Babywearing is awesome, cuddling your baby close, sharing life and love is utterly priceless. But slings and baby carriers aren’t! I want to share with you my top buying tips to ease you down the rabbit hole! (that is, buying slings can become addictive and before you know it you’ve got an official stash!)
1. Try before you buy!
Handy that we run a sling library eh? But seriously, if you’re not sure what you’re looking for in a sling, or you have a particular reason for babywearing, or you’re moving on from one type then come and see us. Try on some different options and see what works for you. Then hiring one for a month is a great way to really get to grips with a particular sling and find the one you love before spending lots of money.
2. Cheapies
I love amazon prime, but… there are lots and lots of slings on ebay and amazon. Some are mega mega cheap slings which can be super tempting to buy especially if you’re not sure if babywearing or a particular type of sling is for you. I would say don’t waste your money. I’ve seen some cheap stretchies recently that honestly aren’t going to give you a good idea of what a proper stretchy wrap should feel and wrap like. I’ve seen buckle carriers which are fakes of more expensive carriers and I’ve seen the clips on these carriers snapping. Eeek. I’ve seen “woven wraps” which are just printed pieces of cloth and I’m not sure about the dye quality...
3. Second hand goodies
My first woven wrap was pre-loved. There is a huge second hand market for slings and carriers, mostly through facebook. There are many different selling groups for all budgets and all types of slings, carriers, different brands. You can pick up some real bargains through facebook selling sites and one of the best things is buying a pre-loved woven wrap often means that it is already broken in (it’s lovely and soft). If you’re buying second hand always pay via paypal and always pay goods and services. This offers you and the buyer protection. Have a look here for some of my favourite groups -
4.Slings holding their value
Following on from tip 3, by having an awesome second hand market you can always sell on a sling through one of these facebook selling groups. There are often rules for these groups for how to sell something properly so just check the pinned posts of each group and happy churning. Remember when you’re selling a sling, always post signed for and recorded, again this offers you and the buyer protection should the sling go a-wandering.
5. Grade 2 bargains
Some sling manufacturers sell on grade 2 slings. This means that there is a small cosmetic flaw in the sling and so it isn’t sold at full price but rather at a grade b price. It won’t ever effect the safety of the sling. It’s super finding a jem of a bargain sling at a grade 2 price. Lenny Lamb and Oscha are my favourite grade 2 sellers!
6. Firespiral fledgling scheme
This is one of the most amazing schemes going. Firespiral offer a 55% discount on the first woven wrap to be bought by a fledgling. The idea being that firespiral wanted to help to remove barriers to babywearing and so in conjunction with babywearing consultants we can recommended someone who is certain they want woven wrap and certain they want a firespiral as their first wrap to be signed up to this fledgling scheme. It’s brilliant! Find out more information here
Feel free to drop us an email or leave us a comment if you would like any more help finding the right sling for you
1. Try before you buy!
Handy that we run a sling library eh? But seriously, if you’re not sure what you’re looking for in a sling, or you have a particular reason for babywearing, or you’re moving on from one type then come and see us. Try on some different options and see what works for you. Then hiring one for a month is a great way to really get to grips with a particular sling and find the one you love before spending lots of money.
2. Cheapies
I love amazon prime, but… there are lots and lots of slings on ebay and amazon. Some are mega mega cheap slings which can be super tempting to buy especially if you’re not sure if babywearing or a particular type of sling is for you. I would say don’t waste your money. I’ve seen some cheap stretchies recently that honestly aren’t going to give you a good idea of what a proper stretchy wrap should feel and wrap like. I’ve seen buckle carriers which are fakes of more expensive carriers and I’ve seen the clips on these carriers snapping. Eeek. I’ve seen “woven wraps” which are just printed pieces of cloth and I’m not sure about the dye quality...
3. Second hand goodies
My first woven wrap was pre-loved. There is a huge second hand market for slings and carriers, mostly through facebook. There are many different selling groups for all budgets and all types of slings, carriers, different brands. You can pick up some real bargains through facebook selling sites and one of the best things is buying a pre-loved woven wrap often means that it is already broken in (it’s lovely and soft). If you’re buying second hand always pay via paypal and always pay goods and services. This offers you and the buyer protection. Have a look here for some of my favourite groups -
4.Slings holding their value
Following on from tip 3, by having an awesome second hand market you can always sell on a sling through one of these facebook selling groups. There are often rules for these groups for how to sell something properly so just check the pinned posts of each group and happy churning. Remember when you’re selling a sling, always post signed for and recorded, again this offers you and the buyer protection should the sling go a-wandering.
5. Grade 2 bargains
Some sling manufacturers sell on grade 2 slings. This means that there is a small cosmetic flaw in the sling and so it isn’t sold at full price but rather at a grade b price. It won’t ever effect the safety of the sling. It’s super finding a jem of a bargain sling at a grade 2 price. Lenny Lamb and Oscha are my favourite grade 2 sellers!
6. Firespiral fledgling scheme
This is one of the most amazing schemes going. Firespiral offer a 55% discount on the first woven wrap to be bought by a fledgling. The idea being that firespiral wanted to help to remove barriers to babywearing and so in conjunction with babywearing consultants we can recommended someone who is certain they want woven wrap and certain they want a firespiral as their first wrap to be signed up to this fledgling scheme. It’s brilliant! Find out more information here
Feel free to drop us an email or leave us a comment if you would like any more help finding the right sling for you
RSS Feed