The car seat world has really come a long way. The advancements and options are incredible compared to what we had even 5 years ago. What was out of reach for many people years ago has become standard now. We still have a long way to go and many people to help and educate but in the grand scheme of things, things are really looking up for child passenger safety.
That being said, there is one thing from “back in the day” that I wish hadn’t disappeared. It’s not the overhead shield. Not the 20lb limit. Nope. It’s the cute covers. Today it’s totally cool to be neutral and match the car interior. Which is fine if you’re into that kind of thing. But for those of us who prefer bright and fun, we miss it. Sure, there’s a few seats out there with some aqua, green, orange, or red accents. But what about the patterns? Fun prints? For me, an out-of-this-world-everything-I-could-ask-for car seat would still go down a couple notches on my Cool Meter if it was only available in black, gray, and tan. Or maybe a mix of the three. With some wallpaper-like dots that look like they should be on my grandmother’s shoes. If my grandmother were still here. See? A gray seat that just makes me miss my grandmother and her ancient shoes! Not cool.
Remember old school Britax? Oh my. I’m embarrassed of my collection of covers I can’t even use anymore. I hang on to them in hopes of someday. Fido. Jonah. Popsicle. Barnum. The list goes on. Really, the only one that’s survived is Cowmoo, which don’t get me wrong, I love me some Cowmooflauge. But how do puppy prints, whales, and adorable rainbow patterns go out of style for kids? We didn’t have whales on our car interior back then. What changed?
Sure there’s been lots of cute pink/purple flowery patterns that Cosco, Evenflo, and Britax have released (and possibly more companies I’m failing to mention). But there are more cute things in life than flowers!
Let’s put shoes for the elderly on hold and bring back some puppies.
Let me tell you something about prints (and I speak from experience): I searched high and low for cute prints. Fun, cheerful, not too babyish. Stylish, mod but not faddy. Yadda yadda yadda. People SAY they want interesting prints and patterns but when it comes down to actually plunking down the dollars, most people think very carefully about whether or not they can live with blue plaid or florals day in and day out, if they want to commit to a feminine print or a masculine motif – i.e., what if the next one is the opposite gender? And frankly, “what if it doesn’t match the outfit/coat my child is wearing that day?” And voila, Cowmoo is the sole survivor.
What I find frustrating about Britax is that they have SO many different seats, and only certain models come in certain colors. I’d love a Laguna Boulevard WITH Clicktight (and think I could have convinced my husband that it was cool-but-still-not-too-busy) but of the options that the Boulevard Clicktight comes in, the only one we can agree on is the grey one. :-
Britax Wildcat was gorgeous!!!
I’m still holding onto my last spare CowMoo for the Roundabout 50 that expires in 6 months. I just can’t let it go.
I still want a Mariposa!
OMG I want the funky covers back. I’ve had 4 or 5 different ones, and I think I still have one in the basement… LOL
Oh yeah, loved my pretty covers. And sold some very used ones for almost full price because they held up really well! Funniest comparisons I’ve heard irl is that one cover looked like old man pants and one looked like grandma’s curtains. Hate the chik fil a jokes about cowmoo…
Burgundy Check RA’s – we had those! (and the memories will live on in the extended RF album on the CPSafety.org page LOL) Never did get any of the floral covers but I still have DD2’s beloved Sapphire original Parkway in the garage – it was the nicest combination of blues ever IMO and one of these days I’ll figure out a clever way to upcycle the cover for her.
Still, as much as I enjoyed the era of cool Britax covers, I wish we had even a quarter of the current ERF/EH seat options back when I bought DDs’ RA’s in early 2002 or when they were starting to get too tall for their RAs in 2005 – luckily they were lightweight leggy kids so I got a few more inches of harnessing with the Graco CarGos
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I also have matching tiffany covers for a decathlon and parkway. I also used a freedom marathon cover on a decathlon after the marathon expired.
Let’s face it, what we really want are the old Britax covers back. 😉 I can’t think of any other seats that had great covers.
My favorite was Tiffany. I had a matching Decathlon (later used on a MA) and old style Parkway for a short time – LOVED when my girls used them. Sadly, both seats expired not too long after I got the Parkway cover. Had a matching Cowmoo MA and Parkway for a while, too. The girls liked that more than the Tiffany, I think.
So true! I keep telling Britax that they need to launch a line of retro covers for their current seats. I think that would be wildly popular.
I loved Tiffany. I also had it on my Marathon.
Alicia, I’m totally there with ya! I have a collection of old Britax covers and belly pads that I’m planning to frame and hang as art work in my office – someday, when I actually have a dedicated room for an office in my house again. Original (plush) cowmoo, Summer Blues (cotton blue plaid), Ashley Floral, Hampton. I’m still desperately searching for original Flower Power and Burgundy Plaid RA covers in decent condition. If anyone has these in their collection – please contact me!