Source for custom made car seat covers?

[Beth568]

My older DD has a Marathon (moved her up out of her Roundabout a few months ago). Now the baby is big enough for the RA, so we'll put her in it, but her big sister is sad because she always loved the Puppies fabric on the RA. Her Marathon cover is just plain gray, and she doesn't like the paw print fabric, which is as close to the puppies as I can get.

I've seen eBay auctions for custom car seat covers, but I'm wondering if a) it's really OK to use a cover like that - I can't think of a huge safety problem, as long as the straps get through properly; and b) if there are other sources for them.

I thought if we started over again, and let DD1 pick out new car seat cover fabric, she'd be happier. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

[Wife_and_mommy]

I'm sure Julie(or another CPS tech) will confirm this but any accessory that didn't come with the seat is not good. The seat should be kept to the specs it was in crash tests with.



E

mom to dd 4/5/2004

http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_gold_12m.gif[/img][/url]
Hooray for us! We've made it 13 months.

[Beth568]

Ok, that was my impression, but I didn't know if somehow the seat cover might not matter so much. I wouldn't ever consider adding something to a seat like a Mighty-Tite, or changing the straps, etc.

[Joolsplus2]

Truthfully, you're right, they really aren't terribly dangerous, except that they do not meet the governments requirement for not being flammable... I don't know how many kids are burned in car seats or who are protected by their carseats being flame retardent...so it's kind of the choice you have to make. But secretely? I have to tell you, a tech friend of mine decided a seat cover wasn't so bad, and ordered an expensive one, and she said the quality was really bad...you couldn't tell from the picture that the stitching was poorly done! She was really bummed :P
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[MamaParis]

I agree that the fire retardant factor is something I wouldn't want to mess with. So I'd skip on buying any non-britax cover out there.

Why not just order her her own Bitax fabric instead ...

Like the Ashley Floral or foofy?
Or even beter - the COWMOOFLAGE!! LOL
You can tell her its a big spotted dalmation! LOL

But maybe show her the different fabric choices that Britax has to offer and let her pick her own out.

good luck!

[kellyotn]

When this came up before, it seemed like even Britax told some people it was "ok" as long as it fit exactly the same. I found that odd. Then of course, other people called and got the exact opposite answer.

BUT, I'd think any of those eBay ones would FADE terribly fast. Most just look like plain cotton. I can't imagine they make it a month looking nice. I've actually toyed with making my own, but I'd want to shop for nice nice fabric. And, seriously, I'll never do it because I'm too lazy. And by the time you spent big bucks on a nice fabric I'd rather just buy a Britax one. ha ha.

The flammability issue is something to think about too, but realistically, our kids aren't wearing clothing with flame retardants. (Horrific thought.)

I'd totally show her some of the options and let her pick one out for herself. What girl wouldn't like Ashley Floral?! ;-) There's a coupon out there for Baby Universe too, they seem to have a lot of choices available.

[Joolsplus2]

It's true...those covers are put through some very rigorous testing...the "abrade them" for hours and put them under strong UV light for days, pour fake "sweat" on them and see how they stand up...A whole lot of effort is put in to making sure they are really durable (and they've gotten better, IMO...New Blues is a better denim than Denim was, and small windowpane held up better than old windowpane... of course, there are exceptions, like Jodi's instantly wearing out Decathlon cover, but if she had kept the seat, I'm sure they would have replaced it for free).

I doubt the average Walmart Poly-cotton blend is put through all that durability testing...if you had your own made, I'd go for upholstery fabric (at which point, a regular MA cover looks like a great bargain! LOL)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx