Old, new, borrowed, and blue - Reviews of Acorn Burnish Gossamer and Grape Twilight Fractals

I'm writing a review of two wraps today - both quite different in almost every way, but both absolutely fantastic. First off, I'll write about Acorn Burnish Gossamer which is a newer release that I'm lucky enough to be borrowing for a week. Second I'll be writing about Grape Twilight Fractals, which is an absolute classic that has had a lot of love over the years.

Pleats beautifully!

Acorn Burnish Gossamer is 100% cotton, released on May 10 2017 - 275 GSM, and is an absolute workhorse! Partly due to the supportive weave, and partly the heavier weight, I find it very comfortable with big kiddos. It's got lovely texture, and would be delightful in a shorty or base size... And it goes without saying that this would be absolutely amazing for little ones! Fispi cotton is basically designed for squishy little ones!
 

Such a beautiful and subtle grad

Burnish is one of my very favorite warps so far... It's so kitten soft right out of the bag, and the color is so beautiful and earthy. It's a fun gray/brown, and it feels like the most loved shirt, worn and snuggly. I'm still honeymooning with Elven, and it's been some time since it released.

Big kiddos needed bribes to go up today... but once they're up they're happy!

Acorn is a very subtle grad, and it reminds me most of dappled light on a forest floor. It's perfect in combination with burnish, makes the burnish look very brown compared to Sapphire or Elven. I live in a forested area, and it makes me feel at home... And I'd never worry much about it getting dirty!

The grad colors are really amazing in Acorn, so subtle but it looks like it's glowing

One downside is that I also live in a very warm and humid climate, and I think in a long size this may be a bit too snuggly and blankety for us. For those in cooler areas, it'd be fantastic no matter the time of year... but heading into summer with temps up to 95f, this might be a bit warm.

Glides into place, and the texture helps keep it there 

Grape Fractals is 50% lambswool, released Nov 14th, 2013 - I'm not certain about the GSM, but it feels thin in hand while having an amazing amount of bounce and cushiness!

Wrapee is 5 years old, and mom reported that he felt "weightless."

We bought this well loved wrap, and it's obviously cuddled many babies. It has absolutely no prickle, is so well broken in and smushy, and is AMAZING with big kiddos. It's quite narrow in width, but I've never had trouble getting a seat in it, and even with longer ups, I've never had the slightest bit of dig. Very solid, largely due to the weave, and it holds a slip knot beautifully.

No issue making a good seat

We had reports of this wrap being "so cozy," and he didn't want to get down after pictures!

The colors are beautiful and classic - the twilight cotton looks quite purple next to the purple wool. The design is fun, though not a personal favorite. It wraps a lot like Gossamer, with amazing grip and support.

While he did require a bribe to get him up there, he was the one insisting he stay up!

I have to mention again how amazingly well wool has been doing in the heat. I know this isn't new information for many people, but I am constantly surprised by this reality! Grape has been a go to for us, even with temperatures up to 95f, and it handles the heat better than 100% cotton in my opinion.

So proud of his lollypop!

Grape Fractals was a total impulse purchase, but I think it'll be with us for a good long while! I've really been enjoying our holiday with Acorn, and one day I'll probably have it as a shorty or ringsling. 

Double Weft Prototype Weave

I was so excited when I first saw hints at this wrap on Instagram; mostly because Charters Moss is one of my all-time favorite patterns, and this is one of my favorite color combinations. I didn't really know what to expect from the double-weft weave, but I knew that I wanted to try it!

                 

Such Gorgeous color and shimmer.

     

So, naturally, I emailed the Fispi ladies to shamelessly beg a chance at the tester. They were sweet enough to send it out soon after, and now there are two out on tour - one in the US, and one in the UK.

Bright white on one side, gorgeous blue on the other.

On first play, this reminded me a lot of the Elements weave. It has the same tight feel to it, so you know you can really abuse these wraps as needed. It doesn't have quite the same smooshy, kitten-belly soft feel of the Alchemy weave, but it's really nice in different ways.

More weave details. The white really stands out from the blue.

Despite looking similar to the Elements weave, this had a wholly unique feel while wrapping. The double weft seemed to allow it to shift and stretch in ways I hadn't seen before, making for a very comfortable wrap job with both big and little kids. This had a really nice balance of glide and grip, I'd be confident with this weave in any length. It's remarkably thin in hand, and very good in the heat - but I didn't have any issues with digging or sagging at all. I think the tight weave makes this a perfect combination of sturdy functionality, while maintaining an almost silky, slinky softness that made wrapping a pleasure.

Big kid approved!

This wrap has a white warp(running the length of the wrap) and two separate weft threads(running the width) - one white and one blue. This made for an extremely bright contrast between the blue and white, and there was so much more detail in the pattern than you could achieve with Alchemy weave. When I was discussing this feature with a local friend, they made the comparison between an old LCD monitor, and a High-Definition TV. The color is absolutely stunning and the pattern beautiful. I'm so excited to see what other designs will look like in this weave!

Details in the pattern are more defined in this weave.

I will say - this is not the same weave as Ali Dover uses in her Hygge line - Though they have similar traits. They both seem to shift into a comfortable wrap job no matter how rushed you may be, and they both have the bright contrast in color.

Details - showing how it drapes, and pleats effortlessly.

I poked at this wrap with a needle for a little while to figure out how everything works together, and I'll say that even with the tighter weave this is an easy wrap to fix. If you should ever manage to pull or break some threads, the weave feels intuitive and like it should fix easier than many brands.

Makes for such an easy, pleasant wrap job.

All said, this is a magnificent wrap and weave. Stretchy, forgiving, and perfect for bigs and littles. Feels high quality, but easy care and sturdy. It's not as soft to me as some of the Alchemy weave wraps, but still has nicer drape and feel than the elements weave. I'll absolutely want a few of these in my stash for beach and park days, when I want something gorgeous but not fragile.

**And now, some spam**

Wool wraps, Swell Octarine Seafoam review and a bit of spam :)

Okay, so I'll admit - I was a bit slow to jump on the wool bandwagon. About a year ago I borrowed a (newish, not broken in) Grizedale and found it a little bit prickly, and too warm for me. I figured - being that wool isn't easy care and was uncomfortable for me, I'd just not bother with it. There was the ever present fear of "felting" and ruining an expensive wrap, so why bother?

The blends of lighter blues make for almost a "painted" look.

I regret this now. So much wasted time.

I live in Florida, where even now in early April the parking lot temperature was an actual 104f, the temperature where my skin starts melting off of my body. At these temperatures, not even the thinnest linen can make extended ups "comfortable", and the idea of wearing a thick woolie seems like the worst idea ever, right?

You can practically see the heat in this picture. 104 degrees. Sigh.

Well, not really. Turns out, wool is actually *really* pretty great in the heat.

Octarine just glows! 

I'm reviewing Swell Seafoam, which is a Cotton/Wool/Linen blend - thicker in hand, with quite a lot of cush and delicious texture. I bought Swell on a whim with the discount code last month, snagging what was probably the last 7 in the shop. When it arrived, it was quite rough and prickly in it's loom state. I'd played with one before, so I knew to expect the soft snuggly cushiness once it broke in, but I hadn't counted on how well it would handle the heat. After just 2 washes and a few evenings of snuggles it was broken into cushy snuggly butter. I've had other woolies take much longer to break in, so this was a really nice surprise!



At first, Swell was a bit exhausting to wrap my toddler with. Same deal as any heavier wrap, where it's just a lot of fabric to manipulate. As it broke in though, it started to glide into place and make for a really pleasant wrap-job. My go-to carry is a double-hammock with a CCCB, and Swell makes it  comfortable and easy every time!

Toddler prison! Nah, he wasn't exactly asking for down...

We've had temperatures in the 80's and 90's this week and I've worn my size 7 most days. I'm 6.5 months pregnant, and even I've finally come around to wool *actually* being a realistic warm weather option.

Ah, the glorious Florida sun. Baking, boiling sun.

Both Remy and I sweat a lot, making thick or dense wraps of any blend a sticky prospect, but almost every Fispi woolie has actually been thinner in hand than some of the thicker linen or hemp blends. Wool has the added bonus of helping regulate our temperature - it wicks sweat away, helping our skin stay cooler than if we were just sitting in it. Swell, along with Grizedale and Elven all even have a bit of linen thrown in to help with support and breathability!

I got some sun, which is basically every day here.

I've always found Merino blends to be plenty supportive, with little to no dig. The wool adds such a nice cushiness, and they've all been totally squish to toddler worthy once broken in. Some are quite a lot thinner(crystalline, Elven, etc) and some are more medium range. They all fluff up quite a lot, which isn't a bad thing to me... they're more fluffy than dense, making them more friendly in the heat than other thick wraps like Sylvan or Trinity.

Guest appearance from Delph - my current go-to merino/cotton.

So, to wrap things up(heh) - Swell: soft, cushy, supportive, and med/thick... still being really great in the heat, as odd as that might seem! Minimal prickle even at first, and softens up almost immediately with less breaking in than you'd expect. Totally squish to toddler friendly, and absolutely gorgeous colors.
 

4 month old

22 month old - 30 lbs

Woolies in general: Can be prickly at first, but worth the time and effort it takes to break them in! Wash in vinegar, and don't fear the washer! Fispi wool is relatively easy-care, and it's so good! Bouncy, cushy, supportive, and felting isn't something worth worrying overly about!

If you haven't watched this already, the Firespiral ladies made a video a while ago discussing the concerns around felting wool, and it really eased a lot of my worries. My usual routine with new woolies is to pop it in the washer on delicate or wool setting, run it twice, then into the dryer on extra-low heat until damp. I've never had any issues with felting, and it helps break in and fluff up that lovely wool!

Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiPhC96wlV0&t=616s

~So much love here for wool~

Elysian Cirrus Seafoam - Thin, soft, and great for all ages.

When Elysian first landed, I loved how soft and squish worthy it was. After a week of heavy use, I'm even more in love with the breathability, cushiness, and how well it does with bigger kids. Definitely softer than any other fispi I've tried. Very possibly the softest wrap I've ever touched at all - and I've touched a lot of wraps in the last few years. 

Check out how moldable and thin it looks on my arm!

So thin, but surprisingly cushy! 

This wraps like a more drape-y BBT,  So unique and nice.

Quite thin in hand, and surprisingly supportive. Airy, breathable, and perfect for the heat... while still having the "drape" I associate with some of the thicker blends. Think a thinner Enchanted Birch Trees, possibly a softer Bronze Birch Trees with a bit more drape.



I used this for a 5 month old for several days, and for babies it can't be beat. There was plenty of support and breathability, and we had a few 2+ hour naps with no complaints from my shoulders. The passes glide into place, and for having such a small knot it certainly holds well. I don't think I ever actually used a double knot, and it held perfectly well!

You should always double knot to finish wraps... Do as I say, not as I do!

 I didn't get a chance to wrap with my bigger boy for several days, so I wanted to wait to write a review until I got a chance to really work it through the paces. This morning we went on a muddy walk with daddy, who grabbed some pictures for us. Remy was reluctant to go up at first, but once he was up there he didn't want to come down for some time!




I was really quite pleased, it handled my 30lb toddler with absolutely no problem - I was more comfortable carrying him than I was expecting, and he ended up enjoying longer ups than he's  allowed for several weeks.



Now - I will say, I'm not usually a fan of natty wraps. Dryad Frost lived here and moved on twice despite the phenomenal wrap qualities. My husband doesn't like the looks of all white wraps, and I think they're a bit plain... This is entirely my personal opinion, and has nothing to do with natty wraps in general!

Preparing a hip carry that never happened. Sigh. Toddlers.

That said, I was so pleased to find that this doesn't fall into the same category for me. The contrast is higher in person than I've seen in pictures, and my husband said it looks like a creamy cup of coffee, maybe a foamy latte (Tam only assigns food items to wraps he likes, oddly enough).

The contrast is really nice, and the color is beautiful.

This poor thing has been dragged through parking lots, wrapped on rainy days, and even dealt with lunchtime without having any noticeable stains or marks. I honestly trust it as a beater after this last week of abuse, which is surprising for such a light colored wrap. I'm excited to test out this beauty during the summer months, I think it's going to be absolutely perfect for our little July baby!

Rosecup Aqua festival review

Oh man. What to say about Rosecup.

This wrap really did surprise me - When it first landed it was so crunchy and stiff, I thought it could never fit in with the rest of my fispi collection. I had to really give it a workout, but after about a week of sleeping on it, sitting on it, running through rings, and throwing it in the dryer with tennis balls, it finally gave up! If you are buying this for a newborn, don't be discouraged! It really does evolve into the buttery soft wrap we've come to expect from firespiral... Just maybe send it to visit with a friend with toddlers first!

Now, this wrap is really, stunningly amazing. If you haven't given a Festival a try, you really truly need to. The weave is just fantastic, waffly and cushy, while still being thin enough for summer. I found the 100% cotton ones to be a smidgen less supportive in single pass carries with my huge toddlers, but Perran and Rosecup both are amazing with even big kids! I have it in base, but with the linen you can get away with basically any length! The weave gives enough grip, so you can get away with slip knots or even ring finishes! Festival is a loose weave, so you might get pulls... But they're some of the easiest pulls to fix, you might not even need a needle or pin.

Now about the color. I am not usually a pink kind of girl(it's a redhead thing), but this color is the most
beautiful shade of coral/sunset/SOMETHING that it just works. And of course, aqua is the perfect blue as well. Either side worn out is lovely. I honestly didn't expect to love this wrap, just based on personal preference for color... But here it is. my go-to blue jeans wrap. This is a truly underrated wrap, it can be neutral, dressy, casual, winter, summer... Basically a perfect all around workhorse!