Boon Flair Pedestal Highchair

Remember the old futuristic comic with the predominantly egg-shaped utilities? Well, that image came to mind when first seeing the Boon Flair baby high chair. Indeed, organic shape of the seat with a center pedestal and round base sure looks different from the standard designs in the department store (i.e. Eddy Bauer and Graco). Of course the price is a bit different too but overall the promise of safe yet easy to clean and adjust chair made us take the plunge. It has only been a few days of use and with almost 5 months our little one isn't a frequent passenger just yet (predominantly nursed). However, it became clear that the "investment" may easily pay off as the design isn't as outlandish in actual size and color. Once in use, a few details I frankly ignored as marketing hype became more clear and appreciated.

Cleaning: [****-] Given that the little person occupying this seat is a bit messy (understatement alert!), cleaning is one of the major arguments for this seat, or the ease thereof. Generally speaking, the tray liner is easy to remove and dishwasher safe. A spare liner makes sure you have some latitude in how often to run the dishwasher too. However, you probably wouldn't need a liner if baby was behaved enough to stay within that (small) area. Since most components can be easily cleaned with a damp cloth or sponge. Exceptions are the straps in the seat and the lift button on the base. The latter is "well" placed to gather any excess that escapes the tray near the right corner (from the baby's point of view). Ultimately, the food can gather easily in the gap between the button and the base. Nevertheless, the remainder of the seat is very easy to keep clean, even the foam cushion.

Stability: [*****] A wide base and stout center column (pedestal) sign responsible for a remarkable stability in terms of the baby leaning far over and not generating enough momentum to tip the chair over. Of course, with currently 16 pounds, our baby shouldn't really have the energy anyway. However, daddy's (that would be me) mechanical engineering background sure was impressed with the demonstrated stability even with adult forces applied (pushing on the seat or leaning on one side). Considering the stated design limit of 50 lb child, it fair to say that the 23.5" diameter base are not the limiting factors.

Flexibility: [****-] The seat has two height for straps to mount and the center column is freely adjustable in height between 21" and 26" which puts the tray at roughly 26" to 31". The tray has two positions to bring it closer for small babies and a bit further for more tummy room to accommodate the upper end of the size range. So basically height adjustment is flawless as it only requires to push the orange button and move the seat to the needed height. Tray adjustment is a bit more "complicated" since two hidden levers need to be actuated to release or to fasten the tray. Same is true for changing the tray position. The seat doesn't swivel unless you release the break (in the back of the base), but the friction based brake can be easily overcome with smaller children in the seat to turn it slightly. The break or rolls are actually a rather neat idea to quickly move the chair to a new position and secure with with reasonable success. The brakes are friction based only and naturally loose some grip with contamination, but can be cleaned to restore friction. However, the rolls only work on a flat surface like hardwood floor and are without effect on carpet.

Durability: [****-] The steel center column and the seat shell are both of very solid construction. In fact, the main shell is almost 1/4 inch thick (roughly 5 mm) and very sturdy. The steel column looks similar to a good office chair and i have no concerns with that either. The straps are replaceable as are the tray and the liner. The base remains to be seen but the small rolls and the fairly complex break mechanism (for a child seat) is an area of concern which has yet to materialize. Of course I do not expect for this to be even visible until our baby is much bigger and heavier than the current 5 months and 16 pounds.

Design: [****-] Did I mention how similar this design looks to anything in the Jetsons cartoon? Well, it's more refined of course and surprisingly compatible with modern (contemporary) design furniture. The standard Flair is bit more "plasticy" looking than the Elite model. While I envy the orange seat cushion of the Elite, the plastic grey of the base isn't that obvious and the somewhat translucent shell of the seat isn't in anyway way inferior to the white shell of the Elite. However, if you're looking for earth tones or to match this seat with Victorian style furniture, you may have a hard time to do so.

Assembly: [****-] The box contains a base, the center column, the seat shell and the tray as separate components. assembly of the column to the base is easy and simply inserted until it "snaps". The shell connects to the seat via 5 screws which were a bit hard to find since the bag was loose in the box. There is no tool included, but a standard Philips screwdriver will do. Only two more screws to fasten the cover that hides the joining point and you're basically ready to snap the tray into place.

Storage: [**---] The assembly is semi-permanent and the Flair doesn't fold. Hence, there is limited ability to store the seat when not in use. This does not appear to be a problem fir us yet since it's in daily use and we wouldn't fold it up to put on the side anyway. Once baby grows out of it, that's a whole different question if you're planning to keep it but would like to do so in a space-saving manner. (Disassembly is an option but not any easier to store.) Further, for in use storage, the Flair doesn't have any pockets etc. to hold toys or whatever you would like to have handy.

Specifications: The recommended weight limit is 50 pounds and the associated maximum age about 4 years. The seat (tush) height ranges from 21 inches to 26.25 inches and the associated tray height from 26.25 inches to 31.5 inches. The circular base is 23.5 inches in diameter.

The Flair is available in two models:
Flair 701: features a frosted glass colored seat with a white pad and silver metallic finish plastic base. MSRP $199
Flair Elite 751: has a white seat with two seat pads, orange and gray, and a stainless steel base. MSRP $399


© 2007, theuerkorn