Over 2 months ago, I received an email pitch asking whether I would be interested to review a babywearing products and to be honest, I wasn't even aware that I was already expecting my 3rd child then. The moment we tested positive for our home pregnancy test, I wrote in telling the PR rep about the news and that I might not be able to do the review due to my physical condition but after some emails to and fro, we decided to go ahead and try this out as I was thinking if I can't use it, my hubby can try it out since he also babywears our kiddos as well. So here goes my review for "Hippychick Hipseat":
Description from the product page:
"They say the best inventions are often the simplest and this could not be truer when it comes to the Hippychick Hipseat. It allows parents to carry children naturally on their hips without the usual strains to the back and has the support and endorsement of scores of chiropractors and osteopaths.
Acts as a back support for the wearer (similar to weight belt/motor cyclists belt/lumbar support) and is a very effective way of redistributing the weight from the neck, spine and shoulders. The more tightly the belt is worn the firmer the support on both counts. The weight is spread around the waist, hips and pelvis and the support comes from under the child rather than weight being borne from above. "
The reason why I decided to go ahead to review the Hippychick Hipseat is because it reminded me of the countless times I have to carry my girl (10kg = a bag of rice) and relied on my hips to support her. Just look at the picture below taken of our family (when we got to test drive Nissan LEAF for over 6 weeks) and hubby and I had to carry our kiddos each to pose for a family picture with our Nissan LEAF.
Okay, back to this product... I mean, this product is brilliant, I have personally not come across products like this until I received the email pitch to review this! Maybe I'm just not well aware of the babywearing products out in the market. Let's have a look at the features and layout of the product shall we?
Firstly, I am so thrilled I was given the purple colored one as purple is my favorite color! Yipee! Now, there's this belt which you need to put across your waist area and Velcro as tight as you can take it (as the tighter it is, the firmer the support it gave) followed by a strong buckle which you can easily clip on to secure the belt. Oh, and there is this tiny little clip which helps secure the remaining of the buckle strap so that it does not flap everywhere around your legs or waist.
Next, pictures of the product logo beautifully sewn and the warning label for your attention. There's a note telling you that you should always place one hand on your child and if you are pregnant, you need to consult your doctor whether you should continue using this product or not. On the right hand side of the picture below, you can also see 4 inner pockets (some with different widths) which you can slot in your personal belongings like mobile phone, identity cards, keys, some cash, anything actually!
Now a look at the important part, where your child is going to sit on. From the front view, it looks like a giant pouch, don't worry, you can take out the inside foam material by just unzipping the front pouch. Top view you can see a nice flat platform where your child can sit on.
Some more pictures of the product being worn by me... without the kids at this point still...
Pictures below taken showing how my kiddos look like seated on the Hippychick Hipseat. Yes, I tried it out with both my kiddos because the label stated the product can be used for kids between 6 months to 3 years old or between 6 to 20kgs. Alyson weighs 10kg now and Benjamin is 16kg so I definitely tried this out on both of them.
Initial reaction on kiddos? Well, they feel weird to be sitting on this funny looking platform. I am happy to note they don't move around or try to do anything funny while sitting on it (like, I don't know suddenly decided to jump or slide away or something - this is just my personal paranoia) Look at the picture below of Alyson giving her thumbs up (not really a thumbs up but she always shows her index finger when she wanted to say 'Good!')
I like that I don't have to stand weirdly on 1 side to balance my child on my hip now that I can rely on Hippychick Hipseat to do the job. Of course, I do need to still put a cautionary hand behind my child's back but I'm happy to note that my child sits comfortably on the seat.
Here's few more pictures taken during our latest family outing to Ikea. Hubby gets to try out the Hippychick Hipseat this time and he said it is easy to put on, not difficult at all to adjust according to his waistline and he easily put our girl onto the seat and walks on. I also tried on the Hippychick Hipseat when hubby had to make payment at the cashier counter and need to lug the stuff we bought from Ikea. Hubby is a bit worried when he saw me putting on the Hippychick Hipseat as his concern is my pregnant state. Oh well, better to have a worried hubby :)
In summary, this is one product that I will definitely use again and again during our family outing. It's easy to bring along, I just chuck it into our child's stroller and use it when one of the kiddos wants to be carried (Benjamin usually prefers to sit in the stroller after he gets tired of walking). And by the way, if your child gets too old or too heavy for this product, you can recycle it by taking out the inner foam material and reuse it as a waist pouch! Awesome right?!
You can get more info from www.hippychick.com or Bloom & Grow website.
I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the product in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine.
