Natibaby Wool Mea Fuschia is a beautiful wrap. It is 63% cotton and 37% merino wool. The intricate lace-like pattern runs on the bias of the wrap as opposed to horizontally or vertically. I think this gives the wrap a uniqueness and a whisper feminine, dare I say, perhaps even dainty?

Mea marks a departure for me, as it was the first pink or purple wrap that I purchased. The color was rish and dark enough for me to feel that Beau could "rock pink". Frankly, I don't know what took me so long; boy or girl, one can wear ANY color and pattern wrap with ANY baby; boy or girl. Getting a little side-tracked here but, wear what you love!

This picture at left displays the four stages of how we do nap time at our house! Are you are curious about the seemingly impossible feat of getting baby to his crib from my back without waking? Watch this video to find out, just note that this video was filmed with my iPhone tucked into the changing table; nothing fancy!  http://youtu.be/04IC2dOdaBs

This wrap is a dream to wrap with! Super soft, medium thin, cushy on the shoulders, and uber floppy! Oh did I mention supportive?? This particular Natibaby wrap is wider than my other Natibaby wraps. I haven't measured yet, but it's on my to-do list, promise.

I have to say one very important thing about this wrap: PLEASE DO NOT BE AFRAID OF THE WOOL! The merino wool used in this wrap must have been spun by angels or something because it is so soft and not scratchy or itchy in the least. Please trust me when I tell you that it is unlike most anything made from wool you have experienced thus far.

Another common misconception about wool blend wraps is that they are thick and hot. Au contraire mon ami (my parents are French Canadian, and my siblings and I grew up bilingual, so excuse me if I spout off in French randomly)! As I mentioned before, this wrap is quite thin, airy, breathable and would be perfect all seasons of the year. I have worn this wrap in about 78 degree humid weather and felt completely cool.

This is a very forgiving wrap; let me explain, even if you don't get a "perfect" wrap job with Mea, you will not pay for it with pain from pressure points in your shoulders. Somehow, the wraps magical powers perfectly distribute the weight every time, even if my wrap job is far from perfect.

Another feature of this wrap that I find hard to quantify is the fact that I love how it tightens. When I am tightening my fabric passes; whether strand by strand or the classic "L pull" often done with a double hammock carry; everything tightens up and glides into place so easily. But I think the wool content combined with the slight texture of the pattern ensure that Mea is not "slippery" which can be troublesome for a new wrapper and lead to carries drooping.

In closing, I'm sure you've guessed my verdict, Mea is beautiful and useful, a definite keeper!

~Nancy

Ellevill is a Norwegian wrap company. Their wraps are designed in Norway and woven in India. Some of their old wraps were hand-woven, but most today are machine woven. Ellevill is known for having simple wraps, concentrating on the pattern and design of the weave itself as opposed to various shapes, motifs or animals. 

Jade is a classic pattern inspired by old Norwegian knitting patterns. This is a jacquard weave woven in fiery red and almost reddish-orange threads. They come together to form a gorgeous, deep, yummy  lipstick red! The wrap is 50% cotton and 50% linen. The linen adds support to the wrap.

Another thing to note about Elevill wraps are their very long and narrow tapers. I personally love them, as they form a tiny little knot, but others may not like this feature. Just something to keep in mind when shopping for a wrap.

Chili had been another long time ISO of mine, and after having recently donated my Natibaby Red Greece wrap to our local babywearing group's lending library, I was feeling desperate for some bright red in my stash. Fellow babywearing online vendor Marsupial Mamas offered a coupon code on in-stock Ellevill wraps, and I pounced!

I honestly had heart palpitations when I opened the box. The color was so gorgeous! It looks like it's woven with shiny silk! And soft right out of the pretty little matching red bag! After a couple quick FWCCs around the house I immediately popped her in the wash on the hand wash cycle with some Euclan and tumbled dry on low with dryer balls.

Out of the dryer Chili had flouffed up beautifully and was much softer already. DS went back in for another FWCC and I immediately noticed what lovely and perfect bounce this wrap has! Odd with 50% linen, but it creates the perfect amount of cush and give. After bath and some milkies uppy Beau went in a DH.

In fact, he is currently sleeping as I pace around before transferring him to his crib. I was soooooo surprised at the width of this wrap! My other Ellevill wraps are narrow; this one is not; it's more comparable to Nati linen width wise.

Amazing support, awesome grip, and the texture feels silky, odd, I though it would feel scratchy, bug me, or at least make passing the rebozo passes behind my back troublesome, and it didn't! So although I haven't worn Beau in this wrap for an extended amount of time yet in a back carry; my initial report is that it is deceivingly rock solid! Gorgeous and useful: Keeper!

Update: After a nice steam iron to stretch the fabric (and make Chili look fine & fancy for her photo shoot) we gave Chili another whirl. Again, I have nothing but praises for this wrap. Comfy, breathable, supportive, and enough give/bounce to ensure a great wrap. It is gorgeous and makes me want to wrap presents, bake Christmas cookies and sing Jingle Bells all at the same time, while babywearing of course!

~Nancy

The Heartiness brand carries two very different types of baby slings; machine loomed woven wraps and hand woven wraps. Fusion Aero is a hand woven using traditional Russian weaving patterns in a luxurious quad-blend of material. Specifally; the wrap is 55% cotton, 30% merino wool, 10% silk and 5% cashmere.

A handwoven Heartiness was a long time ISO of mine. (ISO stands for in search of and is a common phrase babywearers use when talking about a wrap they are well, in search of!) I had been browsing the Heartiness website and message board for a few months when I finally got lucky to snag a "pre-order" of Fusion Aero.

Ok, I'm ready to review Fusion; I love this wrap. The End. Just kidding!! I wrapped my nine m/o babe three times today with this wrap. I wanted to try 3 different carries to get a good feel for it so I did FWCC, DH and BWCC with a chestbelt (albeit a very sloppy one). 

I absolutely LOVE this wrap. The most similar wrap in my stash as far as "feel" goes would be my super-soft wool Mea, but this
is thicker and has more cush.

It has just enough grip to be able to say that this wrap is not slippery, but the passes still glide beautifully in a DH (double hammock). I was able to get a nice, deep seat and tight wrap each time.

My little babe is around 20 pounds (guessing?) and he felt totally great in this wrap, not as supportive as Natibaby linen, but not saggy in the least bit either. 

This wrap has not been washed yet, but today as it stands, it is quite breathable. I was cooking in front of a hot stove with
this on and I felt great.

Update: after a bath, Fusion fluffed up so very nicely! If possible, it is now even softer and squishier than before! Though I plan to wrap Beau in this beauty until our babywearing days are through, this would make a great squish wrap too! [Oh, "a squish" or "squish" is the term for a newborn baby in the babywearing community. It took me a while to get the nag of the lingo, but now it's second nature.] Verdict: (Unless someone wants to  trade me for a Heartiness Milkyway or Navy Dragon), this is instant perma-stash/Keeper! 

~Nancy

Anthracite Stone Indio, or ASLI, is a relatively new wrap in my stash. It is 60% anthracite cotton threads and 40% stone linen threads. I have washed it in euclan dedicates wash, dried with dryer balls on low heat, braided, steam ironed, and wrapped with three times.

But before I begin my review I feel bound to tell you the story behind how this wrap came to live with me (Nancy). You see, I recently sold a number of wraps, carriers and ring slings on the Facebook swap. One of the wraps I sold was a Didymos Natural Silk Indio, version two (or NSI V2) which had been dyed a lovely black by the previous owner before me. This left me without a black (or dark-neutral) wrap in my stash.

A few weeks later my Grandmother Bernadette passed away and my family of seven would have to make the six hour drive to Quebec, Canada for the funeral. Since I had just completed the final layaway payment on Anthracite Stone Indio from Birdie's Room; www.birdiesroom.com, I e-mailed the proprietor and asked if they could rush the wrap to me so that I could have it for the services.

Unfortunately since Birdie's Room is headquartered in Canada, and I in the United States, it was not a fiscally responsible option. Then Birdie's Room offered to ship it to a location IN Canada for me and I could pick it up there. What a brilliant idea! I gave them the address of my aunt and uncle who lived closest to the hotel we would be staying at and the wrap arrived with a day to spare.

I tell you this story because I wanted to highlight the kind of love and caring that exists in the babywearing community, and at Birdie's Room specifically in this instance. This is the type of customer service that we here at Wee Carry will strive to exemplify and mimic.

As such, this wrap will forever be a reminder to me of my Grandma yes, but also as a tenet of good business practices, caring and compassion.

Today I did a double-hammock or DH with a half knot and commenced my morning chores. My son Beau is almost nine months old and he weighs about 20 pounds. Beau was lower on my back than normal, but still content. Although it is too long for me I am not planning to chop it to a shorter length. I like long tails and with a thin wrap it is fine to wrap around my waist twice.

Once I put on my  *Kangarusha  babywearing/nursing necklace he started chewing on that and I hardly heard a peep out of him.  *http://www.etsy.com/shop/kangarusha

The wrap was not diggy at all. It is very supportive and soft. Not as cushy as Natural Hemp Indio (NHI) or Erba (a pale green hemp-blend Indio) , yet still plenty cushy/comfy on my shoulders and chest.

All in all I love this wrap and think it will be a great warmer weather wrap as it is quite breathable. I look forward to wearing this wrap any time I need dark neutral or black wrap. It is such a versatile color and the Indio pattern is stunning. In my opinion it has the ability to read both elegant and casual simultaneously.  This wrap is very useful and not just "pretty".  Verdict: Keeper!

~Nancy