Today was the Inner North Community Fair in Canberra, celebrating the wetlands to be built on Hawdon Oval in Dickson. And it looked almost as much like Babywearer Central as the Homebirth Rally at Parliament House back in September 2009.

Most of what I spotted were SSCs in every colour they’ve ever been made in, one metal-frame backpack, and a few stretchy wraps. But I also saw a pretty woven wrap, a lesser-known SSC brand custom-made to impress the wearer’s teenage son, and a few very funky mei tais. Oh, and the prettiest green hemp silk ring sling in town, with a sleeping toddler boy in it. With the huge number of dogs, bikes, and walking adults, baby carriers were a very sensible choice for walking over the uneven ground, dodging unicorn poo (not your average pony rides), grooving to the funky free music, and checking out all things environmentally sustainable in our local community. Much easier than pushing a pram on the grass, and with built-in sun protection for kids who throw their hats overboard.

But… could babywearers outrun the Daleks? I reckon it’s much easier to run up stairs with your baby in an SSC than a pram, so that’s a yes!

Here’s the official Australian government notice about the Infantino Sling Rider and Wendy Bellissimo slings having been recalled by their Australian distributor.

This follows a US safety warning on slings - read all about it here. The important thing to note here is that the warning applies only to slings that make it difficult to keep a newborn’s airways clear while lying in a cradle hold position, or where it is difficult to monitor a newborn’s position in the sling (ie you can’t see the baby easily in the sling to make sure they’re still in a good position). Babies who are newborn, premature, or have health issues are at higher risk in these carriers.

Ring slings, pouches, and wraps are often used to carry newborns in a cradle carry position, and it’s quite safe to do. In fact, some babies prefer this position when they’re sleeping. It also makes it easy to breastfeed baby in the sling. But it is also important to make sure you use your sling properly. If in doubt, get advice from an experienced babywearer at a sling meet in your local area, use internet forums to find experienced babywearers near you who can give you some help, or drop by a shop that provides a professional fitting/demonstration service for the type of sling you’re using. You can also check out videos on YouTube, or get a copy of the Tummy2Tummy babywearing DVD to get help on newborn positioning, and there’s also a Newborn Correct Positioning article available here.

… and our friends at Magic City Slingers have found a great video tutorial on how to do it. Two great things about the video are that it shows how to twist the tails of the FWCC to make a cooler carry (this would work really well with a summer newborn) and making a headrest out of a burp cloth.

If you’ve got a newborn or know someone who has, check this video out!

What are your best newborn wrapping tips? Leave a comment and let us know!

You need to learn how to do a rebozo carry and then all sorts of items suddenly become baby carriers! Scarves, shawls,  sheets, tablecloths- the possibilities are endless.

An awesome, detailed tutorial on the rebozo and slip knot is here. Nat has put it together for you all and it’s definitely worth a look! Even if you’ve been short wrap challenged up until now, this is the tutorial that will make it for you. If Nat can teach me to rebozo carry, then she can teach anyone

Are you a fan of the rebozo? Leave a comment and let us know!

Welcome to the WOE Ruck (Wrap Once Every Day). Here are Jess’ tips, tricks and internet picks. As always, you can join in the chatter, get some help or admire the wraps, wrappers and wrappees here.

Instructions:

• Picture tute here.
• Video tutes here and here.
• Paulus video tute showing sandwiching of the shoulders here.

Tips and Tricks:

• When wrapping a small baby, align the top of their shoulders to the top rail of the wrap
• Tuck the bottom rail under the child’s butt to make a “pouch” for them to sit into, if possible try to get that fabric up under their needs
• I find it easier to cross the straps at the back together at the same time in one fluid motion
• Focus less on the bottom rail and more on the top - but don’t obsess, it will not be perfect the first few times!
• Don’t forget that final “hop” at the end before you tie in front to get rid of the slack and make it a nice firm carry.
• For smaller bubs who are still “froggied” you can just keep their feet in ala SHBC and wrap over them by first creating a small pocket for the feet by folding up the bottom rail.

Paulus’ tips for a consistently comfortable shoulder  (see Paulus’ video linked above):

• Basically you focus on one shoulder at a time (put the other tail between your legs), get that top rail (one closest to your neck) taut by tucking it under your chin (or use your teeth ;)), and then flip/fold the bottom/outer rail in half from your arm up to the top rail near your neck.
• If you find it still too wide on your shoulder, do another outer to inner fold (so you essentially fold it into quarter length - or four neatly folded layers of wrap on your shoulder).
• An optional step after this is to do a outer-to-inner twist of the tail down  near your armpit to ‘lock’ the shoulder folds.
• Then take the tail back around to the other side as normal, tuck under legs, and repeat with the other shoulder.

Thanks to Jess (and Paulus) for introducing one of my favourite carries for newborns through to preschoolers! Do you use the ruck or are you “ruck challenged”? What helped the ruck “click” for you? Leave a comment and let us know!

Welcome to the WOE Challenge, BWCC (that’s Wrap Once Every Day, and Back Wrap Cross Carry for those not in the know!). Here are Jess and Paulus’ tips, tricks and internet picks! As always, you can join in the chatter, get some help or admire the wraps, wrappers and wrappees here.

Video & Instructions:

• Video here
• Tutorial here
• Instructions to do the carry with ruck straps here
• Instructions to do the carry with chest belt here. (If you have a shoulder injury or mobility issues, this may be your best option.)

Tips and tricks:

• If in doubt, try it first with the chest belt as it helps “pin” babe on your back while you wrap
• If wrapping with a small baby - make sure your babe is not gassy as, although it can be warming in Winter, you really don’t want bebe vomming all down your back

For those doing the BWCC (or any carry that requires you to spread wrap behind baby’s back):

• Don’t toss the wrap onto your back and try to figure out how to spread it out then. You’ll most likely end up confusing yourself on which rail goes where.
• It’s much easier to handle the top rail ONLY and (if you’re handling the RIGHT tail going over the right shoulder using your right arm):
  (a) Pass the top rail from your right hand in front, over your shoulder (and over your baby’s shoulder - this will prevent the leaning back issue), onto your left hand behind you.
  (b) At this point your left hand is holding the top rail behind your back, and you can use your right hand to grab the bottom rail behind you and help spread out the wrap behind baby’s back. Think diagonal when spreading out behind baby’s back - you want the top rail to go from bub’s right shoulder across to her left side, and the bottom rail to go from the top of your right arm down to under your bub’s left leg.
  (c) After a good spread is achieved, pass the bottom rail to your left hand (still behind you, and now holding the entire tail in a bunch) and tuck the tail under bub’s left leg, bring around to your front, and tuck tail under your legs.
  (d) Repeat with the left tail. 
•  If you look carefully at the first BWCC video above,  the wrapper basically did the same steps I described above but faster. I also find these photo tutes helpful to illustrate these steps: Tute One, Tute Two. These are all in our Wrap Instructions Links page.

Thanks to Jess and Paulus for a fantastic intro to the BWCC. Do you BWCC? Do you like it? Which variation is your favourite? Leave a comment and let us know!