Easy Newborn Carrier From 3 T-shirts

This simple carrier is especially good for babies under 15 pounds and requires NO pattern, NO sewing, NO tying. Great for skin-to-skin kangaroo care.

As a safety reminder, stretchy wraps and carriers should never be used for back carries.

Step 1: Find 3 shirts

Find 3 t-shirts that are slightly too small for you. You want seamless t-shirts (no seams/stitching down the sides) that are made of 100% cotton jersey (regular t-shirt material.) Avoid ribbed tank tops or paper-thin t-shirts. You can find cheap t-shirts at thrift stores, solid color t-shirts at most craft stores (on the aisles with tie dye kits and appliques) or check the men’s underwear department at your local big-box store for packs of plain white undershirt t-shirts. Just make sure they are at least a size too small and seamless. Jersey stretches; you want as much support as possible. The ideal size once you have the carrier cut and on is to be thinking, "I barely fit in here; how am I supposed to fit a baby in here, too?!"

Step 2: Cut

Cut all three shirts straight across right below the armpits so you have three loops. No need to hem; jersey won’t unravel. If you choose to hem, use a zigzag or stretch stitch, otherwise the stitches will snap when the fabric stretches.

Step 3: Wear

Put one loop around your hips. Put the second around your torso diagonally over one shoulder and under the other arm (like a sash.) Put the third diagonally across your torso in the opposite direction of the second (so you have them going in an X across your chest and back.) Make sure the cross-sashes aren't twisted. Spread them out over your shoulder so that each one caps from your neck down over the top of your arm and make sure the diagonal passes across your back are wide and spread. The loop around your hips should be bunched up low and out of the way.

Step 4: Insert Baby

Insert baby upright into the inside sash first, and then the outside sash, with the X crossing between their legs. Spread both passes of the X out so that BOTH passes extend from one of your baby’s knee-pits to the other. The bum should sink down into a little “seat” with the knees slightly higher and supported. Gently press up on their heels to help their hips settle into the "M" position. Don’t spread the fabric past their knees; the knees should be able to swing freely.

Pull the third loop up from around your hips and spread it from the nape of baby’s neck down to tucked under their bum, all the way so that it comes up in front of them between the two of you. Make sure this pass doesn’t cover their feet. This pass should also support knee-to-knee.

If baby needs a little extra neck support, lay their head on your chest and pull the loop that is behind their head up over it (so it is covering the back of their head, leaving their airway clear.) If you do this, you can take the edge of the fabric on the opposite sash (the coming down from right by your neck down in front of their face) and pull it away, over your shoulder so that both edges of the fabric are capping your shoulder. This will keep that pass from interferring with baby's airway.

This video shows how to wear a brand-name K'tan baby carrier. There are some differences (which can be minimalized in Step 6: Getting Fancy) but she thoroughly covers proper technique and fitting.

Step 5: Safety

Make sure baby stays upright, supported, visible, kissably close. Make sure baby is always supported by all three passes. Jersey gets saggy with bigger babies, so this carrier is only really a viable option for them when they are very small. This is NOT a safe carrier for back carries. Always refer to TICKS for safety, and as with any stretchy carrier, ALWAYS use all three passes to support baby, even if they are small enough that two passes "feels" safe.

Step 6: Optional, Getting Fancy

If you want to make your carrier slightly more like the K'tan brand baby carrier, cut a strip of scrap from your unused t-shirt bits and tie the two cross-loops together where they cross in the back. Then cut the horizontal loop at a diagonal (if you were wearing it as a t-shirt, you’d be cutting from one armpit down to the opposite hip, so you get a long tapered parallelogram) and use it to tie around the baby after getting the cross passes into place instead of wearing the loop around your hips and pulling it up.

-- Alyssa Leonard - 2016-07-16

Return to Main - TICKS Rules for Safe Babywearing