10 December 2013

(Almost) Everything You Wanted To Know About Dipping, But Were Afraid To Ask!

by Tami Grosset


You may have heard the term 'dip' or 'dipping' on babywearing forums and you may have wondered what you're missing out on. Perhaps its a special way to carry your bub or maybe a new SSC?

Nope! Its a fantastic way to buy a hard to find wrap or exclusive, high end carrier with out breaking the bank or winning the lottery. It is in fact its own lottery. Here's how it works...

First you need to find a dip. Dippers are secretive for a good reason. Even though its a simple online raffle it is actually gambling. Gambling is against the rules of Paypal and dipping relies on Paypal accounts to keep it simple and easy for buyers and sellers alike. If you're keen to find a dipping club you need to approach, via PM, some other mamas in your preferred babywearing group. To protect any and all dipping clubs I will not be naming any or providing any links to any in this post, and any links and names listed in comments will be removed.


When a dip takes place the seller first has to decide a total price that she would like to get. Lets say she is selling an Uppymama and she'd like $1500 for it. She then has to decide how many dips (or raffle tickets) she'd like to sell. In this example we'll say she wants to offer 150 dips, which would have to be sold at $10 each for her to get the full $1500 value.

In most Dipping Clubs admins will check the value of the wrap for sale and ensure that it is being sold for a fair total price. An admin will usually work with the seller to ensure the process is fair and unbiased.


Once the value of the item is verified and the price is set the dips will be offered to dipping club members. Members will be allowed to buy as many dips as they like for $10 each (or whichever the dip price is set). An online form is created and members are invited to complete one form for each dip they wish to purchase. When all the dips are accounted for the seller posts their Paypal details and dippers have an agreed amount of time (usually 24 hours) to pay for their dips.

When all the dips are paid for the dipping club admin uses random.org to find a winner. Each dip ticket has a number allotted to it. To ensure fairness the running of the random.org selection is video taped and time stamped and the clip is posted online for all dipper to see. When the random.org selects a number, the dipper with that number wins the wrap!

In fact everyone wins! The seller wins as she has got her $1500. The winner wins as she has got an Uppymama valued at $1500 for just $10 and everyone else wins because they had fun and only spent $10 each.


Dipping started when hard to find and high end wraps became so highly priced it became hard for owners (who had paid after retail price) to resell their beauties. Dipping is a great way for many people, even those with limited budgets, to win a highly priced and exclusive carrier. Some clubs have also started putting less expensive, more available wraps up for dipping to enable even more people to enjoy the love of wrapping and wearing.

If you know of a dipping club please only share it with super special people who will enjoy sharing in this exciting and  special game, and to protect the dippers in the club.

Sunday 8 December 2013

COTW #45 - Taiwanese Carry

by Aline Kelly

Taiwanese Carry is a carry with many twists, turns, and passes. There's no confusing it with any other carry - it is one of a kind and easily identifiable. Although unique, it is not often seen (usually just in a "Let's learn Taiwanese Carry" context), and opinions are generally split as to the attractiveness of the pattern it creates on the wearer's front. It uses a long woven wrap, usually a size 6 or 7. 
 

The supposed "real" Taiwanese Carry consists of three twists on the wearer's front. However, the popular internet version is a simplified one with two twists. Although we'll link to a tutorial for the long version, this COTW will focus on the shorter, two-twist version. 


General instructions:
- This carry begins off-centre. Drap your wrap over your shoulder until it hangs to approximately your hip or upper leg. Where the wrap crosses your back is where you will center baby. 
- Get baby on your back and create a good seat. The short end of the wrap comes over your shoulder, the long end comes under the opposite arm. Pin the vertical tail between your knees to maintain tension. 
- For reference, the short tail stays exactly where it is for the entire duration - the long end does 100% of the wrapping. 
- Create a twist in front - Bring the long tail under the short one, then back over it so it goes back the way it came. 
- Flip this tail over your shoulder, spread it across baby's back and bum, and tuck it OVER the opposite knee (rebozo pass). 
- Create another twist in the front.
- Bring the tail across baby's back and bum, staying over both knees (horizontal pass), and tie in front. 
- Spread wrap over your chest and shoulders as is comfortable.

Variations:
- You can opt to tuck passes under baby's knees instead of over to create a more wiggleproof carry. 
- If you're cutting it close on length, you can bunch the last pass instead of spreading it to save a few inches. 

Photo instructions:

Video instructions:

Shorty version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBz2yXXf-j8 (Briannaborntobeworn) - Size 3 wrap.

One-shouldered version:

Sunday 1 December 2013

COTW #44 - Double Hammock Rebozo

by Aline Kelly

Double Hammock Rebozo is a shortened, one-shoulder version of the classic Double Hammock carry, and is usually tied with a size 2 or 3 woven wrap. It is appreciated as a good supportive carry for toddlers, although some babywearers note that baby will often sit a bit lower on the back than with most typical back carries. 
 

General instructions:
- The carry starts off-center. Drape the wrap over your shoulder so it hangs to around your waist. Where the wrap crosses your spine is where you will center your baby. 
- Get baby on your back using your preferred method and create a deep seat from knee to knee. The short tail stays over your shoulder, the long tail comes under your opposite arm. 
- Securing the vertical tail, spread the other tail wide across your chest, under your arm, spread it across baby's back and bum, and bring it back under the original arm. You will have created a chest pass in the front and a horizontal pass in the back. Note that all these passes go OVER baby's legs.  
- Take a minute or two here to work all the extra slack out of your passes. Tighten strand by strand, pull your tails, and generally make sure there aren't any loose bits. It can help to pull the tails up and out in a cheerleader pull to make sure they spread nicely over baby's back. 
- Bring your tails together in front of your chest and tie a square knot or a slipknot where it's comfortable.
- Spread the wrap over your chest and shoulder as preferred. 

Video instructions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqPtxhWWryY (Jennifer MacNeil, with very special guest star F)

Thursday 21 November 2013

Thursday Thought: Word!

If you're new to babywearing you'll also be new to an entirely new language system full of RSs, MTs, half buckles, wrap straps, SSCs and more.





Don't be dismayed!! Whilst this strange slang might be overwhelming it can be easily learnt. 


We have a pretty good list of babywearing jargon here on the OBG blog, to help those new to the terms used in online babywearing forums. If you are looking for more detailed explanations of words and terms used this blog from Babywearing 102 might help.

If you are still confused please don't hesitate to ask. We were all newbies at sometime or another!

BWFTW!!

(babywearing for the win!)

Wednesday 20 November 2013

Wordless Wednesday: A Week (Or More) In The Life Of Julie

It's our month of trying new things: new wraps, new carries. First time with E's legs out in a RS, first time trying a back carry, first time trying different lengths and different blends with woven wraps!

Sunday 17 November 2013

COTW #42 - Short Back Cross Carry

by Aline Kelly

Short Back Cross Carry (SBCC) is a wiggleproof back carry that is tied with a short woven wrap, usually a size 2, 3, or 4. It is very similar to a half-JBC, but with symmetrical legs, so fans of that carry may like this one as well.  
 

General instructions:
- Your wrap starts off-center. Drape it over your shoulder so that it hangs to around your waist. Where the wrap crosses your spine is where you will center baby. 
- Get baby onto your back using your preferred method and create a good seat. The short end of the wrap comes over your shoulder, the long end comes under baby's knee.
- Flip the long end up and over your shoulder, spread it across baby's back and bum, and tuck it under his opposite knee. 
- Bring the tails together and tie at shoulder, tie a candy cane chest belt, or do a knotless finish. 
 

Video instructions:

Alternate finishes:
 
 

Sunday 10 November 2013

COTW #41 - Ellevill Jordan's Back Carry


by Aline Kelly

Ellevill Jordan's Back Carry (EJBC) - not to be confused with the similarly-named Jordan's Back Carry (JBC) - is a symmetrical, wiggleproof, and reinforced back carry tied with a mid-length woven wrap, usually a size 4, 5, or 6. The carry is featured on the Ellevill woven wraps official site as the "Jordan" carry. It has a unique feature that no other carry has, making it easily identifiable - a waist pass. 
 
 
General instructions:
- With the wrap centered, get baby onto your back and create a nice seat. One tail comes over your shoulder, the other comes under your opposite arm. 
- Take the tail coming over your shoulder and pin it securely between your knees. 
- Taking the tail coming under your arm, reach back and readjust this tail so that it comes under baby's leg. 
- Keeping it bunched, bring this tail across your waist, under your opposite arm, and under baby's opposite leg. 
- Spread this tail up and across baby's back and bum, and bring it over your opposite shoulder. Pin this tail between your knees.
- Taking the other tail, create a horizontal pass - bring it under your arm, spread it across baby's back and bum, and under the opposite arm (staying OVER both knees).
- Tie at shoulder, tie a candy cane  chest belt, or do a knotless finish.
 

Photo instructions:

Video instructions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLTLNZuZLiY (SheffieldSlings) - silent demo except for funny chatty British toddler

Chestbelt variations: 

Wednesday 6 November 2013

Wordless Wednesday: A Day In The Life Of Sara

 Where has your carrier taken you today? We've been to music, the antique market and IKEA. Fabricland is up next!!

Tuesday 5 November 2013

Baby Carriers We Love! (A Response To Today's Parent's List!)

by Tami Grosset

We recently came across a list of favourite babycarriers in Today's Parent.

I asked the OBG members on Facebook what they thought of the list and the general consensus was that only a few of the carriers were our favourites, so we made our own list, based on members favourites and the most popular carriers loaned from the Ottawa Babywearing Group Sling Library. Here are our 15 favourite carriers:

Manduca
The Manduca is one of the higher priced SSCs available locally (from both Milkface and Extraordinary Baby Shoppe) but the price point has not put off many of our members. This carrier offers extraordinary versatility and adjustability allowing for front, hip and back carries as well as from newborn infant and into toddlerhood.


The Tula (both standard and toddler) are not currently available in Ottawa but Extraordinary Baby Shoppe will be stocking them very soon. Members did not all specify which (standard or toddler) they liked the best but they are both beautiful SSCs to look at with lots of lovely prints and colour ways and the option, when you can find one, of a Tula made from a woven wrap. The Toddler Tula is a fantastic carrier for wearing the older child, with lots of extra padding in the shoulder straps and waist band. The Tula can be worn for front and back wearing.

Kinderpack
Kinderpacks are not currently available in Ottawa or Canada but can be purchased direct from Kindercarry. Kinderpacks offer a front and back carry and are available in 4 different sizes; infant, standard, toddler and preschool. They have a lovely wide seat that is so great for supporting a knee to knee spread that is so important for babywearing in the first year.

Wrap Conversion Ring Sling
WCRSs are liked by many of our members, over other RSs due to the fabulously supportive quality of the woven wrap fabric used, as well as the special beauty of the wrap itself. Conversion companies can be found with a quick Google search or you could see our blog post which lists some international options. Sewfunky is the company that converted the Chimparoo wrap pictured.











Woven Wrap
Woven wraps are the most versatile of all carriers and as such carry the steepest learning curve. If you're prepared to put in the time you and your baby will reap the rewards! Wraps come in different lengths and some can be more supportive than others. A good starter wrap would be a Girasol (as pictured) but a great place to start researching WWs is this post. There are many great wraps to be found locally either brand new at Milkface and Extraordinary Baby Shoppe or used through the OBG FSOT Space.

Wrap Conversion Mai Tei
by Jenna Sparks Photography
WCMTs are mai tei carriers made from a woven wrap. WCMTs can be made with many different options (half buckle, full buckle, wrap straps, padded to wrap straps, hood, no hood, pocket, teething toy, infant size, toddler size, embroidered decal etc etc) so an owner can wear their baby in a completely unique custom made beautiful carrier. The woven wrap can offer a wonderfully supportive fabric for this kind of carrier, plus you benefit from the beauty of the wrap itself. You can find a list of conversion companies here.

Boba Wrap
The Boba Wrap is considered by many as the absolute must for a new baby. The Boba Wrap is a stretchy wrap which does a fabulous job of creating the womb outside the womb for the 4th trimester. The Boba (formerly known as the Sleepy Wrap) is especially liked over many other stretchy wraps because of its 5% spandex content. This allows the wrap to be the perfect snugness (when tied on according to the manufacturers guidance) for you and your baby offering beautiful support and allowing you to only need to tie it once each day, without having to adjust or retie during the day. The Boba Wrap is also one of the most affordable of all the stretchies and is available at both Milkface and EBS.

Sakura Bloom
Sakura Bloom is a ring sling manufacturer who makes beautifully supportive and lovely to look at slings. Made from either linen or silk or a combination of both these ring slings combine functionality and comfort and take 'yummy mummy' style to a new level! Sakura Bloom ring slings are available to purchase at both our local babywearing expert retailers.






Maya Tie
The Maya Tie is a mei tai style carrier with wrap straps made by the Maya Wrap company. They are, I believe, discontinued but you can sometimes find them in clearance or in used locations online. The wrap strap style offers a lovely supportive carry, allowing you to spread the fabric over the baby's back and bum thus distributing the weight further. Another similar carrier is the DidyTai made by the woven wrap manufacturer Didymos.













Boba 3G
by Breathe In Photography
The Boba 3G is a great soft structured carrier which offers front and back carries for newborn babies to toddler sized ones! It has proven a popular carrier in the sling library and amongst our members. The Boba 3G can be found brand new from both our local babywearing expert stores.
















Ergobaby
Ergobaby are one of the most popular and widely available ergonomic soft structured carrier. You often see them in TV shows (namely Greys Anatomy) and celebrities are often pictured using this particular carrier, although this is not the reason why they are so loved! Ergo's are available in regular, organic and sport styles and, as you can see, many various designs. The Ergo offers front, hip and back carries and has a nice wide seat to offer that knee to knee spread.



Mei Tai
by Jenna Sparks Photography
Mai teis are an Asian style carrier which offer front, hip and back carries and are wonderfully comfortable, offering great ergonomics for both baby and parent. There are some great MT manufacturers available in our local babywearing stores including Babyhawk, Freehand and Kozy Carrier, to name but a few!






Onya
Onya is a lovely soft structured carrier that is a real favourite of the sling library; the most popular and most requested carrier in the collection. It offers a crossed back front carry, which is something that many people find supremely comfy, plus a neat little trick of converting to a chair harness, which can be really handy of you're planning on wearing your baby whilst travelling. Onya is available from the MEC and there are plans afoot to bring it to other local and Candian stores.... stay tuned!!

(photo by Breathe In Photography)







Beco Gemini
by Breathe In Photography
The Beco Gemini is a favourite for our members who are wearing a newborn to 12 month old baby especially. The Beco Gemini allows front, hip and back carries and allows you to wear your baby from newborn age without the need for an additional infant insert. When front carrying the shoulder straps cross on the back, which is super comfy for many. It really is a great carrier! Beco Gemini's can be found at both Milkface and Extraordinary Baby Shoppe.










Maman Kangaroo Asiatik
by Breathe In Photography
The Asitaik is a mei tai carrier with stretchy wrap straps and made by a Canadian manufacturer, Maman Kangarou. Its a lovely style of mei tai and great for newborn to 35lbs. The Maman Kangarou Asiatik can be bought at both Milkface and Extraordinary Baby Shoppe.














What's you and your baby's favourite carrier? Is it in this list?






Sunday 3 November 2013

COTW #40 - Newborn Burp Carry

by Aline Kelly

The Newborn Burp Carry is a snuggly carry for smaller babies where they are wrapped up high on your shoulder, in the position you would normally use to burp them. It can feel safe and secure for a little one, allow them to see more things, rest their head comfortably on mama's shoulder, and some say it can be relieving for conditions such as reflux. This carry can be done in many different ways, the easiest being with either a woven wrap or with a ring sling. The following instructions include two examples of how to do it, but any method that keeps baby up there happily and securely can be used. 
 

General Instructions:
Woven wrap (Front Cross Carry):
- Position your baby high up on your shoulder in a burp position.
- Always keeping a hand securely on baby, position the middle marker of your wrap on the middle of your back. 
- Bring one side of your wrap up and across your baby, and over your opposite shoulder. 
- Make a nice seat for your baby, either with legs out or tucked in. If you're keeping legs tucked, make sure the baby's weight is on their bum, not their feet. 
- Take that same tail again, cross it diagonally across your back, under the opposite arm, and hold it securely under baby's bum while you work with the other side. 
- Repeat on the other side - bring the tail up and across baby, over your opposite shoulder, diagonally across your back, and back under baby's bum. 
- Tie a double knot under bum. If you have extra fabric you can continue and tie behind your back. 
- Adjust the wrap as required, making sure baby is supported up to their neck and that your passes are spread nicely across your back and shoulders. 

Ring Sling:
- Position baby high up on your shoulder. 
- Holding baby securely, bring your ring sling over your head and over baby, with the rings situated on your back
- Create a nice deep seat. 
- Tighten your ring sling rail by rail, strand by strand, until baby is securely fastened to your shoulder and fully supported. 
- See video for more instructions and demo for rings on back! 



Video Instructions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znb1WueyAh4 (WrapYourBaby) - Front Cross Carry in a burp position

Wednesday 30 October 2013

Wordless Wednesday: A Halloween In The Life Of Some OBG Trick Or Treaters!!


A Zombie family.... a Breaking Bad and Beeker family and a family from Oz.
Plus three little cuties; an alien monster, an ewok and a green monster!

Happy Halloween!!

Tuesday 29 October 2013

Winter Babywearing

by Jennifer MacNeil

This blog piece was originally written for Jennifer's own awesome blog. We highly recommend stopping by there and checking out her other articles. Thanks for sharing this piece Jennifer!

Babywearing and seasonal change

As summer rolls into autumn, babywearers start to ask what to do in the cool weather.  Maybe it's a chilly early morning or evening dog walk that they need to cover up for, maybe it's frigid Canadian winters.  Rest assured, there are solutions that will allow you to babywear outdoors in cool and cold weather.

There are two branches of solutions: separate outerwear for you and your child, or one piece of clothing to cover you both.  There are pros and cons to both, and many options to consider.

Separate Outerwear:  Simply put, you wear your coat/sweater and baby wears his sweater, fleece suit or snowsuit.  Another option is to have an over-the-carrier cover for your baby.  These are often made by baby carrier companies as an accessory for their baby carriers, but they generally can be used interchangeably with other brands of carriers.  A simple DIY carrier cover can be made by tucking a warm blanket around the outside of the carrier.
Something to keep in mind when wearing separate outerwear: Your child is not physically exerting themselves, so will not be as warm as you may be if you are walking, snowshoeing, hiking, etc.  You may need to dress them for one level cooler than you dress yourself, i.e. in a fleece suit even if you are only in a long sleeved t-shirt.

My son is actually wearing two layered fleece suits here, as it was warmer than his snowsuit and covered his feet.  Since my husband was walking/hiking, he is dressed much less warmly than our son.

Pros:
You probably already have outerwear for both of you, so this option often is free and doesn't require you to acquire anything new.
Baby will still be warm if you take them out of the carrier, making it easy to transfer between babywearers or for toddlers to go down and run around.
Cons:
Depending on your coat, this may be a very bulky option and the extra bulk will take up more strap or wrap length.  If you are using wraps, you may find that you can't do the carries you normally do with the length i.e. with your size 6 you can no longer do a Double Hammock with Tibetan Tie, you only have the length to tie at the waist.  This may mean you have to learn new carries or use a longer wrap.
Snowsuit on snowsuit is very slippery and it's tough to get a good wrap job when your bodies refuse to stick together, not to mention the passes slide right off the baby and there goes your seat.
The soft structured carrier (SSC) that fits your child normally may only come partway up their back when they are wearing a snowsuit--may be an issue if you have a leaner.
You are not sharing body heat with your child, so they may not be warm enough in very cold weather.  You are also less aware of their temperature so it can be more difficult to assess whether they are warm enough.

Although not my usual winterwear, a wool peacoat is much less slippery than a polyester jacket, which makes it much easier to wrap a child onto you.  

One Piece of Clothing for both of you: This can really be any number of options, whatever suits your needs and your budget.

Arms in is the usual cold weather preference, unless using them to accentuate your face-making.  Note that here the v-neck is on backwards so that my son is in the V.  It actually works equally well the other way around.

Pros:
Body heat is shared between the two of you. 
Less bulky than each wearing your own clothes
Your carrier will fit normally
If you intend on continuing to carry your child at your destination, you don't have to take them out of the carrier to remove either of your outerwear once you move indoors.
Can look more stylish because it doesn't look as piece-meal.
Cons:
Some of the specialty babywearing outerwear can be quite costly.
You and your child may grow out of the coat before you stop carrying them i.e. you can no longer wear a size M and need to size up to an L.
Can be impractical if your child is going to be let down out of the carrier while you are outside.
Some options only allow you to use it while front-carrying.

At such a young age (4 months here) I was worried that a scarf may accidentally hinder his breathing, so you can see in this photo that I'm holding a safety pin to close up the space between our necks and create two separate neck holes out of the v-neck sweater.

The category of one piece of clothing can further be broken down into:
Designed/intended for babywearing (can be found both new and used) such as:
Ready-made babywearing coat or vest.  Brands include Suse's Kindercoat, Peekaru (now owned by Boba), M Coat, an amauti
Custom or ready-made zip-in extender for your own winter jacket
Babywearing poncho with extra head-hole for baby
Wrap-around poncho
Adapted for babywearing a.k.a. babywearing hacks (often something you already own or purchase at a thrift store) such as:
Stretchy knit sweater (V-neck is great)
Zippered hoodie
A jacket several sizes larger than your normal size
A DIY babywearing coat like this one.

My favourite cold weather babywearing combo; this ensemble cost a total of $4.

My personal preference for sub-zero temperatures is a babywearing hack, because I'm practical, but cheap.  A combination of an XL v-neck cashmere sweater (from Salvation Army) under an XL zippered hoodie (and roll up the sleeves). We dress normally, usually my son wears just socks. I find it is good to about -20C. If it is a warmer day, I use only one (especially for fall/spring), and on the very coldest days I've used my husband's parka--he wore his snowboarding jacket. With a large coat/hoodie or amauti, you have the option of putting the hood over both your heads for extra warmth, an option that I don't think is offered with babywearing coats.

When your babywearing gear is over-sized gifted clothes for your spouse,
you can both use it to babywear!

Whichever option you choose, make sure you are paying attention to footwear.  Most people worry about their child's winter footwear (MEC Toaster Booties, Stonz, Padraigs, booties/moccasins are all great choices) but what I'm referring to is adult footwear.  If you are in a location or season where you may encounter slippery ground or ice, please wear shoes or boots with appropriate treads/traction.  You can also look into traction aid slip-ons that fit over your shoes if you will be walking on slippery surfaces.  In our first winter together, I slipped and fell while carrying my son during a freezing rain storm.  For our second winter I purchased some slip-ons from Costco for $12 (there are tons of brands out there; Yaktrax is one I've frequently heard recommended).  They were sometimes a pain because I had to take them off to go into stores and usually to cross cleared streets (as mine have spikes), but definitely worth it.  They roll up small and I always kept them in my coat pocket so I didn't forget them when we went out.

Last of all, here are some extra tips for my cold weather babywearing comrades:
If you’re using separate gear, back wearing, and you have a hood, roll the hood up and in so it doesn’t bother your kiddo
Use a longer wrap to do a mid-length carry with a shoulder or chest tie (knotless, Tibetan, Candy Cane, etc.) and use the long tails as a scarf—one less thing to carry with you and potentially forget!
If you will be exerting yourself but aren’t warmed up yet, use arm/leg warmers to cover your arms.  They are quick and easy to take off and don’t require you to take your child out of the carrier to remove a layer.
Use a mirror to practice putting your kiddo’s hat on while back carrying (hat demo starting at 5:41).  The easiest hats to put on are ones with ear flaps because they give you two handles.  If your arms don’t bend that way (and they won’t at first!), keep practicing.  Do those behind the back arm stretches when you’re not babywearing.  Practice more.  Keep yourself motivated with the knowledge that you will be able to put your kid’s hat on by yourself, meaning you don’t have to approach strangers to ask for help, (if there is even anyone around).  You will also be able to adjust the hat after it has been on your child’s head and has inevitably twisted or fallen down, obscuring their eyes and causing them to fuss.  Once you’re a pro at putting on a hat, you can earn your golden potato by reaching back and putting your child’s hood back on (for the millionth time), and even pulling that shared hood up over both of your heads!

Left: Using a size 6 wrap to do a ruck with Tibetan Tie I have enough length to use the tails for a scarf.
Right: My hood is rolled up and nestled up around my neck so that it is out of my son’s face.

Do you have any tips to make winter babywearing easier?  Tell us what works for you!

Sunday 27 October 2013

COTW #39- Double Hammock Double Rings

by Aline Kelly

Double Hammock Double Rings (DH-DR) is an short version of Double Hammock that is secured with two sling rings, one at either shoulder. You can generally tie this carry with a much shorter wrap than you would use to tie a regular Double Hammock, often a size 2, 3, or 4 woven wrap will suffice nicely. 

General instructions:
- These instructions assume you know how to tie a regular Double Hammock. The only difference will be that your chest pass should remain bunched instead of spread. 
- When you get to the stage of the cheerleader pull, bring both tails over your shoulders. 
- Securing one tail, feed a sling ring up the other tail until it is high on your chest. 
- Keeping the ring high and out of the way, tuck this tail underneath your chest pass.
- Lower the ring down so it is at the crossing point of the two passes, hanging over the horizontal pass. 
- Tuck the hanging pass up through the ring, from back to front, and tighten by pulling downward.
- You can tighten this cross to the chest level that you prefer by holding the hanging tail and moving your ring up or down.
- Repeat the ring instructions for the other side. 


Photo instructions:

Video instructions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H40Dbhab5ls (emwhist) - To skip to the ring tutorial, fast forward to 3:45

Thursday 24 October 2013

Thursday Thought: Generational Wearing

by Tami Grosset

One of the most memorable experiences from my days working at Milkface (a local babywearing and natural parenting store) was when a grandmother came in to ask about our selection of soft structured carriers. She thought it would be a great way for her to care for her grandchild when her daughter needed a break.


Babywearing is not just for the parents, as wearers. Very often the next people to care for a baby, after the parents, are the grandparents and why should they not get in on the act? For grandparents with arthritic hands ring slings or tied mai teis, rather than buckle carriers, might be preferable but generally a carrier will be easier on an older body than carrying in arms, just as it is for parents.


Very often Granny and Gramps get a bad rep. We hear too often stories of grandparents bemoaning the practice of babywearing. 'You're spoiling him by holding him close all the time.' 'She'll never learn to walk.' 'It must be putting a lot of strain on your body.' A baby is not a piece of fruit and will not spoil by touching, of course she'll learn to walk and wearing my baby puts a lot less strain on my joints than carrying her in arms.

BUT....

There are many grandparents out there who have embraced babywearing, and other forms of natural parenting. These wonderful grannies and grampies are not only supporting the parents in the way they are choosing to raise their children. They are also really enjoying the wonderful snuggliness that babywearing allows.


We applaud you Babywearing Granny and Babywearing Gramps! Thank you for sharing the babywearing love with us and thank you for your support!

Who else is wearing your baby?