My five year old son still has trouble opening his Laptop Lunches Lunch Box. For those of you unfamiliar with Laptop Lunches, you have to push in a clasp while lifting the lid at the same time–can be quite tricky for the younger crowd. Now that he is 5, I wanted him to feel good about lunchtime at preschool and find a lunchbox he could successfully open on his own. I also wanted to avoid vinyl lunchboxes and get a lunch box that is dishwasher safe. The lunchbox we decided on is the Klip-It Slimline Quaddie Lunchbox. This lunchbox is made in New Zealand of BPA-free plastic (polypropylene) and is top-rack dishwasher-safe. After 2 weeks of testing, we are quite happy with this waste-free lunchbox!
The layout of the Slimline Quaddie is quite versatile. You get one large compartment in the bottom… plenty big for a sandwich and side. In the lid section are 3 compartments: 2 small and 1 medium great for sides such as cut fruit, crackers, or veggies. Each compartment is easy to open, and although there are many compartments I think lunchtime becomes a food treasure hunt for my son to find all of the goodies I have tucked away. The Slimline Quaddie lunchbox also comes with an 8 ounce water bottle that fits into the larger compartment in the top of the lunchbox. The overall lunchbox dimensions are: 9″ x 6-1/2″ x 3-1/2″ h. Klip It also makes a similar, larger lunchbox called the Klip-It Quaddie that is 9″ x 6-1/2″ x 3.8″ inches… however, I think the Slimline version is plenty big for both kids and grownups. (you could easily fit 2 sandwiches in the lower section of the Slimline Quaddie, if you or your kids really eat that much!)
I first ordered 2 of the Slimline Quaddies from Amazon.com for $10 each. Based on one of the customer comments regarding colors, I called Amazon to verify that I would be sent the blue ones that were pictured. However, I was sent 2 pink ones that just weren’t going to cut it for my 5yo boy! Amazon paid for the return shipping and I placed a different order through SpecialtyFoodAmerica.com. I got one Green, and one Turquoise lunch box, the colors are great and the items were quickly shipped from this online store. (Total price was $27 for 2 lunchboxes: $10 for each lunch box plus $7 shipping).
Overall, for $10 I think this is a great waste free lunchbox choice. Advantages of the Slimline Quaddie: lunch box is waste-free, dishwasher safe, contains several food compartments, comes in several nice colors, easy to open compartments, made of safe materials, inexpensive, nicely sized. Disadvantages of the Slimline Quadie: lunchbox is non-insulated, no carrying handle, awkward to get food out of two lunch box “layers”, lids do not fully seal so runny foods would leak out, awkward to fit into top of dishwasher so that all the compartments will get cleaned.
To learn more or to order visit SpecialtyFoodAmerica.com, Amazon.com (careful of colors, though!), or The Container Store. Do you have other favorite lunch box finds that you would like to share?
