No Sew Baby Carrier

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".