Notes from the ABC Baby Expo

Although the official video is not out for a while, I’ll give the faithful readers of this blog a little sneak peek at my Best of Show ABC Baby Expo products. Here were my rules: no car seats or strollers (Gear Daddy’s turf), no baby carriers (BabyBjorn, duh), nothing cloth (layette gives me shivers), and nothing too big to put on a display table for filming.

With all the above exclusions, my search of the enormous show floor yielded small and practical items with a marked absence of any show stoppers. It may be that the list is not that impressive, but these are small and clever things for tough economic times — recession stocking stuffers, if you will.

My policies, though thoughtfully instituted, did lead to a couple of glaring omissions in my final video. Sp before rolling out the red carpet and striking up the band, I’d like to remedy that.

A Desk Doesn’t Fit on the Display Table

As I mentioned on the live show, my daughter needs a desk. Even since her brother got the New Academic Center from Ikea in celebration of starting middle school, Ri-ri has been lobbying for a desk of her own. She’s even shifted stuff around to make a spot. Her efforts poignantly highlighted the sad fact that her room is only slightly bigger than a closet. But I’ve been on the lookout for a student desk that could fit in the tiny corner she cleaned out.

I think that’s why the light went on when I saw the Qdesk. There’s not much earth shattering about these cute plastic school chairs except that they meet perfectly a need that lots of parents have — a nice but compact study desk for kids in grades 2-5. The fact that these heavy-duty plastic units come in cute colors (Ri-ri would probably select purple) and are recyclable certainly are nice features. I felt that the positioning of the product as green (“a child sits, a tree stands”) was a bit of a stretch, but probably defensible.

These units aren’t cheap — MSRP around $100 — but I feel confident that one desk could last through several kids before being hauled out to the recycle bin. Another reason to go with purple, as opposed to hot pink — more unisex. The expense also makes me think that you would want to buy these ergonometric unit a size too big, like shoes. Three sizes are available.

Burp Armor was worthy but ineligible because it’s made of the cloth rule, but I covered that last week.

Now that that’s out of the way.

Cue the opening number.

Presenting:

The DadLabs Award for Smallish Non-Car Seat or Stroller Items That Caught Daddy Clay’s Eye at the ABC Kids Expo 2009 (put that on a sticker on the packaging, I dare you)

(in no particular order)

My Plate Mate — backstop that keeps food inbounds; an elegant solution for littles learning utensils

Sprig Dump Truck — solid playability from a truck made of a really cool wood/plastic hybrid material that happens to be sustainable. Dad inventor.

Pop Pals — A kiddie koozie for your frozen treats. How did we ever eat an Otter Pop without one?

Blinxy — Can we possibly build a better pacifier? This one looks like it has potential.

Shutter Buddy — Camera attachment that entices babies to look at the camera lens. How many times will you rally use it? If it works once, it’s worth it.

I would also like to recognize a number of brands that really impressed me with the thoughtfulness of their designs across their product lines.

There was nothing in the giant glowing cube that was the Boon booth that failed to amuse or impress me. From the tiniest Scrubble to the most capacious Animal Bags, everything they make has wit and utility. If you are buying a Boon product, you are making a good choice.

I wasn’t inclined to even visit Munchkin. Before this show, they blended in with Playtex and Gerber — monolithic producers of plastic baby gear. I was lured into the booth by a new diaper pail they are coming out with (full review coming soon), but found that most of what they make has a design edge that distinguishes them. Their products have a bit of thoughtfulness, playfulness, even coolness that I did not expect to find.

And, of course, there is BabyBjorn. With their new Organics line, a new potty chair, and with more colors offered on lots of their existing products they had plenty to roll out at the show, but it’s the consistency and quality of design across everything that they make that impresses me so much. Congrats to Jim and Amy and the whole crew on a great show.

(Disclosure: DadLabs is currently sponsored by BabyBjorn, and has been sponsored by Boon in the past. We only work with the best.)