Lillebaby review: why I ditched my other baby carriers for a Lillebaby

If you’ve been a long time reader you know that when my oldest, Hudson, was a baby I had all sorts of carriers – wraps and ring slings and mei teis and buckle carriers. I tried just about everything and used them all quite a bit. However, when I was pregnant with my second baby, Parker, I discovered Lillebaby carriers. They sounded perfect so I decided to give one a try. Here’s my Lillebaby review and why it has now become my main carrier.

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The draw

The biggest thing that drew me to getting a Lillebaby was the fact that you could use it from birth (7 pounds) to toddlerhood (45 pounds) with no need for an infant insert of any kind. This was the first SSC (soft structured carrier) that I’d heard of that you could use with an infant without needing a big bulky insert.

Lillebaby Complete carriers have an adjustable seat that you can make narrow for infants and then wider as they get older, eliminating the need for an insert. Here is the first picture I have wearing Parker in a Complete All Seasons when he was 11 days old.

What I love

Lillebaby Completes can be used from birth (this is my #1 favorite thing!)
They come with lumbar support that makes it more comfortable to wear the carrier for long periods of time.
The panel has an adjustable head support (you can see it snapped down in the picture above, and flipped up in the picture below)

What I don’t love

There is really only one thing I don’t like about the Lillebaby and that is the fact that there was a period of time that I couldn’t back carry with it. See, standard babywearing guidelines are that once your child is 6 months old and can sit up unsupported, you can start wearing them on your back in a SCC/buckle carrier. However, Lillebaby states that you should not back carry in the narrow seat setting, only in the wide seat setting, but many babies do not fit into the wide seat until they are quite a bit older than 6 months. So there was a gap of time that Parker was big enough and old enough to be worn on my back but not big enough to be in the wide seat in the Lillebaby, so for that period of time if I wanted to back carry I used my Ergo instead.

Now he fits into the wide seat so we’re back to using the Lille all the time.

Pictures

Here are some current pictures wearing Parker (now almost 15 months old) in a Lillebaby Complete Original (different style from the first picture I showed but still the same basic carrier) both on the front (top pictures) and back (bottom pictures)

And while technically Hudson could still fit in a Lillebaby Complete based on weight (it goes up to 45 pounds) I went ahead and got him a Lillebaby Carry On (Lillebaby’s toddler-sized carrier). It’s surprisingly comfortable to wear him, even though he weighs 36 pounds and is in 4T clothes! I don’t wear him a ton but it is nice to have sometimes when I need my hands free or he is especially clingy.

The links I’ve provided in this post are all to Amazon, but I actually usually purchase my carriers through Kelly’s Closet because you can earn points back and get free gifts with purchase.

(P.S. Wondering how to get your child on your back with a baby carrier? Check out this video I made showing how I do it.)