Sling article and How-To

When I was pregnant with my daughter, I planned on buying a snuggli carrier, which was what my mom had used briefly with my sister when she was tiny. I mentioned the fact that I was looking for one to my midwife. She told me that most moms she'd talked to had not gotten a lot of use out of snuggli carriers, because their babies grew out of them too fast, and that there were a number of other ways of carrying a baby. She put me in touch with the owner of Baby Bundler, who set me up with my first baby-wearing device.... The six yards of cloth seemed daunting at first, but with a bit of practice, I was soon grocery shopping while nursing my daughter bundled to my chest.

Kailea got very heavy, very fast, putting on 14 pounds in her first six months on my milk alone. I held or carried her all the time, but did not use the bundler much past that first three months, simply becuase it was too hard getting her in and out, and I didn't like having to re-wrap it all the time. It was comfortable wearing, but not super easy to get on and off. (note: for better instructions on using a stretchy wrap, see www.mamatoto.org. If I'd known then what I know now, I would have gotten a lot more use out of that Bundler!)

When Kailea was about 10 months old, I saw an ad for the New Native baby carrier. It looked easy and comfortable, and they had a low-income program to donate slings to moms who didn't have a lot of resources. Since I was on welfare at the time, I qualified, and my arms were relieved from their constant duty of holding a 25 pound child on my hip.... It was a very easy carrier to wear, and comfortable. It was even easier to make another one out of a different kind of fabric, and from that point, I "paid forward" (instead of paying back) the gift of my sling by making slings for other low income women.

I started becoming interested in other "native" wraps.... I knew intellectually that many, many cultures had a variety of ways of tying on a baby, but I had no intuitive understanding of exactly how they did it. The Bundler was a complicated wrap, and it seemed like an awful lot of fabric... The New Native involved sewing, which didn't seem like the simplest procedure. And the other slings I'd seen, the padded, buckled kind, were even more "constructed". I had the opportunity to use one at a postpartum client's house, and the NoJo was comfortable for me, but too big for the petite mother who'd bought it. Even so, I was able to hold one of her twins in the sling, while holding the other on my shoulder, and it did leave a hand free.... It was comfortable, but a bit bulky, and not something I could "make anywhere".

Then one day I was helping a young woman with her newborn, cleaning for her, and listening to her talk about her birth story and her postpartum. She said it was difficult for her because her baby wanted to be held all the time, and she couldn't make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with one hand. So she'd been subsisting on Ramen, which she *could* make with one hand.... She told me she'd had a dream where she'd tied her baby to her with a sheet, and she described how she'd done it. Without even thinking, I said, "You know, you could make a sling out of a sheet, but you wouldn't tie it like that, you'd tie it like...."

Then we got out a sheet and I folded it and tied it to her, and we slid the baby into the sling we'd made, and suddenly she looked relieved! Her baby was snuggled close between her breasts, and her hands were free. She looked at me and said "I can make a peanut butter sandwich!" We laughed, and the relief she felt had me almost dancing out to my car when I left.

I thought about that for a long time, and the more I thought about it, the more frustrated I was that I hadn't known any traditional ways of wearing a baby when my daughter was a newborn. It should not be complicated, and little children should know how to tie a baby wrap as soon as they're old enough to play with dolls.

Soon after that, I attended the Midwifery Today Eugene 1996 conference. At the Tricks of the Trade circle, I demonstrated my "sling-from-a-sheet". After I was done, Fusako Sei, a Japanese midwife, came forward and used my sheet to demonstrate a traditional Japanese carry using a "volunteer" baby from the audience. Then the Inuit midwives came forward and showed a variation of that carry that covered the baby more. And finally came the Mexican midwives, with their rebozos, to show us a number of different ways of carrying a baby in a shawl. This was an amazing time for me, I soaked in the information eagerly. It was like a thirst being quenched, this desire I'd had to understand the many ways of carrying an infant. (for fantastic instructions on using wraps and traditional carriers of all kinds, including photographs and videos, see MamaToto.)

Since then I've shared these patterns and methods online, and one mom started sewing slings for her friends, and then her friends' friends. She e-mailed me to tell of the slings she'd made, polar fleece ones for winter, denim for older babies, buttery soft cotton interlock for newborns. I mentioned an idea I'd had of a cotton mesh sling to wear with a baby while swimming (well, wading, really). Another mom told me about the sling she'd rigged together with safety pins for her newborn. Another mom told me that she'd done the sling from a sheet, but now her baby was not happy there, so we talked about alternative positions for the baby, and I told her how to put her alert baby on her back while she attended to her toddler's needs.

I've also made a number of slings for my clients. I know how much my presence as a doula helps them in the birth process, and in the immediate postpartum. But I want my influence to be longer lasting than that.... So I make each client a sling. I show her how to use it. I encourage her to hold her baby as often as possible. And I pay attention to what they tell me about the history of each sling...

The first one I made is still in use (and that child is 27 months old), but in use by the sister of the woman I made it for, with her one year old. Another one was lost in the grocery store. Another one was used by both a mommy and a daddy, and I made a matching one for the big brother to carry his stuffed animals in.... I've made a number of them for little girls and boys I know, and they are all well used. The most recent one I made for a couple who adopted their baby. This sling holds this little guy close to his new mama, and they take him for long walks in it. No stroller. It calms him, they say, and they let him sleep on their chests at night. I promised them that by the time he's 18, he won't want to sleep on their chests anymore.

I feel very strongly that every mother should know how to wear her baby, whether or not she chooses to use that knowledge. How many times have you seen a mother juggling a stroller and a baby and a diaper bag and a toddler at a bus stop? How many times have you seen a parent with weary arms lugging a 35 pound toddler through a mall, carrying the child because little legs got tired?

A piece of fabric that is about 3 yards long and 12 inches wide can fold into a very compact bundle. The same piece of fabric can be turned into a backpack for a toddler or a hip carry for an older baby. The cost to make 5 of them out of interlock fabric is at most, six dollars apiece, if you get really expensive fabric. (3 yards at 10 dollars per yard, 60 inches wide)Any flat bedsheet can turn into a front-pack for a newborn, a nursing sling, or a hip carry. Larger bedsheets can turn into back carriers as well.Sewing a New Native style sling takes about 30 minutes, including custom fitting and threading the machine. Sewing one in the same style for a small child takes about 10 minutes. The fabric costs about $10 per sling, because it takes two yards and you can get two slings out of one length of fabric. That's assuming you buy really high quality cotton interlock at $10 per yard. If you get birdseye, you might only get one sling out of a length, but it's still only $6 worth of fabric. And birdseye can be washed at high temperatures, dyed any color (tie dye sling?) and sterilized, if necessary. Imagine an NICU with lots of birdseye slings, so that the babies who were big enough to be carried could be snuggled up with someone in constant motion rather than laid in a bassinet.

Birth professionals should know these techniques, and pass them on to their clients. We are in a unique position to influence our clients, and this particular influence can have far-reaching effects on the quality of life both for the families we serve and for their babies. We need to reclaim the wisdom of carrying our babies, and share it with our clients and our children.

Techniques:

Bedsheets:

Take any flat sheet larger than a crib sheet and smaller than a king sized sheet. Fold it lengthwise, and then fold it lengthwise again. At this point you will have a long strip of fabric. Find the middle of the length. Place the thickest fold "down" on the hip of the person who will wear the sling. Bring one end of the folded sheet up behind the person's back and over the person's opposite shoulder. Bring the other end up in front them, across their body and tie the two ends of the fabric in front of the shoulder, so that the knot is in front of the shoulder, and the fabric is spread out a bit across the shoulder and across the back. Don't tied the sling too tightly, leave a bit of "play", which can be snugged up after the baby is in the sling. This creates a "pocket" of the sheet, into which the baby will be put. Hold the baby on one shoulder, with one hand. With the other hand, pull apart two of the layers of the sling, and guide the baby's feet in between. Holding the sling open, use the other hand to allow the baby to slide down slowly into the sling "pocket". Newborns will snuggle into a ball between mother's breasts. This is fine... They can be adjusted a bit so that the knot or the fabric helps to support the head. A rolled up washcloth works well, too, to support the head. Older babies will go more "off center", toward the hip, and may want to be looking out more. They can sit in the sling facing mom or facing out. Once baby is in place, the knot can be loosened slightly, then the sling can be snugged so that the baby stays easily in place and mom feels secure. Once a good fit is acheived, it is unnecessary in most cases to repeatedly tie and untie the sling, as it can be simply slipped off over the head and slipped back on the same way. If the fabric slips, it can be safety pinned with diaper pins or sewn in place once a good fit is achieved.

If desired, for a lighter weight sling, a twin or queen sheet may be cut in half lengthwise and hemmed down the cut edge. This will only need to be folded once. It would make two slings, and would be a good thing to do with sheets from a second hand store like Goodwill or the Salvation Army. This technique can be used to make a hip carrier, but the toddler may be more comfortable sitting on a hip and having the fabric go just under his bottom, rather than trying to sit inside of the "pocket".

If you like this sling, and find it comfortable, you will probably love the New Native style carrier. These can be purchased from the company, or made by anyone who can sew even a little tiny bit. It's faster and easier with an overlock machine (a serger), but is still pretty darn simple with any normal sewing machine. I made my first one on a 25 year old Universal. (That machine is older than I am!)

"Tube" style sling (see also Rev. Jan's great DIY page!)

The concept for wearing the sling is very similar to the bedsheet sling.You will need 2 yards of soft cotton fabric. I recommend using either a very soft denim (feel the fabric and think about how it will feel on your baby's skin!) or cotton interlock. Interlock is ideal, but a tiny bit harder to work with. The fabric should be 45-60 inches wide. You can make a couple of "experimental" slings out of the cheapest fabric you can find that sews easily (quilting calico comes to mind). However, calico is not a comfortable long-wearing sling fabric.

Fold it in half the long way, matching selveges, and mark the middle all the way along. Open it up and cut it in half along the mark you've made. Each of these 2 yard lengths (22-30 inches wide, depending on the original width of the fabric) will make a sling.

Take one length, and fold it in half the long way. Take this and place the middle of the length on the shoulder of the person who will wear this sling. The fold should be at the shoulder, the cut edge and selvage should be at the neck. This is very, very important. Bring one end of the fabric diagonally across the back of the person who will wear it. Bring the other end diagonally across that person's front. The two ends should come together at the opposite hip, with the folded edge down and the cut/selvage edges up. Bring the folded bottom edges of the front and the back together at the top of the hip. Note where they meet, then allow an extra half inch or so and make marks front and back to determine where you will cut later. Use chalk, a safety pin, or something that you will be able to find easily later. Bring the top edges together under the arm, and then "give" some extra room (a couple of inches) to allow for a baby, plus a half inch on each side for a seam allowance. (5/8ths is fine if you want to be really exact.) Mark the place on all four upper edges.

Take the fabric off of them, and fold it in half end-to-end. Lay it down flat on a cutting surface and bring your marks together. They will not all meet exactly, but you should get them as close as possible while keeping the fabric smooth. You will cut a gentle curve (like the curve of a hip!) from the folded edge to the raw eges, with the marks being your guide for the ends of the curve. If the marks didn't meet up, err in the direction of leaving too much fabric, as this is easier to fix later on if necessary. Cut the curve. Unfold the fabric all the way, then re-fold it end-to-end, matching the curve as exactly as you can.

Serger: If you are going to be using an overlock machine, follow these instructions:

Serge the curved edge with a relatively short stitch pattern, preferably 4 threads. If the seam "ladders" at all when you open it up, it may be necessary to sew a single line of stitching with a regular sewing machine along the inside edge of the seam to hold it in place. If you have a stretch stitch, that's even better. Open out the sling and finish the raw edge and the selvege, preferably with a rolled hem, or with a flat serged edge which you can fold in and stitch down with a single line of stitching on a regular machine.

Regular sewing machine: If you don't have a serger, use these instructions:

Sew a 5/8 inch seam along the curve, preferably using a stretch stitch (a triple stitch works nicely if you have it). Trim one edge of the curve, and fold the untrimmed edge over the trimmed edge. If you like, you can use a basting stitch to hold it in place. Open the seam out flat, and lay the folded (basted) edge flat so that it covers any raw edges. Using a stretch stitch, if possible, sew the seam flat close to the edge of the fold. Take out the basting thread if you used one. This is an extremely strong seam. Now finish the raw edges. I prefer to make a small fold all the way along the edge, sew it down, roll it under, and then sew it down again. This leaves no raw edges anywhere on the sling.

Now that the sling is sewn, fold one edge to the other edge all the way around. The seam should be folded in half, and that will be the bottom part of the sling. The wearer will take the top of the sling and hold the folded edge with one hand, allowing the rest of the sling to hang down. The wearer will then put the opposite hand through the sling, and her head, and then allow the top of the sling to rest on her shoulder. With both hands she can smooth the fabric out along her shoulder and back. The baby can be put on the shoulder without the sling, and held with one hand while the wearer uses the other hand to pull the two layers of the sling apart (the "pocket"). The baby's feet can be placed in the sling, and then the baby can slide down slowly into it, just as with the bedsheet sling.

Once the wearer had tried this a couple of times, it's very, very simple. To nurse in the sling, the fabric on the inside can be pulled down to expose the breast. To allow the baby to see out, the fabric on the inside can be pulled up to reduce the amount of fabric on the outside.

http://www.ida.net/users/stace/sling.html is another set of instructions which are very similar (only a few differences in construction) with some *very* good diagrams.

Other easy homemade slings

To make a hip carrier out of a length of fabric, simply tie it in a sash, with the knot in front of the shoulder, and sit the baby on the bottom of the sash on the hip. Or tie two exactly the same length, wear one on each shoulder, crossed!

A long strip of fabric can be turned into a back carrier by placing the middle of the fabric behind the child's back and bringing the fabric under the child's arms. The child is then placed high on the parent's back, with the parent leaning forward a bit. (There's a knack to this which involves keeping a hold on the fabric while swinging the child around to the back, then using the fabric to hold the child in place while the "sling" is finished). The ends of the fabric come over the parent's shoulders, cross in front across the parent's chest, and then wrap around behind the parent, over the child's legs, and then tie under the child's bottom in the middle of the parent's back. This allows the child's and the parent's arms to be free while securely keeping the child on the parent's back. This is a cozy carrier, and does not displace the parent's center of gravity to the same degree as a backpack does. It also distributes the child's weight in such a way that the parent does not have to "hunch" over to keep the child in place the same way they would with a "piggy-back ride". It's a comfy way to carry a walking child who is a bit too heavy for a sling.

The same theory can be used to make a warmer back-carry that's good for both toddlers and babies as young as about 3 months. Instead of a long strip of fabric, a very large triangle is used, and the child's arms may either be free or trapped by the fabric. The knot secures the "point" of the triangle, making a large shawl for the baby and mother. The general placement and technique are similar. The baby rides fairly high up while the carrier is being tied, then slips down a little once the knot is in place.

A rebozo (a very large woven scarf) can be slung over one shoulder and tied at the opposite hip to tie a baby on, similar to the bedsheet sling. Or it can be folded and tied in front of the shoulder. There are a number of other possible carries with it, but I am not sure how they are all accomplished. One of those demostrated by Doña Hermila Diego Gonzalez (a Mexican Grand Midwife) at the Midwifery Today conference did not involve any knots at all.

There are many other ways of wearing babies, these are the ones I know and share with you. If you have other ways, I would love to hear them, if you have pictures or methods, you can send them to me. My goal is to teach as many people as possible the different ways of holding and carrying babies, so that mothers will have an easier time of caring for their little ones and their little ones will have an easier time growing up.

Copyright © 1997, by Jennifer Rosenberg All rights reserved. Single copy reproduction for personal use acceptable. May not be published or reprinted in any other form, electronic or printed without written permission. Portions of this article appeared in Midwifery Today magazine issues number 44 and 45. Updated slightly with links, August 2005.

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