Safrika Kanga test & review

Tested item: Safrika Kanga baby wrap traditionell (traditional)
Colour: blue-purple
Material: cotton
Dimensions: 170x110cm

About the brand: Safrika, a combination of S(arah) & Afrika, has been founded by young mom and student Sarah from Germany. She’s out and about everyday and didn’t find a stroller or pacifier convenient. That’s why she grabbed a wrap and wouldn’t want to live without it. The wraps in her shop are traditional Kanga wraps as we know them from Africas East Coast. Their meaning goes way beyond babywearing. If you want to dive in, you’ll find a lot of information… anyway, Safrika chooses and buys the fabric from Kumasi/Ghana.

My first impression: The Safrika isn’t my first Kanga and probably not the last one 😉 The size is quite the same (I guess it’s a standard size) but this one is less sleek. It feels like a regular, thin scarf, is very densely woven and the colours are bright and vivid due to the waxing technique as it’s described on their website. I really love the design. There are several other beautiful designs available, you’ll for sure find your match…

Safrika Kanga – a new kind of wearing your baby

How to use it: As already explained in the other article, the Kanga can’t be used like a long wrap. It’s a one-layer torso carry that’s finished above and under your chest without a knot. I prefer the method where I’m twisting both ends and tuck them under the fabric, you can also choose to finish the top line like a bath towel, just hop over to Safrika’s website, you’ll find a nice video tutorial there. It’s important to have everything really tight and your baby or child safely close to your back, arms in or out (for toddlers). I usually finish top and bottom and then readjust the top because that way my girl is secured and I can stand up straight to retie whilst I’m bending my back when I tie the top part after my girl’s ony my back. I hope you know what I mean 😉 If you’re a pro already, you’ll sure find your way without having to retie… You can also use your Kanga in a rebozo style with a knot.

How does it fit: You really have to get used to the Kanga feeling! You won’t feel safe at the beginning and might constantly be afraid your baby might fall down but that won’t happen if you did it correctly. The fabric is tucked unter baby’s bum and provides the usual seat you’ll also know from the Ruck carry. The twisted ends are tucked as well in front of you and babys weight will fix them and they’ll really stay in place unless you’ll doing jumping jacks which you wan’t do of course – beware! 😉 Once used to it, you’ll love it as it’s a very quick, easy and material-saving way to put your baby on your back. The kanga piece fits in your handbag or you might also use it as a scarf or bikini skirt on the beach when you’re not carrying your child…

You don’t like weight on your shoulders? Use a Kanga!

Point 2 that’s unfamiliar: the baby is rather sitting on your hips then behind your shoulders. It won’t be able to look over your shoulder (which might be unfamiliar for the child, too and it will try leaning to the side to see something if you’re not moving 😉 The deep balance point puts the weight on your hips only, which is the best argument to use a Kanga if you’re shoulder-sensitive! Anyway, you can try to carry your baby a bit higher but I didn’t really manage to acchieve it 😀
Point 3: you’ll have to get used to the feeling that your breasts will be squeezed. Especially when full-time breastfeeding you might not like the pressure or even feel that it may cause galactostasia. If so, please wait a few months and try it again later. I didn’t feel an impact like this, I just didn’t like the pressure for longer time but for short use it was okay and it’s definitely very individual if you recognize anything or not…

Conclusion: Do consider grabbing a Kanga and adding it to your stash, not only because it’s a fancy, good-looking multi-purpose kind of fabric but also because it doesn’t need much space but is at hand whenever needed. As long as my kids weren’t like 4 years old I’d never dare to leave the house with any backup to carry them home and the Kanga is nice for tired toddlers, too, not also for babies. I just wouldn’t do a hike with it, but imagine two running kids on the streets or in the grocery store? I used the Kanga during our holidays and it was perfect. I’ve went doing the laundry with it and loaded our plates for lunch, all with hands free – really convenient! And at the beach, it can serve as towel to sit on etc. 🙂

Tested in summer 2018 with my 18 months old girl – thanks to the sponsor for the opportunity!