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Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

Original poster

What is so good about the tripp trapp highchairs that everybody goes on about?

107 replies

chloemegjess · 11/05/2008 22:02

Hello, I am wondering why people actually like these? I look after a little girl who has one and HATE feeding her in it. I seriously couldn't think of a worse high chair. It drives me mad! Give me a plastic tray one anyday!

OP posts:
pootleflump · 11/05/2008 22:06

It's the fact that they will last your dc for years. DD is 3.7 and still too small to sit on a 'big' chair, the tripp trapp is fab.

Original poster
chloemegjess · 11/05/2008 22:10

But surely its still a hell of a lot cheaper etc to buy a high chair and then a booster seat or similar? Alot of th normal high chairs are under £20 nowadays, and I am sure booster seats or similar aren't that much?

I don't mean to offend anybody thats got one, its just that I really can' see the attraction.

I have a wooden high chair for my DD. Only a cheap one, that can be a high chair, low chair, or seperate table and chair and could be use with or without the tray.

OP posts:
TillyScoutsmum · 11/05/2008 22:13

I have one - brand new and unused because my dd hates it I can see where you're coming from

quint · 11/05/2008 22:16

It takes up hardly any room

Its easy to clean

Lasts for years

I'm able to use it if we have people over for dinner and I don;t have enough chairs

Children are sat up at the table with the rest of the family unlike having a plasic tray in the way

Looks good

When you have eventually finished with it you can get a pretty good price for it on ebay to out towards something else for you children

Whenever we've eaten at a friends who has a huge plastic chair - DD1 was never comfortable, the tray wasn;t positionable so (unlike the tripp trapp) she was stuck in a position that was no good for her to eat in and was left out at the table

Can you tell I love them

Smithagain · 11/05/2008 22:17

Personally, I like them because my five year old DD, who is short for her age, likes being able to sit up at a sensible height at the table, instead of struggling with a grown up seat. And it doesn't look like a baby chair, so she retains her street cred when friends come round.

And they pull up to the table like proper chairs.

We didn't use it at the weaning stage though, because at that point I didn't necessarily want them right up at the table, spreading goo everywhere!

FairyMum · 11/05/2008 22:18

Every child needs a tripp trapp

bellabelly · 11/05/2008 22:18

We gave away the tripp trapp I was given and bought plastic ikea ones instead - much better imo!

AllBuggiedOut · 11/05/2008 22:28

I'm with quint. And booster seats are nothing like as stable for bigger kids, so not really an alternative when the plastic highchair is too "babyish". I can't see why anyone WOULDN'T want one. I have 3

Original poster
chloemegjess · 11/05/2008 22:28

I can see it being useful as a toddler chair, but from weaning to when they can fully feed themselves, with no help at all and without making mess everywhere, I would have thought a tray would be better?

I have just started weaning my DD, and at the moment I use a bumbo, as she can't sit unaided yet so high chair is in the loft. But it drives me mad not having a tray for her to make a mess with. I am a big believer n babies being able to experiement and make loads of mess so would be more than happy for my DD to spread her dinner all over her tray, face and hands. Even now, at the puree stage, and my DD is only 4.5 months, she has a spoon and I have a spoon and I let her do what she likes with hers

OP posts:
wantyourhonestopinions · 11/05/2008 22:30

I don't see the attraction either.

We bought the £20 Argos one 7yrs ago for DS1, he used it to sit at the table (as a booster chair type thing) once he didn't need the tray anymore, and then we passed it onto DS2, DS3 is now using it and it still looks good as new!

jennifersofia · 11/05/2008 22:31

'Cos of the lack of storage space in our cheap badly built modern house, we will have had to look at the high chair in our living room (combined living/dining area) for almost 10 years. That is a long time to look at something that is ugly and plastic.
Easy to clean is also a great recommendation.

AllBuggiedOut · 11/05/2008 22:32

It is SO much easier when they need help being fed, though, because they're at the table right next to you rather than set back behind a tray.

Original poster
chloemegjess · 11/05/2008 22:34

Also though - I think its very hard and uncomfortable for babies? Can you get inserts in them?

You are starting to change my mind about them though, glad I started this thread!

OP posts:
AitchTwoCiao · 11/05/2008 22:36

babies are sitting on a big piece of padding anyway, though.
i think they look pretty and if you've money to spare then that's great. but dd was happy in her ikea one.

MummyToOneForNow · 11/05/2008 22:37

We love our tripp trapp. dd (17 mths) sits at the table with us (vinyl table cloth so she can spread her food around if she wants!). I believe they are better for posture than the plastic ikea type ones (my parents have one for when we visit and she always looks uncomfortable with her feet dangling) plus it looks nice and will last her for years. We will be buying a second one for dc2 in due course

AllBuggiedOut · 11/05/2008 22:39

You can buy cushions. They do need to be fairly good sitters before they can use them, but both mine were fine by 6 months. DS1 is nearly 5 and his friends argue about who is going to sit in his when they come over (humm, maybe that's grounds for not getting one ), DS2 is 2 1/2 and we've just taken the baby set off his to prepare for DS3 (3 months) to have it. You can see I'm a BIG fan!

AitchTwoCiao · 11/05/2008 22:40

ah, that's true. they have a foot bar which is supposed to be a good thing. however, dd abuses foot bars dreadfully and spends her entire time trying to escape from tripp=trapps.

Thomcat · 11/05/2008 22:40

We have 3.
DD1 is 6 and still uses her's - as a chair now. She has Down's syndrome and was a very floppy little baby and it was great support for her.
So when DD2 and 3 were born we got them one each too. In fact I'm sat on DD2's as i type!

Sanguine · 11/05/2008 22:41

Was wondering the very same thing yesterday. We've just bought a high chair at the NCT sale. It's a good height for our table, has a removable tray and seems to be pretty comfy for our DS. It hadn't entered my head that there was anything special about tripp trapps until I heard one of my posher friends was talking about hers (in the same sort of way she talks about her bugaboo pram), and it set me wondering what we were missing out on.

pinkyminky · 11/05/2008 22:48

We got one for DS, and he was still using it a nearly three, until his sister took to trying to climb into her IKEA gulliver highchair, which just was not stable enough to cope. She can climb into the tripptrapp completely safely. I put reigns on her when we eat in case she decides to climb onto the table.. you are getting the idea..

The tommetippee floppy mat things are fab, they stick to our waxed pine table like glue, and keep the dishes in place perfectly.

Tripptrapp really easy to clean, too.

It tucks under the table like a normal chair, too, with a really compact footprint. I don't like trays, I like my children to join us at the dinner table.

aviatrix · 11/05/2008 22:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

pinkyminky · 11/05/2008 22:56

If I had still been working, and so we had the money, I would definitely have bought DD her own, too. They are a chair to fit your child for life, as far as I can see.

AitchTwoCiao · 11/05/2008 22:57

lol, they'd want to be at that price!

hana · 11/05/2008 22:58

we also have 3
it's a design classic

CocodeBear · 11/05/2008 23:04

We have one each for the DDs and we love em.

DD2 is v messy, but she has a plastic mat on the table - just the same as a tray.