REVIEW: Nona Imagine Blue Ice

Baby: 13 mos old, 8.4 kgs

Wearer: Petite mommy

Type of carrier: Imagine Blue Ice woven wrap

Brand: Nona Woven Wrap

Website: https://www.facebook.com/nonawovenwraps

Authorized local retailer: Coming soon

Size: 5 

Fabric content: 100% cotton

Type of weave: Jacquard

Surface weight: 246 gr/m2

Width: 28 inches

Suitable for: Newborn to toddler

Hand and machine washable

Type of carries done: FWCC, Short FWCC, FCC, Kangaroo, back carry with knotless tibetan finnish

Review:

I felt lucky to be chosen as one of the tester for this masterpiece as this was so beautiful in the photos and now that I saw it personally, I felt even more lucky.

The design is beautiful and elegant. I can imagine wearing it just at home and on special occassions. It is gender neutral- you and your husband/wife can use it to your baby girl or baby boy.

It was partly broken in when I received it (as I am the 5th tester). It feels not too rough and not too soft. It has the right grip that I want since I love kangaroo carry. I can easily pull the rails which helped me achieve a good wrap job.

I love the support of this wrap. It has the support that I have been looking for. My baby is almost weightless. It is also forgiving, even someone with noob wrapping skills will feel its support. 

I thought that the tester wrap is size 6 because it gave me nice tails but when I checked it, it was a size 5. So I can't really say it's 4.2 meters. They have longer allowance to shrinkage than other brands.

The wrap is affordable, as far as I can remember, the size 5 costs about 3,500 in peso (excluding international shipping fee and tax). 

I'm gonna rate this wrap as 8/10. I love the performance of this wrap but I hope they will make their middle markers larger. I would recommend this wrap to newbie and expert wrappers, to parents who have limited budget but would love to own an international made wrap, to those who are tired of destashing and restashing and to those who are looking for their one and only wrap.

I would love to hear and answer your questions. Comment them below. ☺️

Hazel 💋

My Frustrations Over Soft Structured Carriers (SSCs)

This post can't be biased. We have one SSC that was given to us (Thanks doc Pauline). I love how convinient it is especially if we are in a hurry and going for long walks. My baby outgrown the Pognae SSC at 10 months so I looked for another SSC.

My choices are only limited to Tula, Lenny Lamb and Kokadi. I research the three carriers before deciding and this made me very frustrated:

1. They are expensive. I knew this from the start. It may somehow break the bank. Safety tested carriers are expensive. My choices of SSCs would range 7,000 php to 10,000php+ depending if its only canvass or wrap conversion. Imagine what can you buy with that. But somehow, I saved money for that so I go on with my research and got frustrated again.

2. They come with sizes. Baby size, toddler size, preschool size.. I don't know what size should I get. Since my baby is almost a year old, he would outgrown the Lenny Lamb baby size and the toddler is too big for him because he's petite. Tula baby size is okay but I'm afraid he will outgrown it again. Kokadi Flip would be awesome since it is adjustable but it leads me to my next frustration.

3. They have weight limit. I almost ordered Kokadi Flip at Little Yeoh Trading FB page but I was so sad that the weight limit is 15kgs only. And my son is a heavy baby. We might not use it when he reaches the limit, and I'm so tired of destashing carriers which explains why I'm desperate of finding the one carrier for us. 

4. It's bulky. I have seen a toddler size and it's too big for me. You know, I'm a petite momma. I can't imagine myself wearing toddler size SSC (but hey! I would love to try). 

5. So many terms like PFA, waistband, buckles etc. that I don't understand and I would rather search for a new wrap carry than find a dictionary of the terms.

6. Since I destashed my other wraps, I would miss wrapping when we will have SSC and I think I had a God-given talent for wrapping, so this is very frustrating for me. 

Got a headache after that research. I swear it's true. Unlike wraps I only got headaches when there's a new release because the designs are just so lovely. I would love to have another SSC but I think its not for me. 

I predicted the ending would be purchasing another wrap again. I'm thankful that eventhough Claud Yeoh (Little Yeoh Trading owner) provided me all infos about the SSCs she understood my love for wraps. I preordered my super DISO Kokadi Erna in Wonderland from her and I'm very much excited!

This is a biased conclusion but it's the reality.. If you're on a tight budget and you want to have a carrier that can be used from newborn to toddler or whatever age your baby is, go for wraps. It has weight limit but usually up to 45kgs. Very good for any ages. Enjoy a two shoulder support without hurting your back. Easy to use. 

What are your thoughts about SSCs? 😄

Why do we Need More than One Wrap

my very humble stash

Yes, I have more than one wrap and it doesn't mean that I am boasting it. *peace yow* It is actually a very humble stash. Though some people don't understand us wrapping mommas why we need more than one, here are my reasons..

1. We need different sizes for different types of carries.
You need a size 2 if you want a quick rebozo, a size 3 if you want to do a hassle free kangaroo carry, a size 4 if you want an abbreviated Front wrap cross carry, size 5 for a full FWCC and size 6 to do your fancy back carry finishes.

2. We need different blends for different seasons.
You may need a 100% cotton wrap for cold seasons since they are mostly medium thick and medium heavy, and jacquard or a linen for a hot summer season.

3. They wont hurt your back and your budget.
You can have a wrap for as low as 250 php if you are good at DIY (you need a lot of research though) or a local handwoven wrap at 1,000-2,000 php or a nice imported wrap at 3,000 php. My cheapest wrap cost 400 php. 😊

4. We can't resist gorgeous designs.
Self explanatory.

Having more than one wrap is not a sin. It is not a "luho" either. It is for our convenience in carrying our little one. 

Wrapping Is Everything

One time, while I was breastfeeding my son, I felt back pain and I cannot do things I needed to do. I am a Stay at Home Mom (SAHM) with no helper at home. Although my family and hubby offers to carry my baby, they can't stand carrying him for a long time. And because I'm exclusively breastfeeding, I cannot leave without my baby. Traveling is so hard for me before I knew babywearing. Indeed, carrying our little one is one of our job as a mom.
Until I found Babywearing Philippines. I learned a lot through the group. I thought all carriers I saw everywhere are safe but I learned that the common carriers that I see are the Narrow Based Carriers (NBC) and most of them are not safety tested. Of course I would choose a carrier that is best and can't put my baby into danger. So my first ever carrier was a Hybrid type.

Hybrid carrier

I love it because it is easy to wear but honestly I didn't used it often because it has a definite size and I felt that though I got the right size, its too tight. It's also not airy and I learned it will get sagged once baby is getting heavier. I switched to Meitai since it is also a two shoulder support and I wished that my hubby could wear our baby too as it is not so complicated to wear. I can adjust the tightness that I prefer. I was wearing it for the first time in like 2 hours, I noticed I always adjust it because baby was slouched. And after wearing it, God, I had the worst back ache in my entire life.
This time, I tried my luck for wraps. I was too afraid to use it because my baby might fall if I missed a step. When I tried wearing a wrap, I was surprised that it is actually easy. And I felt like "oh my GOD! thank you for inventing wraps!" . I can adjust the tightness, baby is on optimal position and no more back aches for me. Then I started to learn the different carries since wraps are the most versatile of all carriers. I learned rebozo, kangaroo, back carry and hip carries aside from Front Wrap Cross Carry (FWCC). It's one of my hobbies at home and we both enjoyed it. I also learned that we need different sizes for a certain type of carry (see my next post about Why We Need More Than One Wrap).

I'm practicing back carry here

My first 2 wraps were locally made. I'm happy that I support our local weavers. And then I started dreaming of an imported wrap. It is not easy to get since you need to buy them at online shops abroad. Then a lovely mama offered me to join her purchase on Little frog. When I got my first wrap from Poland I felt contented that I got to own a wrap that I dreamed of. And now, lucky are the mommas because they don't need to wish for a star to have their DISO Wraps because Wraps by Little Yeoh will make them available for us. They are authorized retailer of different imported wraps here in Philippines. The prices are almost the same with the prices abroad which saves you a lot and save you from visiting and pleading at Customs. They also offer lay away to their selected products. Plus the owner (Claud Arellano) is so accommodating and a babywearing advocate too.
Well that was a wrap on our search for the best carrier. When you found the right one that suits you, you can't stop loving it.

Our travels are easier with babywearing. I'm using Little frog Sunny Agate II.