Aruga Handwovens is a proud Philippine-based sling maker who creates their wraps by hand and makeshift looms. The humble company is owned by a Certified Babywearing Consultant, Ms Jeannie Laccay. She is a mom of two, a successful weaving master, a stand-up comedian and one of the leaders of the Babywearing Philippines Organization. I have known her personally since we were batchmates during our consultancy training in April 2019 at KL. She is a driven woman and has a passion in sharing her weaving skills to empower Filipino women and make this slowly-fading industry alive again. I am also proud to share that Aruga Handwovens is being used by celebrities here in the Philippines and is also making its name abroad. The term “aruga” is a Filipino word which means “care”.
Ms Jeannie sent me one of her personally handcrafted woven wrap, the Candy Cane, to use as a babywearing demo, and a sampler to those interested with Aruga Handwovens. Since I am petite, a Size 4, my base size, is already sufficient with me.
About the Wrap:
Warp: 100% Cotton, Playful random mix of pastel colors such as baby pink, sunny yellow, sky blue and mint green
Weft: 100% Cotton, white
Thickness: ___GSM
Tails: short tail with fringes (3-4 inches in length), not sloped or tapered
Sides: identical on both sides
Middle marker: made with leather, bears an engraved logo of Aruga Handwovens
What’s to Love with Aruga Handwovens Candy Cane Woven Wrap?
1. It is already soft upon arrival / fresh-from-the-loom state
2. I washed it first before using it. Washing the wrap wasn’t very tedious, so it’s a plus for me. It doesn’t require complicated steps, just soak, rinse and dry.
3. Since it’s made with 100% Cotton, it feels cool on the skin, especially with a humid weather such as here in the Philippines.
4. The wrap smoothly glides at the same time grippy.
5. I have used it with my then small baby, and also with my preschooler and it’s safe to say that it is sturdy enough to carry babies both big and small ones.
6. Simple, sustainable packaging as it came with a big katsa bag. The bag has Aruga Handwovens’ logo on one side and a cute caricature on the other. It also came with a small note pad.
7. The middle marker is cute, too!
Something to Improve in my Opinion:
1. Knot-tying is a little bit challenging for me because of how thick the wrap is, prolly because of the thick individual thread fibers but that’s just my viewpoint.
There were very few imperfections on the wrap (just found two) like skipped stiches but I really don’t mind because knowing that it was made with love and care by a mother’s hand is truly one of a kind feeling.
Overall Impression:
Aruga Handwovens Candy Cane Woven Wrap is an eye-candy as much as it serves its main purpose. It took me a while to give reviews as I see it well-fitting so that I can attest to products’ overall durability with ample care and moderate use (I still utilize my own carriers for daily use to preserve product samplers) and yes, Aruga Handwovens is a carrier that can withstand for long periods of time, with little to no fading and nor fabric turning brittle or harsh.
Truly, it is worthy of its price and a world class product.
Thank you, Ms Jeannie, for sending your wrap, for sharing your talents and skills to Filipino weavers, and for being a great babywearing advocate. Keep on producing quality wraps for all the babywearers worldwide.
Babywear Smart 