Go to the mobile version of this Web site.

Login | Contact Us | Site Map | Paid archives | Electronic edition | Subscription Questions | Extras

Parent companies

Where there's a need, Colorado moms invent a way

Janet Simons, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 9, 2006 at midnight

Text size  

More Airlines & Aerospace

More stories »

When Daniel Simon was 2, his mom couldn't find a clean, practical surface for his Goldfish crackers and toy trucks while he was sitting in his car seat.

So, Alyson Starr Probst invented the Snack & Play Travel Tray, a soft-foam tray that wraps around a car seat, booster or stroller, offering toddlers and preschoolers a flat, collapsible surface for toys and treats.

Probst is the latest inventor in a tradition of Colorado parents with a knack for turning parenting problems into business opportunities.

It's too early to tell whether the Snack & Play will live up to the standard set by Snuglis, Boppies and Baby Einstein videos - other inventions by Colorado mothers that became cornerstones of multimillion-dollar juvenile-product industries. But Probst has a good start. Last month, the Denver mother received $7,000 and a dishwasher, washer and dryer as first-place winner of the 2006 Whirlpool Mother of Invention contest.

In an effort to gauge its potential, we field-tested the Snack & Play, along with four other new products devised by local mothers.

Ellie Abrams, 3, her brother Matthew, 8 weeks, and their mother, Sharon Pincus-Abrams, were our judges - a panel with a whole different agenda from the whizzes in product development, business strategy, innovation, technology and marketing who judged the Whirlpool contest.

Snack & Play Travel Tray, $19

Star Kids; 303-887-9017,

Ellie has been getting in and out of her booster seat on her own for several months, but with the tray in place she can't. "I would have loved this a year ago, before Ellie was so independent," said Pincus-Abrams. "The material is fabulous. It's very easy to clean."

Local store and Web sites: Baby Abby, 5151 Franklin St., 303-733-5376, ; Family Travel Gear, , 303-507-1339

Grade: ** (out of three stars)

Whole Roost Diaper Bag with changing pad, $108

2 Red Hens, 3880 Elm St., 303-331-0909,

Lori Burley was producing fabric handbags as a hobby. With the encouragement of a friend who owned the Frolik on 32nd gift shop, she shifted her focus to diaper bags and baby products. The colorful bags became popular with celebrity moms, and the company took off; 2006 will be its first million-dollar year. Pincus-Abrams loved the way the diaper bag looked and thought it was quite roomy. However, she strongly prefers a zipper to the bag's red-button closure.

Local stores: Nordstrom; Artisan Center, 2757 E. Third Ave., 303-333-1201; Frolik on 32nd, 3715 W. 32nd Ave., 303-458-5575

Grade: **



Quick Zip Crib Sheet set, $35; extra top sheet, $17.50

Clouds and Stars, 7144 E. Ohio Drive, 720-929-1099,

Friends Elizabeth Sopher and Joan Henehan were complaining about the difficulty of changing a wet crib sheet in the middle of the night when they hit on the idea of creating a two-part sheet. One part goes below the crib mattress and up the sides; the top sheet zips onto it. Pincus-Abrams found it difficult to install the bottom sheet, especially with bumpers in the crib. Once that was done, however, she liked the way the top sheet could be so easily changed.

Local stores: Baby Abby, 5151 Franklin St., 303-733-5376, ; Red Carpet Baby, 1511 S. Pearl St., 303-698-2229

Grade: **

Superblankie, $18

Kids' Craft of the Month Club, $7.95 a month (toddler club, $3.95 a month). Superblankie and Craft of the Month Club, Longmont, 303-651-9234, Not available in stores.

Becky Dawson grew weary of picking wet, dirty stroller blankets out of puddles, so she sewed Velcro straps onto a blanket so it would attach to a stroller. The Superblankie couldn't even be kicked off. Shortly after she developed the Superblankie, Dawson started the Craft of the Month Club. Pincus-Abrams hasn't tried the Superblankie on Matthew yet. But she has high hopes. Ellie loves crafts, and started on the Halloween kit as soon as it slipped out of the envelope. Each kit comes with all the makings of five projects, including, for October, Halloween door sign, pipe cleaner spider and a Jack O' Lantern tote bag. "I spend a small fortune at Hobby Lobby, and this has everything she needs to finish five projects," Pincus-Abrams said. "It's great."

Grade for both: ***

Treasure Dough, $10

Treasure Dough, 732 Fulton St., 720-934-2345,

Alexia Bregman started making Treasure Dough after watching her 3-year-old daughter, Mia, bury her small toys in Play Doh. In May, Bregman started selling tubs of homemade dough embedded with small plastic toys and plans to launch the product nationally in February at New York's Toy Fair.

Ellie selected the pink bucket, Princess Loot, and dug for glittery trinkets until she was fully bedecked.

Local stores: Real Baby, 3616 W. 32nd Ave., 303-477-2229, , Studio Bini, 1030 Speer Blvd., 303-477-3227, and 200 Quebec St., 303-366-5644,

Grade: ***



If you go

• What: Inventors' Boot Camp

• Where: Front Range Community College, 3645 W. 112th Ave., Westminster

• When: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 21

• Cost: $39, which covers lunch

• For more information: Call 303-910-8889 or go to .