Jessica Quigley Review: Size 4 Cotton

Review by Carry Little Hearts 

Apple Blossom Evening Flame, red weft, size 4

I had the fantastic opportunity to review an Apple Blossom Woven wrap belonging to a good friend of mine. When she offered to let me test drive it for a few weeks to review it, I was over the moon! I had been hearing so many great things about this company and these wraps in almost every chatter group that I’m part of. I knew that I needed to get my hands on one and see what all the hype was about.

True to the hype, Evening Flame did not fail to wow me right out of the mail! My first impression was that it was very soft in hand, like a well-loved blanket or hoodie. I couldn’t believe that it was relatively new and from a single owner. This kind of softness is usually reserved for wraps that have been well loved over a very long period of time. And the colors were equally as stunning! In person it looks like a deep evening sunset over the mountains in the front of my house. The way the colors, completely on opposite ends of the spectrum, gradually blend into one another as they do so often in the atmosphere can make one question why they are not side by side on the color wheel instead. Having the colors blend in the middle and separate again at the rails also allows the wearer to ‘flip rails’, making either one the top rail depending on their mood or clothing of choice on any given day.

One of the things that I fell in love with right away were the selvage edges (selvedges)! That is a favorite feature for me when it comes to handwovens and that this company pulls it off with a machine woven that has the look and feel of a handwoven is phenomenal. Unhemmed edges make tying knots easier because you don’t have to manhandle them tighter around extra fabric. The texture of this wrap helps to hold knots firmly in place, and it also lets the wearer pull off amazing ring finishes. As I am in the middle of a ring challenge, I was able to test this out for myself and true to form they didn’t slip once!

I wrapped my 24lb toddler using multiple back carries and a front carry. While I usually prefer multiple pass carries, we spent a day in a ruck with a Tibetan knotless finish while decluttering and spring cleaning the house. I was surprised at how comfortable it was on my shoulders, only giving a slight dig towards the end of the day. And while there was a little sagging in the middle as the day wore on, I feel like the wrap held up very well. After all, finding a wrap that can carry a heavy toddler for hours in a ruck and not have it sag in the middle is a hard find indeed. I believe that with a smaller child it would be amazing for quick ups in a ruck carry and for longer periods of time without digging into the shoulders. Also, the texture of the wrap can cause it to wrap a little short, depending on the finish that you try. My Tibetan knotless had short little tails but they held in place nicely. So if you are adamant about long, flowing tails then you may consider getting a size up.

I loved it in multiple pass back carries! There’s enough lateral stretch that it has the bounce of a handwoven and the weave is tight enough that it gives it a firmness of a machine woven. My little one stayed in place on our many walks and the only time on our long, 2+ mile hike that I had to stop and adjust was because she popped her seat when she decided that she wanted to walk. It was quite a lot of work for her to pop her seat, let me tell you! It took her about ½ hour to get one side of it even a little loose.

My front carry experience was a short lived one, as my daughter only tolerates them for about 20 minutes. She much prefers back carries. However, not only did my ring finish stay in place, but the passes were snug and easy to pull up over her back. It was soft on my shoulders and didn’t dig in anywhere. I believe that this will be amazing with a little child or newborn. I hope that someday I can make another review while wearing one!

Overall I would label this wrap as thin, with incredible texture and grip that allow for tight medium sized knots and passes that stay in place, even on 2+ mile hikes over a moderately inclined terrain. It has bounce and a little give that allows for cushy shoulders while being tightly woven and firm in all the right places without being unforgiving. This is a wrap that I would readily recommend to both new and experienced wrappers and will soon be in search of one for my own stash.