Omma's Brands!

I thought I'd start a new category of Omma's brands.  Like you, I have brands that I believe are tried and true.  And I'll periodically give a "shout out" to these brands.

Since I'm a babywearing Omma, I'll start with baby carriers.  A good carrier is worth its weight in gold.  Don't bother with anything that isn't ergonomically designed for both you and baby (so that means Baby Bjorn is not on my list).

My all time favorite carrier is the chunei.  It is based off the Korean podegi which less skill involved on the wearer's part.  It distributes the weight of your baby/child along your torso and keeps your child in a natural seated position.  My kids and I LOVE this carrier.  The downside of the carrier is that it is not easily adjustable between wearers (it is based on shirt size) so my DH cannot wear this carrier.

For my DH I got him the ErgoBaby Sport carrier.  He is tall and the sport has an extra four inches in the shoulder straps so that the chest strap fits where it should (on his chest).  I can also adjust it down enough for me.  The sport is a lighter-weight material than the original so it breathes better for baby and wearer which is great for summer.  The downside is that it really is a baby carrier instead of a toddler carrier.  The back panel is only 13" x 13" (vs. 16" tall on the chunei).  So as your child grows their legs may become more "pinched" in this carrier as they lose that natural seated position due to their long heavy legs.  Although weight wise it will be difficult to outgrow this as the weight limit is 90 lbs!

Unfortunately most of these "premium" carriers are not available at a regular store.  Which makes it difficult to find the best one.  There are certain babywearing groups that will have periodic meetings where you can try on different member's carriers.  This is the best way to try them out.  Otherwise do research and make the best guess possible (and find a place that will accept your return for a full refund if you hate the carrier).

Two great websites for finding out what carrier is best for your body type and babywearing needs (the first one also has a forum which you need to register for free to see but has more reviews from actual users):

http://www.thebabywearer.com/
http://www.theportablebaby.com/carrierfeatures.html

If you are feeling adventurous, you can SEW your own carrier.  Here's a link for various patterns and help: http://www.thebabywearer.com/lists/Sewing.htm

Depending on what you want, it may be cheaper to buy a nice used version rather than make it yourself.  For certain carriers the materials may be expensive.  But price it out, you could make a custom carrier for not a lot of money!  (Just be sure to reinforce all connecting pieces for safety reasons!)