Luna Dream is one of the lesser known babywearing brands, at least in the Czech Republic; however, in Poland, it is quite a household name. It is a family company, based in Dobiesz, a town south to Warsaw, which offers budget-friendly woven wraps and carriers.
Concerning the wraps, just as in case of similar budget brands one cannot expect any experiments with blends – almost all the wraps are all-cotton, with prices from 60 to 80 Euro for a size 6 wrap, in rather conservative (but not dull) designs. In case of their carriers the price range is much wider, but the cheapest Standard costs a bit less than 70 Euro and the most expensive adjustable wrap conversion Grow Up costs (still quite affordable) 123 Euro.
We tested the Standard carrier, recommended for children from 74 to 92 cm by the manufacturer; allegedly wearable up to 3 years of age with extenders that can be bought extra. However, in our regional babywearing group, we tested the carrier quite thoroughly and estimated that the maximum size is closer to 86 cm rather than 92.
At the first sight, it is obviously a “basic” carrier – but in a good sense! It is a good basic carrier and could be of great use for someone looking for a cheap babywearing solution for their baby. The fabric is durable and firm while pliable enough, the buckles are of good quality – the carrier serves as a helper in our local babywearing group for almost a year, therefore it already endured quite a lot and it is still in a fairly good shape.
Nowadays, wrap conversions are quite clearly preferred to plain cloth carriers among parents who know at least a little bit about the current babywearing market. Of course, wrap conversions have certain advantages (mainly that the back panel adjusts to the wearie more easily thanks to the wrap’s properties and some also say that wrap conversions are more comfortable for the wearer) but they also have disadvantages – they are usually not that durable as cloth carriers and in most cases they are much more expensive (which is obvious mainly in case of cloth and wrap Luna Dream carriers). The back panel of a good cloth carrier must be well cut to reach the qualities of a wrap conversion – a great example is Roobaby, a small brand from our home city Ostrava, and Luna Dream is almost as good in this aspect – the cut of the back panel is great and it embraces and supports the wearie perfectly.
Similar as in most of Roobaby carriers, it is not possible to wear the shoulder straps crossed while their padding is quite short – which means that the chest buckle is very high and that is something I generally dislike in carriers without the possibility of crossing of the shoulder straps. Moreover, their padding is not of the most generous and I cannot say that the carrier is built for carrying the heaviest toddlers. On the other hand, the waist belt is padded quite a lot (but not that much as the legendary VeKa carrier) but it is very soft and if the wearie is heavy, it does not hold its shape and tends to bend instantly.
However – there was period of time when the carrier was not used as a helper, I had it at home and I realized that I use it quite often. I liked the absence of adjusting (just as in case of every single-size carrier), the waist belt buckle with a safety button and the detachable hood which is also pleasantly big. It was not very comfortable with 10kg Emilka for longer wearing, but it was perfect for shorter periods – I loved it as a space-saving and a kind of “just in case” carrier for running errands, for example.
Summed up – it is a decent, modest carrier for modest wearers. If you are looking for a budget cloth carrier (I suppose mainly because of its durability) and you like soft waist belts, Luna Dream could be a very interesting choice.
Hereby, we want to thank the manufacturer for providing the carrier which still servers as a great helper for parents in need in our local babywearing group!