Momma loves this Pappa, and so does baby!
Written: Aug 03 '02 (Updated Aug 04 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Folds down, lots of chair-positions, 5-point harness, wheels, one-hand tray removal, sturdy
Cons: Expensive
The Bottom Line: High quality chair with lots of options. Easy to clean. Folds down. Lightweight, yet sturdy and very safe. We highly recommend it!
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| mizgnomer's Full Review: Peg Perego Prima Pappa High Chair 2001 |
Our experiences:
My husband and I actually held off quite a while before even attempting to purchase a high-chair. We were first-time, newbie parents who didn't even have a clue what we were looking for in a chair, so when we were registering at Babies R Us and saw the long line of high chairs available we were so intimidated we decided to skip them until we could do more research.
When we finally decided it was time to break down and get one (after setting him on our laps to feed him for about a month) we played with every high chair in the store. After much tinkering, tampering, and testing we simply had to go with the Prima Pappa. Believe me we tried to avoid it -- we really didn't intend to buy the most expensive chair they had, but in a side-by-side comparison none of the others really could compare. We liked the Prima Pappa because of the fold-down capability, the roomy chair which would allow for growth, the sturdiness of the design, the five-point harness, the ability to throw the tray in the dish-washer, and the ability to remove the tray with one hand.
My boy has loved this chair since we first sat him down in it (when he was 5 months old). He just turned a year old a few weeks ago, and after many months of relatively neat and pleasant meals with him, he has only recently turned into an incredibly messy eater. From bananas mushed into the fabric, to juice dumped down the legs, to shredded cheese in every nook & cranny, to not-so-veiled attempts at sharing his meals with the dog, this chair has seen it all and has weathered it very well. Although we tried to avoid spending so much on a high chair, now we're really glad that we did.
Product Description:
Where to begin? With the basics, I suppose. The chair itself sits upon sturdy legs which actually form a triangle/A-frame on each side of the chair. The chair can be positioned at seven different height levels (it travels up and down the front-most legs). It is a very safe and sturdy design -- we have quite a little squirmer but he has never managed to tilt or even rock the chair. In the seat itself is a five point harness (meaning that straps go up over the baby's shoulder, over his hips, and one up between his legs). The seat also has a "passive restraint system" (otherwise known as that bar that comes up between the baby's legs to keep him/her from being able to squirm out under the tray). At the bottom of the chair's legs are four wheels on castors, two of which have brakes (the wheels with brakes are supposed to go on the back legs). There is also a foot-rest that can be flipped up when not in-use. According to the literature that came with the chair, it is recommended for use with children up through age 4.
-- The Seat --
It is extremely easy to adjust the chair's height -- just squeeze two handles on either side of the seat and pull up or push down. It is wonderful to have so many options -- we tend to leave it on the next-to-the-highest height, although we've also put it on the 3rd from highest when pushing him up to the table without the tray.
The seat is also very easy to recline -- just pull up on a lever on back of the chair and it will tilt back into four different positions. The tray will stay level regardless of how much/little the seat is reclined. We never really used the recline feature much, as we really only used the chair for feeding, but this could be really nice for people whose infants tend to fall asleep while eating.
The seat is roomy and nicely padded (very cushion-y), and comes in a wide variety of colors and patterns, including a "leatherette" cover. We went with a dark-navy blue & white checkered pattern on cloth that we like a lot -- according to the box it is called "Chesapeake". Most spills can be easily removed with a damp dish-cloth, but for those really big messes our cloth cover can be easily removed and thrown into the washing machine. We've washed it quite a few times now and it still looks good-as-new.
After visiting the Peg-Perego web site (http://www.perego.com/) I see that not all of their chairs have removable cloth covers -- but we really do love ours. It is a treated cloth -- it doesn't soak up stains at all (in our experience, at least) and tends to come clean with a few swipes of the dishrag. Our cloth cover snaps onto the chair in a couple of places, as well as having two "buckles" that fit through slots on the back of the chair. I will admit that I sometimes have more trouble getting the cover back onto the chair than I do in getting it off -- if only because the multitudes of harness-straps that sometimes get in the way. Still, overall I would highly recommend the cloth cover because it is easy to remove -- which helps me ensure that it is really clean. We tend to put the cover in the washing machine once a month -- even though we can keep it quite clean-looking with just a damp dishrag, we like to take it off and give it a good, thorough washing every so often.
Yes, there are some cracks & crevices into which food can get lodged. We probably have less problems with this because our cloth cover actually is removable and we can simply shake out any crumbs -- but we honestly don't remove it all that often and still manage to keep it fairly crud-free. Sometimes you do have to dig in to creases to get all the food-bits out, but I imagine that you would get that with any comfortable chair. There are also some seams on the tray and on the arms/legs of the chair that can acquire food remnants -- although I don't see how that could be avoided in any chair.
-- The Tray --
The tray is large (approximately 13 inches by 22 inches) but still small enough to fit in our dishwasher. Although we do run it through the dishwasher occasionally, it is very easy to clean with a damp paper-towel or dishrag. It is easy to remove with one hand -- just squeeze the lever underneath the logo on the front of the tray and pull (this was a major selling point for us).
Even the tray has two settings -- one pushed all the way in for smaller babies and another pulled a little further out. When the tray is on the outer-most setting two red circles are visible on the prongs that attach the tray to the chair -- we appreciate those because they are a visual reference so we know that the tray is pushed in far enough (so the little one won't send the whole thing clattering to the floor if he pushes on it while we're feeding him).
We noticed that the trays on many of the high chairs at the store couldn't be pushed in very close to the baby -- meaning that whatever food missed baby's mouth would spill directly into his lap. Of course some lap-spills are unavoidable, but I'm very happy with the closer-setting of the Prima Pappa tray. There is also a good lip to the tray -- it is deep enough that it takes some effort on my little guy's part to knock food off and onto the floor (or his lap).
There is also an optional tray-attachment with toys so you can turn the high chair into a play center -- we never did get it but it was nice to know it was available.
-- Folding when not in-use --
We love the folding-feature on this chair, even though we don't fold it as often as we used to (not because it is difficult -- we're just getting lazy). Folding the chair down is very easy and convenient. To fold the chair you first lower the seat to its lowest position and raise the footrest. Then you raise the tray all the way up by pushing down on two levers under where the tray connects to the legs (at first we thought you had to push both levers down and pull up on the tray all at the same time, which requires one more hand than most people come equipped with -- but you can push down on the lever marked "1" first and it will click into place, then you push down on lever 2 while you pull up on the tray). You then kick the lever that braces the front & back legs apart, then press your foot down on a pedal between the back legs, which allows you to pull the front & back legs to fold together. There is a catch-mechanism on one of the legs that keeps the chair from re-opening itself once closed (which we actually didn't notice at first -- so we were locking the wheels and wedging the chair in a corner to keep it from opening again -- sometimes it pays to read the instructions). In its collapsed position it is about 10 inches wide and fits nicely under our room-divider/bar in our kitchen. I'm sure we will be even more grateful for this feature when our boy finally outgrows the chair and we have to store it somewhere.
Assembly was beyond easy -- the only thing we had to do was pull it out of the box and add the wheels. That's it!
Quickie Summary:
Pros:
+) 5-point harness
+) "Passive restraint system" (the bar that comes up between the child's legs)
+) Wheels with locks on castors
+) 7 height positions
+) 4 recline positions
+) Very stable & sturdy design
+) Tray remains level even when seat is reclined
+) Can be reclined while child is sitting in the seat
+) The seat is well-padded and looks quite comfortable
+) Tray can be removed and inserted with one hand
+) The tray is large but still small enough to fit in our dish-washer
+) Roomy chair gives child lots of growing-room, and can be used without the tray at the kitchen table
+) Many fabric/color options
+) Our removable fabric seat is easy to wash & keep clean
+) Lightweight
+) Folds rather compactly when not in use
+) Easy assembly (almost no assembly)
Cons:
-) Expensive
-) When fully expanded, it does take up quite a bit of room (due to its very stable & wide-legged design)
-) There are cracks and crevices into which food can get lodged, but I think it would impossible to make a chair where that wouldn't happen occasionally.
Final Thoughts:
We have seen other, less expensive high chairs (at his daycare and at his grandparents' houses) that do the job fairly well, but none have impressed me as much as the Prima Pappa. When we purchased it we were newbie parents who had no idea what our child would prefer, so we wanted to be sure all options were available to us. Now that we're older and wiser, we still couldn't be happier with this chair. It has been fabulous!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
mizgnomer
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Location: Tennessee
Reviews written: 306
Trusted by: 204 members
About Me:
Don't meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you're crunchy and taste good with ketchup
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