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I think I found an inexpensive and good solution for a stroller drink holder for mom and cup & snack holder for baby. This solution will allow you to fold the stroller up with the containers still attached, while posing no problems in the folding of the baby stroller.

I don’t have a bottle holder on the Peg P3 nor does Belle have a cup holder. I also hate the Velcro or ribbon to tie the bag to the stroller. This item is dependent on the type of stroller you own. Measure the around the location you would like the drink, sippy, or snack bag to go and then add 2-3 inches for a tie off or overlap for Velcro.

Supplies:

** 7” length X 5″ width bag for parent drink holder

** 3 1/2” length X 5″ width bag for child drink and snack holder

** 11” length of boning for each bag I purchased a boning that is made of several plastic lines that is then fused together. It seems that this may work better over time than the less expensive “Dritz” single line extruded boning. This boning was only $.10 more expensive per yard.

**Length of Velcro or ribbon to tie the bag to the stroller. This item is dependent on the type of stroller you own. Measure the around the location you would like the drink, sippy, or snack bag to go and then add 2-3 inches for a tie off or overlap for Velcro.
Time For Project: Time to store plus 10 minutes or less.

Cost per bag: $1.75 when purchasing preassembled bags or $.50 if you have suitable fabric on hand and only need to purchase boning.

While at JoAnn’s E.T.C. I found some small bags in their children’s craft section that were about 5 wide x 7 inches deep (This is a spring seasonal item for this store). After some modifications to the bags I think I found a reasonable solution for both myself and my daughter. Oriental Trading also has similar bags for about the same price per bag; however you will need to purchase 12 bags Michaels Craft Stores may also have the bags; however, they would also be seasonal at these stores.

Parent drink holder:

As purchased, the bags are the correct length for a 20 oz. pop bottle; however they needed to be modified a bit for easy removal of the pop bottle.

At first I tied the bag to the stroller and then realized that it would be very difficult to take a drink in and out without any stability at the opening. I took a quick drive back to the fabric store and purchased some boning to add stability at the opening and it worked even better than I though it would.

I found that it is best to snip a small hole in the top of the bag and feed the boning inside the top most part of the bag. It is best to have the boning overlap slightly for better stability. I also moved the ends of the boning away from the hole so that they do not put extra pressure on the cut opening. After feeding the boning around the bag, I glued the fabric back together with a hot glue gun; however, if I were to do it again, I would use fray check, superglue, Aleene’s OK To Wash It Glue, or another type of glue that can withstand washings better.

Child’s snack and drink holder:

For a children’s cup or snack container I sewed up the bags to make a bag about 3 1/2 length X 5 wide (if you do not sew you could tie off the bottom of the bag with a length of ribbon or Velcro and it would function just as good.) I found that the extra fabric left in the holder helped to make the opening of the bag more stable. I also needed to place the boning in the rim of the bags the same way as the parent drink holder. This will allow my daughter to be able to put her cup back into the holder and reach into the snack tray easier. Originally, I planned on using an extra disposable cup or container in the sippy holder; however, I think the boning may make the opening stable enough for Belle to put the cup in and out without any troubles. I do plan on using an extra container for the snack holder so that I can remove it easily to keep the snack bag cleaner.

Attaching the bags to the stroller:

The string that came with the bag coordinates very nice with the bag; but I may use Velcro to attach the bag under the ribbon for extra strength. I have previously used 1/2″ double sided One-Wrap Velcro hook-n-loop tape from http://www.fastenation.com to attach items to strollers. Velcro “Get-A-Grip”, double sided hook-n-loop tape is more commonly available from craft stores and may work just as good; however it is 3/4″ wide and would need to be trimed at the eyelet location. I have found the Velcro withstands the movement and vibrations of strollers over time and if properly bound on the stroller little hands have a harder time finding the beginning of the tape to unwind it.

To secure the Velcro to a stroller where little hands are also exploring, it is best to have the velcro secure from top to bottom of the bar, to have the velcro overlap for 1 or more inches (if possible), and to have the Velcro end under the child bar or out of site of little eyes.

To attach the parent drink bag to a stroller with 2 handles and no bar connecting the handles or the sides of the stroller in front of the child (Maclaren, older Peg P3, classic umbrella strollers, etc.), I found that it is best to run the Velcro through 2 of the eyelets on the bag to so that the bag does not twirl as easily.

For connecting the parent drink bag or child’s drink/ snack container to the stroller with a bar connecting both sides of the stroller, I found that it is best to attach the bags to the stroller in 2 adjacent eyelets with 2 separate pieces of Velcro. This kept the bag from sagging excessively adn turning. I found Velcro to work best at attaching to the stroller bar for a very snug fit that does not sag greatly. I also discovered that it is best to attach the bags as close to the top of the stroller bar as possible. I even placed the containers so that they are almost parallel to the ground before a cup or snack is placed into the bag. This way the weight from the drink will pull on the bag a bit so that it moves down.

For either assembly be sure to open and close the stroller several times before permanently attaching the containers to the stroller.

If you are unable or unwilling to find the supplies for this project, I would be willing to make them for you for $5.00 each plus shipping. Velcro will also be $1.00 extra and I only have blue on hand currently.

Happy Strolling!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 10th, 2006 at 7:41 am and is filed under Baby, Sewing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.