Baby carriers?!

[HeyBlaby]

Hi, my DS is one week old and I'm going to need a baby carrier for the school run.

Would like to not spend a fortune, but then if the more expensive ones are genuinely much better than cheaper I'll take the hit.

Any recommendations?

Tula Explore is great and doesn't need a newborn insert. Ergobaby 360 does require an insert for newborns but is a good carrier too. If you want a softer sling, I've got so much use out of my Close Caboo with both DC. Also the Stokke one has really good back support.

Maybe contact your local sling library for advice and to try some out, as they're an expensive purchase to get wrong.

There's a lot of different types and they all fit different bodies in different ways.

The best thing to do would be to go to your local sling library or consultant, they have a huge range of types to try on, get help with fitting, and you can hire them to try and see how you get on before committing to buying.

You need a sling library to try some out. Like bras they all fit different body shapes. I would try a second hand close caboo for now.

Babybjorn gets my vote. Had a sling before that and although I loved it at first I did find it fiddly.

However babybjorn are expensive, keep a look out on Facebook marketplace. We managed to get a perfect condition one for £20. Almost felt like I should have given them more money.

Ergo baby Omni 360 is good and doesn’t require a newborn insert and is suitable from 7pounds.

I have two DCs and have tried many slings and carriers. I have only kept one, my Líllé Baby and it’s the best by a country mile. It was over £100 new but I’ve wasted more than that trying cheaper ones. One of the things I like best about it is not just that it’s the most comfortable but also it’s the only one I’ve found which has reliable safety bands around the catches just in case you have a moment and don’t clip it in properly. It’s four years old now and is just getting better with age.

I loved my Tula when my son was a baby. I gave it away and am cross now that I am pregnant again. Not sure what to go with this time.

Ergo baby 360 is great. DO NOT buy new, we got ours on Facebook market place for £40, most baby stuff is suitable for the washing machine for obvious reasons, stuck ours in a wash and it’s as good as new. If I could have my time again with my first born I would buy more second hand!

Babybjorns aren’t the most supportive carriers, even though they’re popular.

If you’re going to go down the 2nd had route be aware there are a lot of ergobaby360 fakes out there!

I second contacting your local library, go and hire and try some before you buy. Everyone gets on with different carriers depending on baby and body shape. A stretchy sling would be a good cheap way to start while baby is so little.

BabywearingUK on Facebook is a useful group too.

I'm selling 2 carriers on Vinted op. PM me if interested.

I'd say the same as pp and see if you have a sling library locally you can go to to try some. I wasnsure I knew what kind I wanted, but when I tried them out I ended up with something totally different!

Exactly what @MotherOfDragon20 said.

Babybjorn are not great for baby’s hip health I think.

i had a second hand stretchy wrap when he was tiny which I loved once I’d had a practise tying it (much comfier than the caboo close I originally bought and actually quicker too because I was always fannying about adjusting the caboo as it never quite sat right), then had a connecta which was brilliant for us (I’ve got narrow shoulders and a knackered pelvic floor - it went narrow enough and distributed the weight high enough on my torso not the exacerbate my prolapse.)

Agree with PP - find a local sling library & try a few out.
I loved the Tula - had standard size with insert for newborn upwards. I've sold g to em now, but still have a toddler Tula which we can still use for DS (4) on occasion now.

I have the Ergobaby 360 and it’s great but I didn’t use it from newborn and I wouldn’t have wanted to use it from newborn. It’s quite a bulky structured carrier and I would have felt a newborn would be swamped in it.

I used a close caboo and you could basically leave it wrapped around you most of the day which makes it easy to just pop baby in and out. I guess generally I prefer something softer for smaller babies. Ergo embrace is also good if you prefer something with a little more structure.

If you don’t have a sling library then there are online libraries that do zoom consultations and postal hires, I used Sheen Slings and she was great.

Look into which is best for baby's hips. The ones where their little legs are just dangling straight down aren't great - you want baby's bottom lower than their knees, so they're sitting in an M position. Having said that I don't know about newborns, I've only used them from 4 months or so.

I had the IMZI carrier which seemed to be a compromise between a sling and a carrier. The min weight is 7lbs. I only got to use mine a couple of times as I then had keyhole surgery and therefore couldn't carry my baby.

I'm now selling mine on marketplace so you're welcome to pm me if interested.

I tried a Close Caboo from a sling library and then got a second hand one from Facebook marketplace for £10.

Once he'd outgrown that we moved onto a Baby Bjorn we were kindly given.

Definitely try before you buy and buy second hand.

For my baby 3 months I used a cheap sling from ebay up to 3 months. I just compared the material to the more expensive slings. (It's literally just a piece of cloth) ... For the more advanced carriers I have an ergobaby comfort (expensive) but as long as your carrier has a lumbar support you will be fine. If your baby is using it from one week they will get used to it.

Join Baby Wearing UK Facebook group or contact your nearest/an online sling library,

Some sling libraries do free stretchy wraps which I loved when DD was tiny, I had a close Caboo which I loved then I moved to a Tula Free to Grow which is more structured and still great now at 16 months old.

Everyone likes different styles of carriers so a sling library is a great way to figure out what you'd like

I loved our ergo embrace for 0-12 months.

we had an ergo 360 but is felt way to bulky under 9 months.

Definitely look at whether there is a sling library near you, great place to try out different ones and you can also hire them for a couple of weeks. I've got an ergo 360, had it with my last baby, so went for the same again.

Here is a link to £50 off the Artipoppe carrier referral.shop.artipoppe.com/l/1CLODAGHOHA05/

I loved our close caboo for both babies. When they got a bit bigger I moved to a connecta. DS2 still goes in it happily now at 14 months.