"Size doesn't matter....it's what you do with it"
Something I often hear or see amongst the online chat groups is people starting off a post like this. "Looking for a wrap to fit me, I'm a size ...." There seems to be a common misconception that wrap sizes measure similarly to our clothing sizes. So someone who is a size 8 would need a size 5 wrap and someone who's a size 16 would need a size 7 wrap etc. This isn't necessarily the case. Size doesn't matter, it's what you can do with it that counts. At the end of the day, a wrap is a piece of material woven into various lengths. These lengths don't determine the size you need. You'll often see or hear the term "Base Size" floating around. This "size" is often determined by what length of wrap you can comfortably do a FWCC (Front Wrap Cross Carry) with and still have enough material to tie a knot comfortably. These tend to vary between wrap sizes 5/6/7/8. Your base size can change. You may find that as your baby grows, so does your base size. There are a few lovely infographics floating around that illustrate the different carries you can do with any size woven wrap. For example, a double hammock. When I first tried a double hammock, I could barely tie it with a size 7 wrap. This was a base +1 for me. As my confidence grew and I became better with my tightening, I was soon able to comfortably do this carry and tie off with my base size. Watch this! I soon discovered that I could do this same carry with a base -1 by just making a slight alteration to it. Rather than tying at the front, I was able to tie at the back, under the bum. Another variation I could now magically do was add a CCCB (candy cane chest belt) meaning that I was now tying at the shoulder. Also, with the use of sling rings, I was able to get more length with a shorter wrap! How awesome is that! Here's an example of two different sized wraps doing the same carry 💙 http://d.pr/i/qQOG http://d.pr/i/be0M