My husband and I have no shortage of portable mealtime seats for my daughter.
In addition to the Fisher-Price Healthy Care Booster Seat, we also have an Inglesina portable chair that attaches to tables (I went a little crazy with my baby registry). Yet we always seem to forget to bring a portable chair with us when we need one.
This is why I so loved a portable baby and toddler seat my friend recently whipped out of her diaper bag, an extremely affordable travel mealtime chair that I wish I had bought from the get go and that is today’s hint.
The chair she had: The easily foldable and compact $20 Brica Fold ‘n Go Travel Booster seat, which I mention over at The Frugal Shopper blog in a roundup of affordable mealtime seats.
Not only is the Brica chair’s price tag very budget-friendly, but I didn’t realize that Consumer Reports actually advises against getting portable chairs that hook on to tables. The Consumer Reports high chair buying guide states that “we haven’t tested them but think they should be used with caution, if at all, because their safety depends not only on the integrity of the chair’s structure and harness but also on the table. That’s just too many variables for our liking.”
The Brica booster seat
In contrast, like other booster seat models, the Brica chair just hooks onto a chair with a seat back. It also has a three-point safety harness and is meant for little ones who can sit upright.
But unlike traditional boosters, the Brica chair folds. And unlike many other similar foldable travel boosters, it folds up small and flat enough to fit into most diaper bags, meaning it isn’t yet another bag-like item with its own shoulder strap that you have to carry.
To be sure, the Brica chair is not without its downsides. One mom commenting on Amazon.com noted that it doesn’t work well with outdoor furniture chairs that have a soft bottom made out of plastic or mesh material.
Still, my friend is an experienced traveler: She and her husband traveled around the world for six months with their baby, so I trust her travel baby gear recommendations.
Other moms also seem to be fans of the portable Brica booster, including Katie over at Mom Favorites, Lucy over at DiaperChange.me, and Melissa Schweiger, who wrote about the Brica seat a few years ago over at Cool Mom Picks.
You can read more about budget-friendly high chair alternatives worth considering in my full post at The Frugal Shopper, a new U.S. News Money blog. What models did I miss — what’s your favorite frugal mealtime seat and why? What are your tips for saving money on high chairs, boosters and baby mealtime accessories? Share your thoughts below.
Follow Hint Mama on Facebook and Twitter, and read more about her and her disclosures.
We have a similar one from Eddie Bauer, and it’s been great. We started out using it for travel, but it now has a permanent seat at our dining room table. Of course, like any booster or high chair, you can’t leave them alone for a second — if the table has any sort of apron, or wood extending down from the table, the kiddo can push on it with their feet and push the chair back. http://www.toysrus.com/buy/booster-hook-on-seats/eddie-bauer-booster-seat-52846-10933369