An in-between sling....??

Harmony has so far been in a peanut type sling, but it only made for little ones, it had the velcro straps inside, and baby can only lay down, no other carry way possible...

It is now KILLING my shoulder to carry her, and she is awake alot now, and I'd like to be able to look abot, but she has only a tiny amount of head control so far.

So what do I get for us?? I want it be as easy as my pouch sling, so no mei tei's, or hard carriers... maybe a ring sling? Can she go in one okay?

help ladies......

Peanut shell?

(and btw - had to laugh at your sig with the initals and years - cos I read it as Moo...rofl)

hehehe, I didn't even realise!!! Poor Mason!! :lol:

I looked at the peanut shells....I can sit her in a kangaroo type possy cant I?? And I can use it up to toddlerhood....:think:

I was really happy with the first sling, It was made for newborns, so worked perfectly, but now I need a not-quite-holding-her-head-up-but-wants-to-see sling :rolleyes:

I carry her for a few hours on shopping days too....

Have you seen hug a bubs? My bub is too heavy for our sling too,one shouldered slings are too tough on the back for us...So I googled HAB and ended up making one from material from spotlight... good as bub can look around and a bit of material cam come across to support their head.

i think a ring sling will do the trick!
is also very versitile later ie hip carrying.. i still can put miss A in there..and she is almost 2(but a tiny 2yrold)
i have a 100(or is it 1000) knots ring sling..

Ring slings are great for all ages. I've used one for DS since birth, and now he's big and heavy but I still use it. They're easily adjustable and no need to worry about different sizes. So many different ways to carry bubs in them, too. I used to have DS snuggled in it to sleep, then sitting up like a little joey facing out, and now I use it like a hip carrier or piggy-back style. Mine is home-made, so I put pockets in the end of the "tail" so I can take everything I need for a short trip without needing an extra bag. I love it! But remember - keep baby high and tight so it doesn't hurt your back.

uummm, been googling, :rolleyes:, and I think I want a ring sling, and something like a Hotsling.. I'd use both for different times i think...

Dammit, I feel another addiction coming on.... :rofl:

Can you sew? They're really easy to make! And therefore, customise... ;)

Jodie, I have a hotsling and as much as I love it and as much as it's been reall great, I am looking to upsize to a mei tei because he is starting to get too tall for it, so for a while he wasn't feeling as secure as he used too, but he's put on a fair whack of weight lately so it's better, but at the rate he's getting taller, I can see him growing out of it soon. I have seen some ring slings that are wider in the fabric to allow for a toddler carry etc plus you can also pull the top part tighter

Nope, cant sew... :doh:

But I can get a Hotsling and a ring sling for $118 delivered, does that sound ok?? It seemed a good deal.... I think I could get a lot of use out of both, and Ad can even put Kane in one when he's being painful... ;)

seems like a lot of money jodie .. there are some ring slings on ozebaby and wahm stores .. for alot less than $118 ... they are also eazypeazy to make ... buy the rings and the material ... you dont even need to sew !!!

The ring sling is on sale for $39.. half price..
The hotsling is $72 reversable..

Oooo, Id be interested in making something easy!!!! :lol::lol:

How? Where do I find how? What materials can I use? Can I get it all at spottie?? Its all we have here... :doh:

THat sounds like a pretty reasonable price to me - my hotsling was on sale for $50. You should be able to get all you need at spotlight - just find out what fabric type it is, buy the rings and away you go.

ok well i know a nappy fabirc store sell rings for about $10 .. i forget the name umm

BUBBA EARTH has all you need and then just google "no sew ring sling " loads of stuff will come up .. i made one my self once and it was great .. i dont know where it went tho :(

Oohh, I'm gonna make one!!!! Will spotties have rings???

One site said polar fleece is ok, it might just stretch a little, but It wont fray, is that true? Its cool here, and gonna get COLD, a fleece one would be awesome!!! :dance:

Suse would be the one to ask. I'm pretty sure if you look thru some of the other threads here you'll find links to instructions and whatever. I got my rings from a boating and marine shop, so they're steel and a bit heavier than most, but they'll never rust or break :lol: and they were only about $4 each.
Don't get rings from spotters... they only have cr@ppy ones for handbags and they'll break and you'll drop your precious bundle!!

The ABA Simplicity Sling uses clips...we've got one here...pretty fast and easy to put on.

I made one!!! I did it!!!!
Its on Fb if you wanna see... I'm gonna make heaps... Adam wants a skull one for Kane!!! :lol::lol:

I am so damn excited!!!!! :leap::wiggle::wiggle:

What did you use for rings PB?

You were right, spottie's were crap... so went to Bunnings... they had great thick rings, but they had some hook looped through... so Ad grinded the hook off with an angle grinder!!! :lol: (they weren't connected, just looped together, so no grinding was done on the ring!)

But they said one of the other hardware shops in town might sell just the rings, so I'm cheking them out tommorrow...

I would suggest caution with them PB, they may not have a load bearing capacity suitable for carrying a baby (there is a lot of strain put on both the rings and the seams). Even thick rings may not be designed for loadbearing, depending on the metal composition and of the type of join. Not to say that the ones you have will not be suitable, but my experience with Bunnings staff is that many of them wouldn't really know. Marine grade rings will be suitable, as they are designed for loadbearing, but they are much heavier than the aluminium rings designed for babywearing. Which you can get from slingrings (US site), or theweewuns in Australia.

You might find this info helpful, and if you want to use fleece, this tutorial helpful.

I rang the two boat places we have here, and neither sold them.... :doh: They said maybe on the coast they would have them??? :rolleyes:

Adam read the packet, but I didn't, Ill do a double check!! ;)

eta.. we have a lot of horse shops up here... might give them a call in the morning!!!
eta... the packet says zinc plated ring bolt....the hook-bolt we took off goes into pipe or whatever, and then you hang stuff off the ring, so should be pretty loadbearing.. but gonna go check today before I cart her around it!!! thanks....

When I rang the marine place to check if they had the rings in stock, they asked if it was for a special occasion, marriage, engagement etc. LOL... personally, I'd be really cautious of anything from Bunnings around my baby, but if it works... good for you! Check if it can hold a lot of weight and pressure. If there's any welds or joins, there's potential breakage points.

I'm getting another sling today. I got my mum to sew this one for me because I just haven't got time! I got her to make it from a stronger fabric than my current one because I'm taking it travelling overseas and we're not taking a pram or stroller. And DS is just plain heavy! If I'd had time I would have got the nylon rings from the US so it wouldn't be an issue taking the sling thru x-rays at airports, but I think they make you take baby out of them anyway...

Ill check bubba earth today, and order some ring sets.... Adam wants some "cool" material to carry Kane around in, skulls and stuff!!! :rolleyes:

Excellent! I wish I could get DP to take DS in the sling more often. He just doesn't, no matter how cool I make the sling. Ah well. Makes me stronger, and I get all the attention :lol:
I'd suggest to make the main body of the sling from whatever sturdy fabric you choose, and just add panels, pockets or patches of whatever "cool" fabric you want. Even iron-on transfers could work, I guess. I've even seen a carrier made from an old pair of jeans and a flanelette shirt!

Could I sew some "cool" fabric to the "strong" fabric, or would it be too thick?? As in 2 layers??

I just ordered 5 ring sets from bubba earth!!! :dance::dance:
$32, posted!! :clap:

Is the fleece ok to use, without the pleats sewn in?? Its nice and snuggly material, and I can sew edges, but not pleats and stuff.... :redface:

There's instructions in the link from Suse about how to cut out the extra fabric and sew pleats in fleece. I don't know about making the whole sling 2 layers. It would be a bit too much fabric, maybe. That's part of the beauty of slings is that they can be folded up and put in your bag, glove compartment, etc without being huge or bulky.

PB, you could do just a gathered shoulder, but it would be much bulkier. As for using a thick layer and a thin layer of fabric, you can do double layered slings no problems.

The biggest concern with lighter fabrics is that your seams won't be strong enough - because most quilter's cottons (for example) are just not designed for the type of stress. The concern is that even with reinforced seams, the fabric may tear at the seams because it is too light. But doubling will help reinforce it.

I have also been looking at getting a sling and decided after reading this to try and make a basic ring sling. I was thinking of getting two pieces of calico material and sewing them together like a pillow case and then threading it through the rings. I was just wondering if you think this would work and whether it would be strong enough?

I have a 10 month old and he is about 10kg. I am not entirely sure he will like the sling, so making it is a great alternative to spending lots of one that he may not like :) Thanks for all the ideas :)

nope, not calico... not strong enough. Check bubba earth or the links Suse posted for some of the best info!

TBH Townsvillegirl, calico may not be the best material, especially for an over 10kg baby, and especially for a one shouldered carrier. It has very little diagonal stretch in the weave, so it may be too rigid. There is a calico-like fabric called osnaberg, it is quite popular for DIY wraps because it has good diagonal give, and thus softens up nicely - it is supportive and strong without yet supple apparently. I'm not sure how it would go as a ring sling. You could always try tencel too.

There's no reason why you can't use calico, but I would be careful to check the shoulder seams before each use and be mindful of wear and tear, and it may not be as comfortable as other fabrics (or you may find that it works brilliantly for you).

As your bub is quite heavy, have you thought about making a mei tai which would be more supportive? I generally only use one shouldered carriers for short periods these days.

I was only thinking calico or something similar because that link earlier said that it might be alright if doubled over but thanks for your other suggestions . . . I'm not quite sure what they are but off to google a few things now :)

ETA : I should also add - I really want a lighter fabric because I live in North Queensland so anything too heavy will just be too hot (even in the middle of winter).

I had a look at the mei tai slings - I have an infantino baby carrier (like a baby bjorn) and they don't look that different. I guess I was looking for something that kept him nice and close to my body to try and protect my back a bit more (I have an RSI in my back from lifting babies incorrectly so I have to be very careful with what I do).

I also googled that other fabric that you mentioned Suse, it looks like it might do the trick. I will check it out at spotlight in the next couple of days.

Thanks for your help Na Na and Suse :)