Diva Milano – certainly an Italian you think, donˈt you? Wrong move! In fact, it is a pan-European concern (even outreaching to India) specialised on production of woven wraps, baby carriers, babywearing, nursing and maternal clothes with headquarters in Portugal. The design is born in Italy, the prototypes are developed and tested in Russia (which explains a lot because the style of some of their products appears rather Eastern European than Italian to me 😉 ), and the production takes place in Portugal, Italy, Russia and India.
As far as the wraps are concerned, although they are quite known to experienced wearers, they are not the flagship of the brand – according to Slingofest.com, they have released 179 wraps in only 12 patterns since 2011 (i.e. the year of Divaˈs foundation), which is not any extra amount. Mostly, there are romantic Renaissance patterns, with Essenza (beside even more romantic Veneziano) being perhaps the most popular one, and one can certainly say defining the brand as a whole. Good news for the lovers of Italian elegance – the wraps belong among those really affordable – the basic line of cotton wraps and even some low-weight blended wraps can be bought for c. 2,000 CZK.
By coincidence, we got two different Essenza wraps for testing – all-cotton one and one with linen. We thank very much for the opportunity to try them!
Diva Essenza Celeste
Composition: 100 % cotton
Weight: 250 g/m2
Size: 6
Giselle’s back carry with tibetian (not exactly) knotless finish
Lenkaˈs View:
Until now, I have neglected Diva as a brand of wraps, simply because I do not belong among the lovers of romantic filigree paterns. And, honestly, I did not expect much from this low- to middle-weight all-cotton wrap. All the more pleasant suprise it was for me. It is beautifully soft and smooth – gentle, but not slippery. Also as a result of this fact, it did a great job in the carry. This well-raised and properly broken-in skinny cooperated when tightened, holding at one knot firmly. I even assisted when a two-months-old was being wrapped at the local babywearing meeting, and I must say that the process went off without a hitch. The wrap is definitely great for newborns and little babies, however, it also managed well with Emilka (weighing 8 kilograms) in a multi-layer carry (but I think it would not be ideal for heavy toddlers). As far as the care is concerned, a pull could appear from time to time; the weave is not ultra-dense – however, when we take into account the long period of time it has circulated among testing wearers (nowadays, it is its fifth testing round!), it is in a perfect state.
As I have already mentioned above, the Renaissance curls and leaves are not my cup of tea, and the combination of purple and blue colour? Thank god there is also the bluer side!
Lindaˈs View:
I must say that I always liked Diva, especially Essenza, only there was no possibility to try it up to now because just when I have met one, it was already in the form of wrap conversion carrier. As luck would have it, Viola came to me at the same time as Celeste to Lenka, therefore we decided to put them through a double test.
I must say that, recently, I do not feel like tying low-weight all-cotton wraps. However, it was not that bad this time. The wrap is pleasant, thin, and relatively crease-resistant (although it certainly needs to be ironed from time to time). I gladly recommend it for elegant mothers! When the baby grows up, the wrap conversion will certainly be as beautiful as the wrap itself. For me, the weight limit is 10 kilograms – with that weight, my shoulders barely managed it in a single-layer carry.
Diva Essenza Viola
Composition: 50 % cotton, 50 % linen
Weight: 255 g/m2
Size: 6
Front wrap cross carry
Lenkaˈs View:
If Celeste was a surprise for me then double it for Viola. Linen is simply linen – of course broken-in linen, that is what it is all about; simply perfect (not only) summer blend! The wrap is basically of the same thickness as all-cotton Celeste, but it certainly can carry more, far more. It is a very pleasant wrap, as tender as butter and a wonderful collaborator. Only if it did not wrinkle so easily! One who is not afraid of using iron very often and would like to have more than a little drop of linen in oneˈs wrap, should go ahead and buy Viola! However, one should apparently like purple colour.
Lindaˈs View:
A very pleasant surprise, indeed. The owner of the wrap informed me that she did not like the wrap much. I was not ravished by the colours either. And moreover – a thin wrap?!
However, I have to admit that the more I tied it, the more I liked it, regardless the fact that linen is surely not my cup of tea. I would not even be afraid to say that it was the most pleasant thin wrap I have tried recently (sorry, Wild Slings and Sling Studio! 😀 ).
It is certainly able to carry more than its all-cotton sister, nicely soft, it did not bite me at all … I can really imagine it in my stack of wraps … Just only the tendency towards wrinkles! Well, I do not get on well with my iron, you know. In case you come across this wrap, I certainly recommend it as a wonderful piece for the summer season.
