How to do | Front Wrap Cross Carry - Plus an intro to woven wraps

[@samantharaulin]

TLDR: Thank you this is a very good detailed video, you are very amazing and I’m so excited for you with your new baby! I’ve tried it twice and haven’t succeeded yet, he keeps getting angry and manages to arch and arch and undo all my tightening so I came back to watch again. I don’t think I had enough fabric at his neck so I’ll try that next time (I gave in and put the stretchy wrap on and he’s sleeping in it but he’s getting a bit heavy for it. He’s almost 20 pounds now.) wish me luck, I’ve only ever used a stretchy wrap and I got a woven that is thicker and longer than I should have being inexperienced. I’ve failed at every carry I’ve tried so far. I’m also going to wash it a few more times in hopes that it gets a little less unwieldy. I’ll get this! My end goal is to back carry but everyone says to master front carry first and that makes sense. Anyway, thanks for the detail in your video, gives me hope to keep trying! Update: tried again and finally succeeded! Had to bring up the extra passes to keep him from forcing his arms out, and give him a teething ring to distract him, but now he’s finally happy and so I am happy and my back is very happy. Thank you so much!!!!!

[@lotus7561]

Congrats on your newest little! 💕 How do you like the ice cotton? I’m thinking of getting the Willow Espieit print in a Cairis, for the summer, and I’m in Florida.

[@letstalkbabywearing]

Thank you! And I do feel like it does a great job of staying cooler, but it's not the coolest woven wrap that I have. I have used it a number of times in the summer, but we do have a dry heat compared to Florida!

[@heatherolson5377]

Can a newborn hold their head up wrapped like that or do you need to tuck their head into one of the shoulder passes? I have a stretchy wrap that would need the head tucked in unless you are holding their head up with your hand.

[@letstalkbabywearing]

With both wrap types you want that similar level of support by the base of the neck, so that you don't have to use a pass to tuck their head into. This can be achieved with a stretchy wrap, but it definitely can be a lot trickier as they aren't as supportive by nature! A woven wrap is going to be significantly more supportive and when you really get that fabric snugly against the base of the neck it provides enough support where their head isn't moving around. If you want even more support, there's a different finish (Anne's carry) that can be done with a woven that will really protect and provide even more support- helpful when sleeping or if you want max head support for a very new baby. Sorry if that's a bit of a confusing answer! I know when I first started with a stretchy wrap it felt impossible to get enough support where I wouldn't need to tuck a head in the pass- It took a few babies and figuring out how to properly tighten a stretchy wrap before I realized how to do that. The woven wrap was significantly easier due to the fabric type!

[@heatherolson5377]

@@letstalkbabywearing I went through and watched a lot of your woven wrap videos. Now I am feeling like I want a woven wrap instead of my stretchy one. I have a couple questions. What age do you feel comfortable putting a baby on your back? And with putting one on your back, do you feel that is safe enough that you could cook? I am trying to plan ahead for #3 so I can still get as much done as possible while still cuddling with the baby.

[@letstalkbabywearing]

@@heatherolson5377 woven wraps are so incredible! I think if you get one you will be really happy with it in the long run. But, I will prepare you that they can take a little more time to get used to compared to a stretchy wrap. I find overall, finding one that's 100% cotton and are lightweight can help. The Didymos Prima blends tend to be really easy for people to get used to. All wovens will have a little bit of a break-in period where the fabric will get softer and easier to use. Washing when you receive it will help to get that process started, just make sure you check out the wash recommendations for whatever you end up with it! When you get a woven wrap, it's recommended to first get really comfortable with wrapping on front before trying to move into a back carry. You really want to get confident how to tighten and secure the fabric in different areas. Once you're feeling confident and if you are feeling experienced enough to start working on getting into back carries, you can do it essentially at any age. A lot of people find that it takes a few months to feel really confident in their wrap if it's the first time they've used it and that it can help to wait until they've got a little more head control. An experienced wrapper could begin back carrying from newborn (typically a few weeks old). And it's hard I got a lot of cooking done in those first months and even after!

[@heatherolson5377]

@@letstalkbabywearing thank you so much for the recommendation on the wrap. Do you have another recommendation for a company that is US based or maybe just in North America? The cost of a quality wrap plus the cost of shipping across the ocean is a bit much.

[@letstalkbabywearing]

@@heatherolson5377 Little Zen One is a US and Canadian retailer that sells them! And they offer $20 off with discount code LTB2024 which can help. There are also so many options on Facebook marketplace.