EUROPEAN BABYWEARING WEEK SPOTLIGHT ON……

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2018, carrier, Carrying Connects, ergonomic carrier, eurpoean babywearing week 2018, hip carry, library, May, May 2018, overlooked, scootababy, sling, sling library, sling meet, slumber-roo, spotlight on, underloved, underloved carriers, wrap

Following on from yesterdays post about the meh dai style carrier, today Library co-owner Clare talks about something a bit more unusual…..Apologies we don’t have any better photos of this carrier, but it is pretty brilliant!

Today our ‘try something different’ spotlight is on the Scootababy hip carrier.

The Scootababy carrier is suitable from around five months or 15lb up to around 37lb (around age three)- 6.8kg- 16.7kg. It’s a slightly unusual looking carrier which may put some people off, however it has lots of interesting features which make it a great alternative to a standard buckle carrier or a ring sling.

The carrier comprises of a waist belt attached to a fabric panel, and one strap which goes over one arm and under the other. The strap adjusts from both sides and it’s designed especially to be adjusted one handed. This is slightly different to other buckled carriers you may see on the market which tend to sit best as front or back carries and have two shoulder straps which either sit rucksack style or crossed over the back and buckled under the arm.

Scootababy instructions from their website

Why choose this carrier?
Many of our customers find that their babies start to get interested in looking at the world around them whilst in a sling, which cannot be satisfied in a standard stretchy, wrap or buckle carrier. This is often when we start to discuss with customers the possibility of a hip carry and the Scootababy is a great option to try.

The first time I tried this carrier I was surprised by how easy it was to put on (as per above instructions) and adjust. It is simple to move from a hip carry to a back carry, you just need to adapt the length of the strap at each end to ensure that the wider, slightly padded soft fleece part sits across the shoulder. It cups the shoulder well, and the strap ends roll up and are secured by elastic to keep them out the way.

Library Scootababy

I have personally found that the Scootababy is a more comfortable carry for me than a woven ring sling which is another popular option for hip carries. The bonus of the scootababy is the structured waistband, which helps distribute the weight so it is not solely sitting on one shoulder and across the back.

We have a black scootababy V3 in our library which despite being a fantastic and versatile carrier does sometimes get overlooked for some of the standard buckle carriers or those in fancy fabrics or pretty patterns. In addition because it fits from around 15lb, and many of our customers have much younger babies, it’s not an appropriate fit for them.

However those who do hire it often come back raving about how comfortable it is, and many go on to buy their own.

Stock image

In the UK, Slumber-Roo are the official retailers of the scootababy carrier and prices start at £69.50, with plain fabric, but they also come in patterns too.

You can buy one from: https://slumber-roo.co.uk/…/scootababy/buckle-amp-hip

Why don’t you pop along on 18th May for our European babywearing week ‘hire one get one free’ offer and try it out alongside any other carrier!

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Charity Party!

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2017, attachment parenting, August, baby, babywearing, Berkshire, blog, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, Bracknell Slings, charity, child, Christmas, clare dowling photography, community, craft, fundraising, gentle parenting, good cause, guess the weight of the cake, jewellery, kindness, love, lymphoma association, PANDAS, parent, party, photo, photography, post natal depression, prostate cancer, raffle, sling, sling library, stalls, summer, Summer party, support, toddler, wrap, wrappers, wrapping, wraps

In an effort to update this blog a bit more, I thought I’d tell you all a bit about the charity parties we’ve held over the last 7 months. As a not-for-profit group, we are in a fortunate position that we can help raise money for charities via our bi-annual sling parties.

The parties are like any normal sling meet, with sling hire, fit and advice, but with the addition of stalls, raffles, competitions, sling sales, photography, food & drink and interactive music sessions for the little ones.

At Christmas with the help of the wonderful Rainbright Photography (who donated all her proceeds from the event), we raised £445 for Lymphoma Association  (more info here on our facebook page).

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Our summer party took place two weeks ago and we raised £240 for PANDAS Foundation (Pre and Post Natal Depression Advice and Support). In addition we raffled off a brand new  Little Frog ringsling that one of our librarians won and and raised £56 for Prostate Cancer Research . We have lots of fun at these events and hope we can continue them long into the future!

 

(Photos by ClareDowlingPhotography )

A day in the life of….. A Sling Librarian

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"a day in the life of", 2016, blog, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, library, October, Sling Librarian

I’ve done this kind of post before but it’s quite interesting to document what goes into organising a sling library.

And realistically it’s not just one day or done by one person- there’s social media, sling washing, selling of old slings and buying of new ones, answering queries, and we even managed a volunteers social last week too!

First off there’s 6 bags of slings and a toddler to pack into the car. We arrive at the venue 30 minutes before the Library stats to get the toddler fed and set up the room.

Packed in

Empty hall

Lunch for small one

 

Next we get out all the slings and display them from stretchy wraps to woven wraps to ring slings, to buckles and toddler size slings plus the demo dolls (not a real baby on the table!). Then we set out the mats and toys for the little ones (modelled here by baby T trying to escape!)

Sling Tables

Kiddy play area

 

The wonderful volunteers arrive to help out, and then our customers start arriving throughout the two hour session.

Looking at the options

Chatting to Volunteers

Things get messy!

 

We let customers watch demos of suitable options and try whatever carriers they think will suit them. Hopefully lots of happy parents/ caregivers go home with a sling to hire!

Mei Tai and wrap

Close Caboo

Close Caboo

 

Then it’s time to pack up, tidy up and head home to do the paperwork and make sure the numbers add up!

Packing up

Paperwork

 

MORE NEW THINGS!

We are excited to announce that we’ve updated the library a little, adding:

–Juno Mountain Buggy

–Bebe Sachi Wrap Strap Mei Tai

–Ergo 360

–Opitai Wrap Conversion Toddler Mei Tai

–Bundlebean Winter Cover

–(Second) Toddler Connecta

–Sleepy Nico

Juno Mountain Buggy Carrier

Bebe Sachi

Opitai

Ergo 360

Bundlebean

Toddler Connecta

Sleepy Nico (tribal hearts)

Q&A Guest post- Holly

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babies, baby wearing, babywearing, Berkshire, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, close caboo, guest blog, Guest Q&A, handwoven, lenny lamb, natural parenting, Reading, sling, sling library, sling meet, slingdad dom, slings, wraps

My name is Holly, I’m 33 years old and I live in Reading with my husband, 23 month old daughter and 4 cats. I am also a working mum so I juggle being a police officer with looking after my crazy toddler and running our local baby wearing group and the facebook pages ‘reading baby wearing UK’ and ‘reading babywearing walks & socials’

 

How did you get into babywearing and did you plan to wear your baby when you were pregnant?

I hadn’t thought much about baby wearing until I started going to homebirth groups when I was pregnant. A lovely lady called Zena who hosts the meetings (wife of the famous Slingdad Dom) showed me lots of varieties and the close caboo caught my eye. From then on it was something I thought I might do for convenience; little did I know how it would take over my life!

 

What’s your favourite wrap/carrier you’ve ever owned and why?

I don’t think I can choose a favorite carrier but my top 3 are:

1 – close caboo because it is so easy to use, super comfy for baby and wearer and also a reasonable price.

2 – lenny lamb ergonomic carrier, specifically the lace patterns but vanilla lace is by far my favourite. In my opinion they are the most well designed and manufactured SSC. They are extremely adjustable and gently padded and come in so many beautiful prints and colours.

3 – my hand woven wraps. Honestly woven wraps tick all the boxes; versatility, comfort, appearance…. Yes they do take some mastering but once you get the knack they are simply addictive and can be used from birth to toddling and beyond. I still carry my BIG girl in my wovens and we both love it.

 

If money were no object, what wrap or sling would you own?

If money were no object I would get a custom hand woven wrap made by Little Fellows (based in UK) or Mad Hatter warped and woven. It would have pastel rainbows and sparkly thread in it.

 

What do you like about babywearing?

I love baby wearing for so many reasons; convenience (easy to throw in your bag/car/wrap round your neck as a scarf when not in use), space saving (no need for bulky buggies etc.), the huge variety of styles and patterns you can get, the closeness and bond you get with your baby and the magic of the carrier in calming a tired or teething or poorly baby.

I also love how, when they are little and just need cuddles all the time, it gives you the chance to clean/cook/have a pee whilst they stay just where they want to be. I am also in love with baby wearing because it can be a wonderful social activity; I have met so many friends at the local walks and the support they offer is priceless.

 

What do or did you find hardest about babywearing?

The only struggle I have had with baby wearing is the frustration when you are trying to master a new carry, especially in a woven, and you just can’t crack it. I also find it hard not to spend my whole wage on slings every month lol!

 

Does your partner join in with the babywearing?

My husband doesn’t babywear although he did when she was small enough to be in the caboo and he saw how cosy she was and wanted her to sleep on him. I wish in hindsight I had encouraged him more but because I was learning too and she is my first baby I wanted to do it all. He is now unsure his back would cope (he has back issues) so he leaves it up to me.

 

What kind of comments do you receive when you babywear out and about?

I can’t recall getting any direct comments about baby wearing for a long time now but when she was young I got lots of lovely comments and smiles; it really is magical because babies just don’t cry in slings like they often do it buggies.

 

Baby wearing is one of my favourite things about being  a Mum and I would encourage any carer to give it a try. I am so proud to be able to help other people to safely wear their children.

 

 

Thanks to Holly for her input to the local babywearing community- the Reading babywearing group and the Social & Walks groups that she runs are great social places to chat about slings, sling libraries, meet likeminded local friends and learn more about babywearing. She’s always supported local libraries like ours and we love having people like Holly locally to us!

Q&A Guest Post- Jay

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2016, babies, baby, baby wearing, babywearing, Berkshire, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, buckles, carriers, family, May, mei tai, natural parenting, peer supporter, photos, sling, sling library, sling meet, slings, toddler, volunteer, wrap, wraps

I am Jay. I have 4 wonderful children,3 biological and 1 stepson. 3 boys and 1 girl. I have a philosophy that ‘everything happens for a reason’ and I do my best to surround myself and my children with happy and positive people and being part of a sling community certainly helps with that.

I used to work in Executive Recruitment but recently had the opportunity to change jobs and now I am a carer in the community,helping to look after people with dementia and other ailments.

I love working with people and also being able to be there for my children,as my job can be flexible. Through the sling library I have trained to be a peer supporter and really enjoy helping people to find the right slings for them and their baby or child.

 

How did you get into babywearing and did you plan to wear your baby when you were pregnant?

I wanted to carry my baby when I had my first child and invested in a mothercare sling. It never felt right. I now know that is because I had her in the cradle position and couldn’t see her properly (I had no idea what TICKS was.) With my second child I was determined to do it right. I started with a caboo and then used a mei tai,with a brief flirtation with a connecta which I wasn’t keen on but my partner at the time loved it. I would push one child in a buggy and carry the other in the sling. With my third baby I used a stretchy,then a mei tai,then started borrowing from the Bracknell Sling Library and fell in love with a manduca and a hop tye,both of which I also own now…and still borrowing from the library to find my next sling.

 
What’s your favourite wrap/carrier you’ve ever owned and why?

My favourite, I think, is a mei tai. The simplicity and diversity of it.

If money were no object, what wrap or sling would you own?

I would own all the slings…well,most of them. 😉

 
What do you like about babywearing?

I like the closeness,the ability to have hands free for my other children and to breastfeed on the run. Also,no buggy to pack for trips.

 

What do or did you find hardest about babywearing?

Wanting all the slings and not having them all. Actually,ring slings…love the idea,know how to use them in theory but just can’t get it to work well for me.
Does your partner join in with the babywearing?

Yes. He went from ‘I won’t wear one of those’ to deciding he liked my mei tai,then falling in love with the manduca too and has now chosen his own toddler sling.

What kind of comments do you receive when you babywear out and about?

Mainly positive oohs and ahhs but the occasional “isn’t he too big for that?” and “doesn’t it hurt your back?”

 

Huge thanks to Jay who is one of our super peer support trained volunteers. She’s learnt so much so quickly and is always on hand to help out at our meets  with her gorgeous little boy, and is wonderfully encouraging and helpful on our facebook group too!

Onbu!

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2016, babywearing, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, fun toddler, jellystitch, May, new carrier, onbu, pattern, sling library

We have one onbu at the sling library already. It’s an unusual carrier- a buckled carrier without a waist strap. It’s for older babies who can sit by themselves, up to pre-school size and a very handy little carrier they are too!

We currently have a Nova inbetween size onbu, but Amy from JellyStitch very kindly offered us a toddler size one for our library. This was a wonderful opportunity that we couldn’t pass up. It arrived today……

 

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And it’s love! The Jellystitch has wider, thicker padding to the straps which really helps if you’re taking the full weight of your toddler on your shoulders! I’m yet to perfect the fit for me, but working on it! Can’t wait to see how popular it is at the library next week.

 

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May time

Tags

2016, babies, baby toddler, baby wearing, babywearing, beco, Berkshire, birch hill, blog posts, blogging, boba air, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, connecta, firespiral, hire, lenny lamb, lilebaby, May, natural parenting, new, scootababy, sling, sling library, sling meet, slings, success, toddler, wrap, wraps

We as a library are really proud of what we’re accomplishing over at Bracknell Sling Meet & Library. Because we’re a community group, all the money we receive from hires goes back into buying more brilliant slings for everyone to try and enjoy. It means we can widen our range to even more popular carriers and also some of the less well known ones, but in addition we are now reaching a point where some of our carriers are so popular that we are buying two of them.

We now have two manduccas, two lilebabies, two baby size connectas, three size six wraps, two size 7 wraps and once we’re decided which Ergo- we’ll have a second one of those too!

What have we added to our library over the last month?

Scootababy (black)

Connecta Baby (Harris Tweed)

Connecta Toddler

Boba Air (black)

Beco Toddler

Firespiral Library exclusive Size 2

Lilebaby Carry On Toddler Airflow

Lenny Lamb Buckles (neutral sand)

 

This month we’ve added:

• Scootababy 
• Connecta baby in Harris Tweed
• Connecta Toddler in Indio Yukie
• Boba Air in black
• Beco Toddler in Nimbus
• Firespiral size 2 Sling Library exclusive
• Lilebaby Toddler Carry On Air

In addition to the Lenny Lamb buckles that we added the month before (bottom right image).

 

Sling meet was a ROARING success this week. News about all our new carriers has spread and so we managed a huge 19 hires, and 4 out of the 5 newest carriers went straight out. We’re looking forwards to seeing photos of happy babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers and happy mummies & daddies!

 

 

 

March Update

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2016, babies, baby wearing, babywearing, birch hill, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, close caboo, hire, lilac, March, natural parenting, newborn, Pure Baby Love, repeat customers, size six, sling, sling library, slings, stretchy wrap, wrappers, wraps

We’ve had a few meets since I last got around to posting properly. The new year was a little quiet but spring has seen an influx of bumps, babies and toddlers (with their parents) coming to see us.

It’s also been lovely to see mummies come to us for the second time around, having helped them find something to carry their older child in.

Here’s Jenny with the beautiful baby T who absolutely loves being carried by his mummy and daddy in this gorgeous Baie Slings size 6 wrap which we won in a brilliant giveaway  back in October.

Baie Slings Size 6

In addition to introducing parents to slings, we also love it when people bring along their own slings to play with, or to get advice on how to use something they’ve bought and aren’t quite confident with.

After each meet we look at our finances to see how we’re doing. We much appreciate everyone who pops a pound in the pot to help us cover room hire fees and all the income that comes into the library goes out as soon as possible on room hire and new stock for the library.

As of Feb 2016 we have been offering a deal on stretchy wrap hire for newborns- £10 for 6 weeks to try a stretchy wrap for new parents. This offer has been very popular and it’s meant we have been able to order some more Close Caboo carriers for the library. In addition to the caboos, we have a number of standard stretchy wraps and a papoozle which has a more structured waistband (see here for our entire library).

 

Here’s one of our first Library customers from back in early 2015, having a go with a stretchy wrap with a tiny premature baby.

Close Caboo Grey (x3)

 

We are also looking to increase the number and range of wraps that we own in the library. It’s great to have wrappers come in, and we like to be able to have a range of sizes, blends, colours and brands of wraps to try. When we saw a Pure Baby Love wrap for a very good price a couple of weeks ago, we couldn’t resist it, having had briefly as a travelling wrap last year. In gorgeous neutral lilac, and as soft as we remembered, this was an excellent choice and we can’t wait for it to go out on it’s first hire!

Pure Baby Love Size 6

 

We are also pleased to be adding to the range of sizes of wrap available, and look forwards to receiving a beautiful Library Exclusive Firespiral Alchemy Weave in a size two to add to our collection.

That’s all for now, but please be in touch if you have any questions!

Clare & Gemma

Q&A Guest post- Clare

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2016, attachment parenting, babies, baby wearing, babywearing, Berkshire, birch hill, blog posts, blogging, Bracknell, Bracknell Sling Library, Bracknell Sling Meet, carriers, February, Guest Q&A, natural parenting, sling, sling library, sling meet, slings, wrap, wraps

With our impending first birthday coming up, it’s time that the co-owners of the sling library wrote their own Q&A Guest posts!

I’m Clare, one half of the Bracknell Sling Library! I’ve got one little boy who is coming up to two and a half now and live in Bracknell with my perfect family of three, an embarassingly large pile of wraps and our crazy British Shorthair kitten, Magnus. My many hobbies include running the sling library, photography and volunteer work with Bracknell Lions Club.

 

How did you get into babywearing and did you plan to wear your baby when you were pregnant?

I had a friend who used slings for a couple of her children, but I knew very little about it all. I knew that my general parenting ideals were quite closely aligned with “Attachment Parenting” and so the more I began to learn about babywearing and the range of slings available, the more I wanted to know. I wish I’d known more sooner, which is one reason that we set the library up. I wanted to help people get into slings and carriers as soon as possible to enjoy all the benefits!

 

What’s your favourite wrap/carrier you’ve ever owned and why?

I find this question impossible to answer (and I wrote it!). I have a neat stash of six wraps, plus a Mexican Rebozo shawl and a custom half buckle with wrap straps. The wraps are all different lengths and blends of fibres- I have a size 2, 3, two size 4’s, 5 and a 6 in a range of blends including hemp, linen, pima cotton, wool and tussah silk. I also own a few different brands (Oscha, Natibaby and Firespiral) and between the brands, weaves, blends and sizes they all have very different wrapping properies.

In reality though I suppose our favourite has to be our Oscha Okinami Noir. It’s our “legacy” wrap, which (in this case) means that it was released on my little boy’s birth date. It’s a pattern I’d admired for a while and when I realised that “oki” was our legacy wrap, I had to have it! It took a while to track down as it’s a Boutique wrap with a small release, and as a size 3 it was my first short wrap. Being wool it’s also a big thick beast and was a bit daunting to start with, but it’s soft and beautiful now, and definitely “permastash”- i.e will never be sold! But having said that all my wraps have meaning to me, and anything that’s not special enough has been sold on to fund something more special!

If money were no object, what wrap or sling would you own?

There are some really really beautiful wraps out there. Handwoven wraps, custom handwovens- you could literally buy a wrap to match every outfit! I’d love to have more money to support wonderful social enterprises like Bebe Sachi who made the first wrap strap mei tai I ever owned and made me love woven wraps.

I’d probably grow my stash of wrap conversion mei tai’s (wrap straps) because they’re a little easier out and about, but also because my husband likes them too. In addition though I also love the Pellicano Baby Niyaha Sapa (black and white feathered eagle wings), Wrapahula have some beautiful new patterns and I’ve been sniffing around some of my friends’ Woven Wings they’ve recently bought too! At a recently woven wrap meet in Bracknell between us most our wraps were Oscha, Firespiral, Nati and Woven Wings.

 

What do you like about babywearing?

 

I didn’t start babywearing straight away which I regret now. I wish someone had shown me a stretchy wrap as I would have lived in it the first few months and it would have made everything much easier. I love the connection I get with R when he’s up in the wrap with me- I walk him to the childminders in the morning with the wrap and sometimes if he’s tired and doesn’t want to walk home he comes up too. We can chatter about the day in a way not really possible in a buggy. He’s at my level so we see things from the same perspective so we can share experiences together. We can visit places that just aren’t possible with a buggy- whether it’s a beach, a mountain or just up some steps. As a family we recently visited London for the day without the buggy which was a revelation and much easier to navigate crowds and tubes. Babywearing a great workout too- up and down hills with 13kg of toddler on my back carried in a good ergonomic and comfortable way is like an Army workout! There are too many positives to list.

Oh and I’ve got to say- the wonderful new friends I’ve made along the way! You know who you are and you’re all brilliant!

What do or did you find hardest about babywearing?

Mastering lots of new and complicated carries is always a struggle. As R is now almost 2 and a half, I usually carry him on my back. There are about a zillion different carries that you can do and I am desperate to master all of them. Once I remember one, I tend to forget one that I did know! Getting R onto my back for the first time was the hardest thing ever, and I still regularly get it a bit wrong! Sweaty practice after sweaty practice and I nail it more often than not now.

I also find it a challenge carrying him and all the kit I seem to need for a toddler- books, snacks, toys, nappy change kit (esp when in cloth nappies), warm layers in case he’s not in the wrap all gets very bulky! I’ve been known to take the buggy just to carry the shopping or similar.

Does your partner join in with the babywearing?

Yes, although wraps themselves haven’t really taken off, my other half loves to carry R in our mei tai. If I ever go out in the evenings it’s a great opportunity for R and daddy to bond, and the only guaranteed method to get him to sleep is usually a quick walk with the sling. Steve has also mastered the art of the “dismount”- getting R out of the sling and into bed without waking him, something I have never mastered properly myself.

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What kind of comments do you receive when you babywear out and about?

Some people do have some very funny and unfounded ideas about babywearing. The number of times I have heard people say “He’ll never learn to walk/be independent whilst you carry him everywhere”- which of course is ludicrous- he walked before 11 months and hasn’t stopped since. He’s also a very well socialised little boy who will happily barrel into new situations without looking back once. I’m also surprised when people say “Oh you wouldn’t catch me ruining my back carrying a heavy toddler”- yet they end up regularly picking their child up and carrying them on one hip rather than in a comfy carrier with the weight spread evenly. Mostly though I get smiles and nice comments about how cosy he looks, especially if he’s conked out asleep or yelling at me about squirrels.