Lenire means ˈto sootheˈ in Latin (or Italian, if you prefer). The founder of this brand of wraps with rather poetic name is Věra Kalousková, who is also the spiritual mother of the now-almost-legendary carrier KiBi. Her path to babywearing lead, quite usually, from wearing her own kids through home-made wraps from canvas to developing her own adjustable carrier. The Lenire wraps are the following step in her babywearing career and, according to her own words, one of her dreams come true.
Recently, the fusion of KiBi and Lenire took place and KiBi wrap conversions started to be manufactured (but let’s not get ahead of ourselves, you will read the story soon – we are working hard to finish it 😉 ).
The wraps themselves are 100% Czech-made (just the cotton is imported – they say it does not grow in the Czech Republic, does it?), and, for the time being, they were a big unknown to us – almost nobody around knew them, nobody around owned a piece of this brand, in spite of the fact that the first release was as early as in autumn 2016. In case of Lenire, do not expect to find hundreds of wraps, any experiments of innovations – they have released just 16 all-cotton wraps in 4 rather conservative patterns, mostly in moderate colours, with identical and, one can say, universal weight of 250 g/m2. We have been provided two models for testing and we hereby thank very much to Lenire for granting us this wonderful opportunity!
Campanula Silver
Composition: 100% cotton
Weight: 250 g/m2(according to the manufacturer), 267 g/m2(counted by us)
Size: 6
Back wrap cross carry, Tibetian knotless finish
Lenka’s View
I am not an admirer of wild patterns in rainbow colours, however, I have to admit that Lenire wraps are maybe too conservative in their design (even, forgive me, old-fashioned). The silver Campanula is very elegant, indeed, and I am certain it will find its fans. Unfortunately, the pattern reminds me of wallpapers in a castle… sorry. Well, the aesthetic review being past us, let’s focus on the properties. Campanula is a very decent all-cotton wrap – tender, soft to the touch, easy to work with, it slides adequately, tightens well and holds tight in the carry, not sagging. It is not a very supportive piece – I personally consider Emilka’s 9 kg to be its maximum when we talk about comfortable wearing; with heavier toddlers, the carry should definitely be somehow reinforced, or the wrap starts to hurt your shoulders. All in all, it is quite a pleasant piece of cooperative wrap from the category of ˈno offence, no charmˈ.
Linda’s View
When I started to choose my first wrap, I searched through all the Czech brands and came across Lenire as well – however, their patterns did not catch my attention, unfortunately. Campanula is a subtle, neutral wrap, which easily goes with everything – on the other hand, similar wall-paper-like patterns were in about 10 years ago… I do not actually know why to desire such a pattern on a wrap. I see this as a shame, because the wrap itself is not that bad, being a classical thin all-cotton piece suitable for little babies; however, not sufficient for bigger ones with its limited supportiveness. Thus, the only thing which could save the wrap in my eyes is its pattern… well… in this case, it couldn’t.
Flora Red Velvet
Composition: 100% cotton
Weight: 250 g/m2(according to the manufacturer), 289 g/m2(counted by us)
Size: 6
Reinforced front wrap cross carry
Lenka’s View
After testing Campanula, I thought whether it was worth testing another wrap of the same brand, the same composition and, according to the manufacturer, the same weight. While the pattern is less wallpaper-like, the colours are not really my cup of tea… But, it’s a good thing that I finally tried it! This is an AMAZING wrap! The first touch, the first impression were totally different from Campanula – the weave is much denser (which explains the different weight), but it still is pleasantly soft and pliant. I was humming happily when tying and tightening, and my humming continued during the wearing itself! An excellent, truly universal piece, suitable even for heavier toddlers – I cannot but applaud Lenire about Flora and at the same time I hope that all the wraps will not end up cut for the purpose of making KiBi wrap conversions.
Finally, I have to highlight that both wraps were circulating our local babywearing group for a month, being worn and tried intensively – when checking them before sending, I did not find a single pull! Bravo!
Linda’s View
Oh, boy, I have a real problem to test wraps that look like this – like a sofa cover or a wallpaper. Really, excuse me, but if Lenka had not forced me, I would not have been sorry to miss this wrap.
However, of course, it is important to say that although the wrap is quite ugly, according to my opinion, its properties are surprising. It is very easy to work with, it holds tight in the carry thank to its relief pattern, and I almost would not be afraid to use the phrase ˈvery pleasant on your shoulders and supportive as wellˈ! I say supportive! Unbelievable – remember, it is an all-cotton piece with the weight of 250 g/m2, according to the manufacturer. Therefore – if you like the pattern, I really recommend this wrap because it will do a great job. You simply get a lot of bang for your buck – a little bit of dirt will get lost easily as well.
