Baby sling help

[Frazzled]

Hi all, i just purchased a sling off ebay as my DH is going back to work next week and our frontpack is too complicated to do on ur own. I was so excited about it coming, and it came today and all it is, is a square of fabric sewn together that i paid $35 for and could have made myslef for $5....

It looks odd, unsupportive and uncomfortable and nothing like the picture on ebay.

Has anyone got one of these - is it better than it looks? Can you recommend somehting else? Ive seen women with really comfy looking ones with like a shoulder strap made out of like a jersey fabric, where as this one just looks like a big pillow case???:eek:

[draught]

Okay - it sounds like you might have something similar to a sling that I have which is called a hotsling - and the best way to tell you how to wear it is to point you in the direction of the website for hotslings that shows you how to wear your bubba - www.hotslings.com
Even though it is a ring of fabric, once you know how to wear it your baby will be supported promise! One of the big tips is that if it has a seam, that is where you aim the babies bum when you are putting them in it - no matter which way you are wearing it.

It is hard to give advice without knowing exactly what you have but if it is a ring of fabric then the first tip is to fold it so that the edges are together, and it still forms a ring. (oh dear - this could get complicated........check out the website and if you still have questions I will try again:o )

[Frazzled]

Thanks draught - a good site. it looks the same. does ur fabric have any give? mine doesn't - its just like a drill cotton.

[draught]

No it doesn't have much give - it is a very groovy pattern but basically just cotton. If you want to make the baby feel more secure a tip is to fold the piece over your shoulder up - it brings them in closer to your body and they are more snuggled in - again hard to describe but have a play around and you will see what I mean.

Even if you don't have great success wearing your baby now, don't despair - they are GREAT for carrying toddlers on your hip - so you will get some use out of it!

[Frazzled]

Thank you x:p

[draught]

Good luck - once you get the hang of them they are great - and easier than a front pouch when babies are so small!

[reAllytee]

Heheh isnt it so much fun to work out :rolleyes:
I guess i was lucky i made sure i got a ring sling as i had heard everyone speaking of the but when i got it i was all like OMG how do i do this heh :o
Practice with a stuffed toy lucky we have heaps of bears for this LOL :p I then got the hang of it & now bubs thinks its hilarious when we use it heheh & this is a cranky 10mth old who hates to keep his 12kg body still !!!!
The hard part for me was to try to work out how to get them in & out once you have that sorted all will fall into place :D
Now you will have to bring yours to the get together so i can have a look !

[JnA]

I have one of these.. http://www.babaslings.com/index2.asp

which looks similar but much easier to use. Jade *loves* it because she can sit different ways. I have found it to be a little hot on really hot days, but otherwise I couldn't live without it.

[Frazzled]

thanks Tash - this looks heaps better! ;)

[Mum2Lucas]

I use a Too Cool Mums Calmarap baby carrier. its just like a big long piece of fabric that you wrap around you and tie off and once you put babies in it it looks a bit like a shirt. you can put them in any which way it comes with instructions on how to use it and everything. ds loves it. and its much easier to use by yourself.

[Andy1982]

I have found that the best one for me is a hugabub it's an australian product made in bondi and at $95 is a little expensive but we have been given both a baby bjorn and a kapoochi and it is SOOOO much better (not to mention quite a bit cheaper)!! When you first get it you think what the?!! because it is just one great big long piece of fabric about 3 metres worth but it is the best money I have spent so far, easy to tie easy to wear, keeps Xander in nice and close with a few different ways to wear him which means we are both comfortable, best thing that I have found about it though is that when the little man is awake he is really nosey :D , loves to look around and has to be able to see everything, so I needed something that would let him do that, but when he's asleep I don't like to have his head just lolling around, with this I can tuck his head in next to my shoulder and that way he is protected from the sun, wind and other elements and is fully supported.

[Funkychicken]

I have found that the best one for me is a hugabub it's an australian product made in bondi and at $95 is a little expensive but we have been given both a baby bjorn and a kapoochi and it is SOOOO much better (not to mention quite a bit cheaper)!! When you first get it you think what the?!! because it is just one great big long piece of fabric about 3 metres worth but it is the best money I have spent so far, easy to tie easy to wear, keeps Xander in nice and close with a few different ways to wear him which means we are both comfortable, best thing that I have found about it though is that when the little man is awake he is really nosey :D , loves to look around and has to be able to see everything, so I needed something that would let him do that, but when he's asleep I don't like to have his head just lolling around, with this I can tuck his head in next to my shoulder and that way he is protected from the sun, wind and other elements and is fully supported.
Totally agree here. I just bought one on Ebay for $60.00 so I got a great bargain. I used it today when i took our 5yo DD shopping for shoes and found that I could bend over, check shoes etc... and Bub didn't shift at all. I could also carry all my bags without having to hold his head. A girlfriend has one and used it at the beach recently with her 18mth old DD-taking her into the water in safety and her DD felt totally secure. I also love that it doesn't create any aching in my back as other carriers have. 10/10 for the Hugabub!!!

[LucyE]

Out of all the various slings and carriers I have tried, I like my very simple organic cotton ring sling the best. I highly recommend Carrying Away (www.carryingaway.com) for slings and carriers. Amanda is crazy about slings and has a personal collection of a few hundred so if it exists, she's probably tried it. She is more than happy to provide info and assistance even if you haven't purchased from her - but after seeing her range very few can resists :p She has some mesh ones which are perfect for swimming because they don't absorb water and the fabric is specially made so won't wear as quickly as other fabrics in cholrine or salt.

[lovemybub]

We've been using a baba sling and our DD loves it. DH and I are both singers and did a lot of carolling at Christmas - we would just put DD in the sling and wander around the shopping centre. My only complaint was that DH was a baby hog - he says carrying DD in the sling was a great 'chick puller':rolleyes:

Lucky I know he loves me :)

But seriously, they are one of the best things we bought!

[pthalokitty]

We had a ring sling- from memory you can adjust the ring so that more or less air can access the bub if its hot?! We loved it- great head support, and we used it as a hip sling too until my son simply wanted to run everywhere....mine was $60 so you got a bargain for $35! (or I got ripped off...)The good thing is if you want to make anymore yourself, you've got one to work from...
We used a baby bjorn too early on-it was brilliant and easy to use, but could get hot, didn't support the head, and very $$$$. We didn't find the sling till later- I would've picked the sling over the bjorn if I'd known about them!