baby slings - Huggababy any good?

[fififlores]

I know there are already lots of threads on this topic, I had no idea the amount of companies and styles and options for baby slings/pouches etc etc. Blimey!

Does anyone have either one of these - Huggababy, Over the Shoulder Baby Holder (yes, that´s its name, it´s a US company).

Also, bizarre question, did anyone see the movie Snakes on a Plane? Elsa Pataky (gorgeous blonde woman with baby) wears a really nice pouch baby holder in that - anyone know what make it is?

Thank you.

PS I have back problems, mild scoliosis, shoulder pain etc - nothing unusual, but for this reason not sure if one-shouldered carrier is good idea? I had a Baby Bjorn for DS1, but would like to try something different. Pouches look very cosy, especially as am having a winter baby (late Feb).

PS I have back problems, mild scoliosis, shoulder pain etc - nothing unusual, but for this reason not sure if one-shouldered carrier is good idea? I had a Baby Bjorn for DS1, but would like to try something different. Pouches look very cosy, especially as am having a winter baby (late Feb).

I had a most wonderful ring-sling called a huggababy. It was amazing - used it with both mine til they were well past two then handed it on and it's still being used 12 years after I bought it. I am short and dp is tall and he has a very bad back and it was perfect for both of us. Don't know if it's the same thing though. If it is, the only tip I would give you is to get some nappy pins to make it fit a new born.

in the early days a lot of women get on better with a stretchy wrap sling.

i prefer pouches for hip carries when the are older and are up and down like yo-yos. but that's a preference thing.

of you register with 'thebabywearer.com' it has a massive forum with babywearers with special physical needs. it is a huge american site.

thanks, Seeker, yes it is the same one, I had no idea they had been around for so long! I like the look of it, it looks simple, I´m not sure I could cope with those wrap and tie ones, too much palaver!

I saw the baby wearer website, Foxytocin, thanks - and will register with it. I´ve seen some stretchy wrap slings on Big Mama Slings, like hugagbub and babylonia, but they looked quite tight, and I know my boobs will be quite tender, so don´t want anything making them even more sore!

Hi there - I have a huggababy ring sling and it is ace. Used it almost constantly for the first 7/8 months with DD2. She did NOT like a pram or buggy so was constantly in sling while I went to the park / shopping / cooking / playing with DD1 / loo etc etc (sorry was that TMI?)

I found it very comfy and adjustable. I went to a local shop that sells a range of slings to try on before I decided and I didn't really like the stretchy pouch slings as I felt they weren't very supportive. But some people love them so that's just my opinion!

Is there a shop near you where you could go and try a few on? I found that really helped when it came to me choosing which one to buy.

Incidentally - I'm pretty much past using the sling now - DD2 is 15 months and likes to try walking - so if you want a second hand one, I'm happy to flog mine to you! (sorry that was a bit cheeky wasn't it )

My friend (shameless plug) has a lovely sling shop in East Kent and is the Sling Queen, so if you're in the area.....

I recommend the Moby Wrap it's really the comfiest sling I've ever used, and I know lots of other people who've loved it too. It speads the weight really evenly across your back, so no pressure on your shoulders or neck which I think can be a problem with one-shoudlered slings. I wouldn't worry about your boobs either, the fabric is really soft and won't cause any pressure. Honestly it's ace.

the tender boobs in pregnancy miraculously disappear when you give birth. it is only if they become engorged will they feel sensitive later on and no sling will feel comfy on those kind of sore boobs.

and stretchy (and woven) wraps are never too tight. newborns feel v secure snuggled up so close to you. they are used to the tight fit after just leaving the womb. in fact, the tighter the wrap sling, the more supportive for you and baby.

i just got back from hosp where dd1 had an appt with an consultant orthopaedist about a previously broken leg. he saw me shortly after putting 6 wk old dd2 in the wrap sling and said 'that is the best way to carry little ones.'

I had a hugabub - it does take a bit of practice, but after a couple of dry runs with a teddy I felt confident to try it with DD and it really didn't take that long until we were both very happy. I was still carrying her in the hugabub at about 9 months, but the stretch was then starting to struggle. She's now 19 months and I still carry her from time to time in a Mei Tai or a woven wrap. I tried a friend's Baby Bjorn before I bought the hugabub but I didn't get on with it at all - gave me back ache in 10 minutes flat, whereas I'd quite happily cart her in the sling for over an hour with no ill effects.

Re. the sore boobs - as has been said they'll most likely disapear once your milk supply has settled down. Even if they're still a bit tender, a wrap will provide more of a "cuddle" to them than create any pressure points.

Have you come across www.slingmeet.co.uk? If you can find a local group you can get to you'd be able to give a few different types of slings a whirl and see what you think.

Thanks for those recommendations. Re trying them on, I live in Spain, where they´re not very up on these thigns, so will go and try some on when I come over for Christmas.

Re the boobs, guess I am jsut paranoid, as had terrible problems with breastfeeding, and didn´t want to do anything to make the same thing happen again thsi time round!

Would you consider 2nd hand? The baby wearer has a very active For Sale or Trade board, and if the exchange rate is in your favour you can pick up a bargain - if it doesn't work, sell it on. There's also a FSOT section on www.rumplebums.co.uk/forum, which is UK based.

Good luck

I hate ring slings, i find them desperately uncomfortable to wear. I am small in frame and I could never pull them tight enough, the rings dug into my shoulders and the baby always felt very unstable/.

I bought a tricotti and ergo and they suit me much better

Please can anyone recommend, either a high street/chain store which sells a good selection of slings/pouches, or if there are any other Essex gals out there, a good shop in Essex/Suffolk where I could find one.

Thanks!

I´m putting together a shortlist (thanks to all your recommendations), try them out when I´m over at Christmas with a teddy or 3kg beanbag or whatever, and then buy one second-hand if possible.

Is all this explosion in varieties of sling etc a recent phenomenon? I wasn´t even aware when I had ds1, just got given a couple of hand-me-down Baby Bjorns by friends, and that was it.

Define recent

Slings have been around for centuries or millenia in various guises - mainly basic pouches, woven wraps and mei tais, all of which just require fabric and thread (or just fabric). I'm pretty sure that nearly all modern slings are variations on these three basic types - and a most of those variants have probably appeared over the last 50 years or less.

For example, ring slings could be considered as an adjustable pouch. Soft structured carriers are strongly based on mei tais, but usually use buckles. And Baby Bjorn style carriers are a more extreme derivitive of the SSC with a good marketing strategy in the UK and USA!

Happy teddy wearing

fifi - have a look at slingjax.co.uk. she rents slings, is london based and gives great advice as a sling user herself.

on the breastfeeing front - lurk on the breast and bottlefeeding threads and read/search the archives to bone up on knowledge and look for advice. good luck second time round.

this forum may provide some useful links to finding something in spain.

oh, and sasaslings are in essex

Huggababy is an English Company. The Huggababy Sling is in its 15th year of production and is still made here in the UK. It is the only award winning ring sling made to European Standard EN13209-2. It was recently spotted in the Daily Mail and The Sun being worn by Laurence Fox with baby Winston snuggled to his Daddy and Mommy Billie Piper looking proudly on

Hi ... I use the Kari me sling which is fab ... really comfortable and my baby loves it, you can breast in it too ... to fififlores who lives in Spain .. I also live in Spain and bought my Kari Me here in Spain at www.indybel.com ... they also have another one .. baby kangaroo I think ... anyway might be worth a look, they deliver throughout Spain x