When my husband and I welcomed our first child into the world, we were relatively young. He had recently gotten a good job after graduating from college, and I was still in school. As you can imagine, price was a big factor in all of our purchases for baby items. For the most part, we went with the cheapest possible option for every major baby purchase we made. Some of these purchases I lived to regret, such as the breast pump, the stroller, and the convertible car seat we bought after our daughter outgrew her rear-facing seat. But this high chair is a notable exception. In my opinion, you usually get what you pay for. However, in the case of the J. Mason high chair, you get way more.


1. The high chair is covered in easy-to clean plastic. I know that in the picture it has blue checks on it, but the one we bought had a Sesame Street theme. I don't usually go in much for character items, but this one was exceptionally cute and caught my eye. Not only is the plastic seat easy to clean, it also completely resists stains, so it stays looking nice.

One caveat, though. It stayed intact throughout the entire time my oldest used it, but by the time my second was about 9 months old, the upholstery had begun to crack at the seams. It seems that the plastic can only take so many wipe-downs. By the time he was 11 months old (last week), it was so badly torn that the entire bottom seat cushion was exposed, and the top had started to crack as well.

2. Speaking of easy to clean! Not only is the seat a breeze to wipe down, the tray fully removes for easy rinsing. I think it is supposed to be dishwasher safe, but it does not fit in my dishwasher. It doesn't really matter, though, because it is very easy to clean at the sink. The rest of the chair is also very easy to keep looking good, becuase there are few little nooks or crannys for food to hide in only to be discovered later, which is a treat we get regularly with the high chair at my mother's house!

3. The tray is very very easy to maneuver. It is lightweight and can easily be removed and attached with one hand.

4. The chair has a nice wide sturdy base, which make it very stable. In addition, this chair offers double protection in the safety department. There is a three-point harness and a passive restraint bar made of plastic under the tray. The tray attaches by pushing a large button at the front and sliding it into place. It automatically locks into place so that you don't have to do anything except listen for a click... at least for a while.

When my first was about 1, I about had a heart attack when she was sitting at it eating while I did the dishes, and I heard this loud clatter, as the tray had fallen to the floor. It terrified me, because I was afraid she had fallen, but the 3-point harness had kept her in her chair. That was when I discovered that somehow she had figured out how to mess with the bottom of it, and lean on it just right to get it off. She started doing this regularly, and eventually the tray latch system spring broke. You can still lock it into place, but you have to do it manually and ALWAYS ALWAYS USE THE SEAT BELT just in case your little one figures out how to undo it. My son is 11 months old now and he does it all the time.

5. This high chair could not assemble and store more simply. It requires no tools or assembly whatsoever. It just arrives in the box already folded up, and you simply follow the easy instructions to unfold it, almost like a kitchen step ladder. You probably won't even need the instructions. In addition, when they are done using it, you can just fold it up in about a second and a half, tray and all, and it becomes remarkably small and completely flat. When they're not using it, I just tuck it away in my pantry to give us more room in the kitchen. I love having this option.

All in all, for the time it served, this was a great chair. Last week I finally gave in and retired it. Thanks to its ability to fold down so compactly, it easily fit in our trash can! Now that we are a little more settled, and a little older, we have more money to spend on baby items. I could have probably bought just about any high chair I wanted this time around, but when I went shopping I made a beeline for the newest version of this one. I fully expect to be equally satisfied. These chairs are just about the best 30 bucks you can spend!

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