As I already mentioned in the story describing the grand meeting in Trojhalí (Tripple Hall Karolina), Dekka is a comparatively new, yet already a very popular member of the wrapping world – the owners of the brand are Ivana Džbánková Škapová and her husband Martin Škapa, both very nice people. Originally, only two wraps should have come to our local group for testing and stay there for just a few days. However, ˈMr and Mrs Dekkaˈ were so immensely kind to lend us four wraps eventually and extended the testing period to almost two weeks! (I believe my deep sad eyes did the job of persuading them) Therefore – once more – thank you very much for lending us the wraps and for your kind attitude as well!

Dekka Tilia Adel

Size: 6

Composition: 100% cotton

Weight: 330 g/m2

Front cross carry

I am not crazy for pinkies. I am not crazy for patterns of plants. I am not extra crazy for all-cotton wraps. Poor Adel, being at a disadvantage at the very beginning … However, Adel passed the test with dignity. It is beautifully soft, fluffy and smooth. It is rather thick; although – since I have met Almitra (weight of 500 g/m2), I always say ˈratherˈ regarding wraps with a lower weight than 400 g/m2. Nevertheless, one certainly cannot say that Adel skipped the dinner; on the other hand, it is not ˈobeseˈ – you really do not have to fight with it. It slips just right, you can tighten it without problems, it holds in the carry with flying colours – even with one knot only, and it is able to carry a small elephant. However, everything comes with a price – in Adelˈs case, the tenderness, softness and malleability go hand in hand with relatively loose weave, which means quite a big tendency towards pulls. It has been an honour, dear Adel, yu will certainly find a lot of loving homes.

Dekka Plectrum Oli

Size: 5

Composition: 100% cotton

Weight: 330 g/m2

Robbin’s hip carry

Another all-cotton wrap, this time in an original colour combination and with plectrum pattern (resembling little fans). From my point of view a totally different story – I have picked it up already at the babywearing meeting, and literally jumped to grab it. Oli is a handsome boy (although, the combination of a light wrap and a small child will never be completely safe), but, unfortunately, (oh, I am so sorry to say that), it was the biggest disappointment of all the tested Dekka wraps. In spite of being Adelˈs brother (the same weight and composition), I felt a big difference between them. Where Adel cooperated with tenderness, Oli fought with me and sometimes gave me a really hard time. Moreover, the tested wrap was size 5 – due to the amount of wrap needed and the size of the knot (both great), I was not able to tie FWCC with double knot at all. For normal operation, one knot held with no problems, but during my dancing lesson, I had to use the ring, which literally saved my life. I have no idea how long Oli was worn (but I assume that it undertook some wearing and cuddling before the testing in our local group began), however, I would not recommend it for inexperienced wearers just because it is tough. Generally, I would say that it is a pleasant, universal piece suitable for older infants mainly. In addition, thanks to its denser weave (compared to the other tested Dekka wraps), it is basically unbreakable in my opinion.

Dekka Tilia Isla

Composition: 77 % Egyptian combed cotton, 15 % viscose, 8 % bamboo

Weight: 320 g/m2

Reinforced rear rucksack with candy cane chest belt finish

The second Tilia wrap – leafy pattern? Nooo; Purple colour? Nooo; Well, you have a hard time with me, dear Dekka. At least, Isla also has the more turquoise side. Despite the initial aesthetic friction, Isla won by a landslide. It is soft, tender, airy, and cuddly. It could certainly serve well even for the youngest babies when handled with experience. At the same time, it is a wonderful wrap for older children whose weight appears to equal a feather when wrapped. Despite having the same weave as Adel, Isla did not seem so inclined to pulls (even during the testing, no pulls were announced by the members of our local group). As a bonus, bamboo is crease-resistant. Tying is ideal, the carry holds without problems, the wrap slightly springs when you move. In fact, I could quite quickly get used to Isla, mainly to the more turquoise side. And, maybe, also to the other one – the more purple one. Well, when I am thinking about it, I am starting to like the leafy pattern as well 

Dekka Plectrum Neo

Composition: 77 % Egyptian combed cotton, 23 % polyester

Weight: 330 g/m2

Shepherd’s carry/candy cane chest belt

Neo is the enfant terrible of this testing – I have very ambiguous feelings about it. Compared to its relative Oli, Neo is beautifully soft and malleable thanks to polyester and, mainly, looser (according to some testers too loose even loosened) weave. The wonderful carrying capacity, and good tying and holding features are not necessary to be described in detail, because I would just repeat myself. The polyester combined with the weave gives the wrap not only softness, but also other, maybe not intended, attributes. On one hand, little lumps appear on the wrap – not those tiny lints and naps you can find on woolen or combed-cotton wraps, but simply lumps (as you can find on a worn T-shirt). On the other hand, I have a feeling that synthetic fibre (whether polyester or repreve, which is also polyester in fact) tend to hold smells and scents more compared to natural materials (no that the wrap stinks, but when I got it from the previous tester, I simply smelt him). Also, the question is if the loose and slightly twisty weave is not because of polyester as well – simply, if the cotton fibre slides over the polyester one and therefore the weave can loosen. I do not know, I am not a weaving expert. Nevertheless, I can see the same problem (in a bigger scale even) on my own wrap with repreve and loose weave (Tekhni Arche Storm). Loose weave, just like in case of Adel, usually equals tendency towards pulls. However, not to forget and not to hassle all the time, I need to say that Neo is beautiful – although it is a pinkie, it is somehow a ˈsportyˈ pinkie, not a delicate flower. I could just imagine having it in my stack despite its polyester-problem.

Finally, I would like to emphasize a little detail concerning Dekka wraps – their names. Each Dekka wrap has its own name – Adel, Oli, Art, Adam, Chris … Thanks to this fact, we can talk about our wraps just like we talk about our pets – I find it extremely lovely, I love these cute subtleties. Dear Dekka, keep it up, I am looking forward to Anna, Johny or Jared. And once more – thank you very much! It was a short, but yet beautiful and intensive meeting. See you in the future!