Osnaburg vs Duck

In the USA, found at almost all fabric stores and most Walmarts with a fabric section. Only comes in one weight, so if the bolt tag says "osnaburg" you can know it's safe to use.

Employees, however, will likely have no clue what it is, where to find it, or if they have it. You will simply have to rummage through the muslin and burlap bolts and find it yourself.

Outside of the USA, it can be extremely difficult to locate and the prices can be astronomical if you do locate it.

In the USA, available at nearly all fabric stores and most Walmarts with a fabric section. Especially easy to locate at Walmart because most Walmarts will essentially have two large sections of printed cotton fabric: one that is all thin quilter's cotton, and one that is all thick, canvassy duck cloth. Walmart sells Waverly brand duck cloth that is conveniently printed with "wv dk" and the weight ("185 gsm") on the bolt tag.

Most fabric store employees will know what duck is and where it is.

When shopping at JoAnn's and some fabric stores, it is sometimes grouped with the "outdoor fabrics" so you have to look out for the "wipe with a damp cloth" fabrics that are coated to make them water resistant.

A lot of solid-colored duck cloth is a much heavier weight than the patterned stuff and less desireable for a wrap or sling (but still fine for an SSC.)

Very light and breathable (nearly, if not just as, breathable as linen.) Great for hot weather wearing. Thin enough to not be overwhelming with a newborn, but still supportive enough for a bigger baby.

Due to the thinner thickness, some wearers find osnaburg "diggy" and uncomfortable with toddlers, especially in single-pass carries like a rucksack back carry.

Tight, supportive weave. Breathable, but not as much as osnaburg or some other fabrics.

Very toddler-worthy.

Broken-in duck can be fine for a newborn, but breaking in new, stiff duck with a newborn may be a bit frustrating and cumbersome. Do a lot of knot-dragging and sitting on the wrap before trying to use.

Moderately to very grippy. Tends to "stick" to itself. This can make tightening multi-pass carries (especialy back carries, like Double Hammock) difficult, as the passes want to "cling" to each other. On the other hand, this grip generally means that a well-tightened carry will remain rock solid, and you don't have to worry about slack working its way back into a carry.

Slip knots can be a bear with new osnaburg, but once broken in, the grip has the advantage of never letting your slip knot slip when you don't want it to.

Works fine as a ring sling with either large or medium rings.

Moderately glide, less grip. Multi-pass carries easily slide across each other. This can make it very easy to tighten cross passes across each other, but also means that if your carry isn't thoroughly tightened, it may "sink" as slack works its way back into the carry.

Holds slipknots moderately well, but needs small sling rings for single ring finishes as mediums tend to slip too easily.

Works fine as a ring sling with large rings.

Solid color duck is typically too thick for wraps or slings.

Patterned duck comes in a wide assortment of colored patterns. These patterns are printed, though, leaving the back side blank/white. While some wearers are fine with the blank "wrong" side, some are bothered by it, especially for ring slings wear the wrong side is prominently displayed on the tail.

This can be alleviated by dyeing the duck so that the back side is at least a solid color instead of white, or (in the case of a ring sling) adding a stripe or pocket of patterned fabric to the end of the tail.

Requires scouring before using.

Machine washable and dryable. Will shrink a ton with the first wash/dry (up to 20%.)