Are you planning on going on a road trip with young kids? Are you worried that everyone is going to drive each other crazy? This DIY car seat tray won’t make your travel 100% stress free, but it will help keep your kids happy and entertained. It is also extremely easy and quick to make.
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For a road trip a few years ago I bought a car seat tray for my then three year old daughter. And she threw up orange juice all over it a year later. I cleaned it as best I could, but I couldn’t bring myself to having her use it again. Especially to eat on. So, I decided to make both my older kids something similar that could be completely washed. It is a very simple design, but it is much cheaper, magnetic, and fully washable. It has worked really well for us.
How to Make a DIY Car Seat Tray
Materials:
- Fabric
- Elastic cord
- Sewing machine (optional)
- Stuffing
- Cookie Sheet (I used a small one)
- Velcro
- Hot glue (optional)
Making the Cushion:
First, you need to make the cushion. Choose a fabric that your child likes and cut it in a rectangle. Make it twice the length of the lap area of their car seat and the width of their lap.
Fold it over length-wise where the non-pattern side is showing. Cut a piece of elastic cord that is long enough to wrap around their cup holder. Pin it where the loop is inside on the pattern side.
Pin and sew around the fabric rectangle leaving a small space. I used a sewing machine, but you could always sew it by hand or probably hot glue it. Pull the fabric through this hole so that it is right side out. Stuff it with stuffing and then close up the gap with a ladder stitch.
You now have a pillow that fits comfortably in your child’s lap when they are in their car seat. There should be a loop of elastic cord sticking out one side.
Attaching the Cookie Sheet:
Now it is time to attach your cookie sheet. Because I wanted to be able to wash everything, I did this with Velcro. Place two long strips of Velcro on both the cookie sheet and the pillow to attach them together. I put the cookie sheet off center so that it only covered one cup holder. The adhesive backing didn’t stick as well as I would have liked, but it stayed really well after I hot glued it on.
While I was using Velcro, I placed a strip of it on the side of the cookie sheet. That way I could add the other side to their markers and stuff so they could attach them to their DIY car seat tray.
Using Your DIY Car Seat Tray:
Now that you have made your DIY car seat tray, it is time to use it. All you need to do is place it in their lap and loop the elastic loop around their cup holder. If you accidently made your elastic too long (like I did), you can just tie a section of it off to make it tighter. It is as easy to take off as it is to put on, but it shouldn’t fall off when you don’t want it to.
Lastly, place your child’s entertainment on the tray and enjoy your slightly more peaceful car trip.
Conclusion of Making a DIY Car Seat Tray
This DIY car seat tray worked really well for us. It was very fast and easy to make. We have now used them on two separate car trips. The first one was much more planned out and a lot of my ideas (besides this tray) didn’t really work out. My prep for the second trip was a lot more last minute and their entertainment was much simpler. Both times this car seat tray was the MVP. It gave my kids a hard surface that they could do things on, but was comfortable and didn’t need held on to.
And after the trip, I threw the pillow part in the washing machine and washed the cookie sheet in the sink like a normal dish. It doesn’t have all the fancy pockets like the tray I bought, but I care more about it being cheap and washable. Maybe I will add detachable zipper pouches to the sides of it eventually.
What is the furthest car trip you have taken with your kids? What kept them entertained the longest? Check out some ideas on what we have used on past road trips.
