Graco Snugride Fabrics

[parelle]

I know that this question has been asked before, but I can't find any current (2009) model responses.

I'm looking for reviews of the fabric for some of the Snugride models - in particular, the

Snugride Platiumn
Snugride Milan
Snugride Pippin

and the
Snugride32 Zurich

I'm not asking how it looks - I'm pretty happy with any of these options. But,

1) Is there a fabric content label? Is it mostly cotton, or a blend?
2) Does your baby have problems with sweating? (I've seen reviews of the Snugride Sterling which show that this is a problem for that fabric).

Thanks!

[Jacksmommy2b]

We have been seat shopping so I can give my opinion. (but I don't have the material info)


The Pippin and the Milan have very similar fabrics. It seems stiff but it is not the rough, almost mesh like fabric of the Sterling. I would bet the fabric would soften after a few washes.

We actually just bought the Platinum over both of the other seats (and the sacchi) because of the much softer fabric on the seat. The beige color is (I would guess) polyester or some sort of polyester blend that is super soft and squishy. The black portion of the seat feels the same as the Milan/Pippin. The boot is all the soft polyester fabric. Oh, and the neck pads that attach to the strap are the very soft fabric as well.

(The sacchi has a furry almost suede-like fabric in addition to the Milan/Pippin fabric as well.)

[GraceH]

FYI - the new snugRide35 patterns can be seen here http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?p=1002104
the new patterns seem to be plushier than other past patterns
personally, we were very happy with our decision to get a larger seat for a slightly higher price and have twice the length of usage as our friends with smaller seats.
I've found that children will get sweaty in any car seat when in it for a while on a hot day... the metallic and glossy fabrics seem to encourage sweating more than some others it seems...
If you live in an area with warmer days, consider other tricks to keep baby cool; such as a reflective blanket when seat is left in car, sippy cups/bottles of cold/ice water, or perhaps some blue ice... (I have the metallic 'Ionic' pattern which is said to be prone to overheating, but extra measures on a hot day made it better - as I said, even cotton-ish seats that friends have had resulted in sweaty babies on a hot day)

[parelle]

Thanks - that's quite a help on the fabrics, and I appreciate the advice on keeping cool. We just moved, so I don't quite know how summers will be up here yet!

I did make it to BRU this weekend, so I got to see their car seats in person (Pippin and Lemongrass being the two I was most interested there). The Pippin is definitely not of the shiny backpack-like fabric that the Sterling is made of - it's much more matte and smoother. I was disappointed that as far as my husband and I could tell, no one makes a seat with cotton fabric any more! They were all poly blends.

One thing which is keeping me away from the Snugride32 (and thus the 35, though I need to get a seat pretty quick anyway, as I'm due on Thanksgiving) is that I'm only 5 ft 1 (and a bit of a wimp) - the extra weight of the Snugride32 (and the bit more height - I've short arms) was harder to maneuver around in the store.

[AnnieW625]

Good luck with your choice, but as much as I really like the idea of having a rear facing infant that lasts until a child is almost 2 (SR 32/35) I too agree that it might be a little over kill esp. if you don't know how your child is going to handle being in the carseat. We used our back adjust snugride 22 for 7 mos. but we could've gone a little longer; DH just didn't like adjusting it, and DD was starting to squirm a bit in the seat; and since we didn't use it as part of a stroller system (we didn't have a Graco compatable stroller and I thought a stroller frame would've been a little redundant in the stroller world) we just transitioned her to a convertable. If you look at it from that point it makes more sense to get a SR22.

If you don't mind spending the extra money and it's only available in the 32lb model the Teutonia T-Tario 32 is an all cotton seat. The covers look amazing even on the net.
http://www.teutoniausa.com/build/seats/t-tario_32{tm}_infant_car_seat

Also you might want to look at the Chicco Key Fit, which also comes in a 22lb version as well as the 30lb version. The fabrics, while a poly blend are still nicer than the Graco Snugrides I have seen in person (I haven't see the Platinum, but that one does look to be the nicest one they have).