In carriers with body panels, the body panel is sized to the child, whereas the straps are sized for the wearer.
In the chart below, the "height" for the body panel includes the height of the waistband. If you are constructing your onbuhimo with a separate body panel and waist band (which adds additional height to the body panel) be sure to account for this.
If your body panel is more of an hourglass shape, the "width" should be the width of the carrier just above the top of the waistband, where baby's knees would be coming off the side of the carrier. The body panel can be wider below this, flaring out for the waist band, and narrower above this point.
Strap lengths are approximate and fairly flexible. In general, it is better to err long. Long straps can always be hemmed shorter, but there is no safe way to add length to short straps. The lengths here are from the outside edge of the body panel to the end of the strap and do NOT include the additional 5 inches or so needed to sink into the body panel for reinforcment stitching.
There is a very wide range in "acceptable length" for a reverse onbuhimo. This is because I reverse onbuhimo can be worn with the straps threaded through the shoulder straps' double rings and left hanging in which case a simple 12" of extra tail just for security is fine and safe) or the straps can be longer in order to allow for reinforcing passes or a tibetan finish up front for more support.
BOTTOM STRAPS |
|
Width (double layer tube straps) |
4 inches |
Width (single layer wrap straps) |
10-15 inches |
Length (standard/minimum) |
40 inches |
Length (plus size/fancy finishes) |
80 inches |
Shoulder strap length will determine how far the rings come down over your shoulders. 10"-12" is fairly standard but you may need to add or subtract a few inches if you are particularly far off of average size. This length has the bottom of the rings nearly flush with the bottom of the strap.
Author's note: my XL husband and my S-M self use the same 10" shoulder straps. They are perfect for me. He could probably use another inch or two, but is comfortable with 10 straps.
PADDED SHOULDER STRAPS |
|
Width (double layer tube straps) |
3-5 inches |
Length (standard) |
10-12 inches |