Sakura Bloom Scout Review

A few months ago, I got a Sakura Bloom sky gradient scout. It’s a soft structured carrier with an apron-style waistband. You can cinch the bottom of the panel in for use with tiny babies, and leave it wider for your larger toddlers. It is rated for use from 7 pounds all the way up to 45 pounds, that was definitely the best feature for me. Some moms really love them, others struggle to get a great fit.

The Great Things
The Scout is so easy to use. I watched some great wearing instructional videos in Sakura Bloom’s Unthreaded group before I bought it. Those videos improved my babywearing game immeasurably. I can now swing my girl onto my back like it’s my job, and make adjustments to my Scout and my Tula in any circumstance.  Seriously, I don’t care what kind of carrier you’ve got, go watch those ladies in the Unthreaded group!

I also love the apron-style waistband. It’s so nice to not have that structured waistband below my toddler. Since the scout wraps around underneath her more like an onbuhimo it’s so much easier to move around while wearing my carrier.

It packs down nice and small. Since I’ve got a standard coast Tula, I thought I’d give you a side-by-side comparison. The Scout is about half of the depth of the Tula, and because it’s not as structured as the tula, it’s easier to smoosh in the diaper bag.   

The materials are great. I love the super soft gradient fabric that came pre-washed and already broken in. The leather straps are soft and I love that the buckles are metal and feel really secure.   

My Problem
There is one problem with my Scout that I’ve not figured out how to fix even after many fit videos and talking to a couple of babywearing coaches. I’m on the short side of average height, but I’ve got a really short, narrow frame.  Which means the wide straps on the scout aren’t the most comfortable when I’m wearing it for a long time.  The edges of the shoulder straps like to curl on me. It doesn’t cause a safety problem at all, but it does sometimes get uncomfortable. So, I keep my Tula so I’ll have something I can wear for those days I’ll be wearing my kid for hours and hours, like a day at the zoo.   

In Conclusion
I love a lot of things about my scout, but my fit problem keeps me from being a one carrier mom. I have done a few front carries with the scout, and I loved that, but my toddler’s a little too big for regular front carriers. I let my friend borrow my scout for a while with her little one, she’s got wider shoulders than I do and she loved it.  I really think it depends on your body type.  

Carriers are a lot like a pair of blue jeans. Each brand is made a little different and is going to fit every person a little differently. You’ve got to figure out what fits you best. If you’re thinking about a sakura bloom scout, or any other baby carrier for that matter, you should ask around locally, and see if there’s a local babywearing group who has a meetings or lending libraries you can utilize before investing in something that may not work for your needs as well as you hoped.  

Jenny Ditch and her family live in Illinois where she loves to experiment with different baby carriers