Help me find a lunchbox for DD.

mom2juliarose

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #1

We had a Lands End lunch box for her, but I've determined that I HATE lunchboxes with soft insides. DD doesn't close up her containers all the time, and things were constantly leaking into the bag... and then a simple wipe-down wouldn't clean it... it just got gross inside (like, dried cereal + juices of whatever fruit I gave her would be combined and stuck inside).

What I really need for her is something with a plastic interior or even plastic all together. We bought her one at WalMart for summer camp and I LOVE it (it's soft on the outside and has a soft inside, but there's a plastic insert that you put in it so that nothing gets on the soft interior), but it's HUGE and there's no way it would work during the school year. It's like a cooler bag for a 6-pack. I think the brand is Arctic Zone?

We tried a Laptop Lunchbox but the issue was the same--she wouldn't close all the lids and we'd wind up with a gross mess.

Anyone know where I can find a good lunchbox option for her that would be easy to wipe down? What ever happened to the lunchboxes of our childhood? I know plastics aren't good for us, but when did soft-sided lunchboxes become all the rage?

 

munchkin

Active member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #2

I hate the soft insides too. They start to smell and then I just chuck the whole thing rather then trying to clean it.

How about just one lid? This looks pretty neat. It is dishwasher safe! (Well I guess except for the stickers.)

 

Qarin

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #3

What about Planetbox?

 

Qarin

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #4

munchkin said:

How about just one lid? This looks pretty neat. It is dishwasher safe! (Well I guess except for the stickers.)

Click to expand...

Goodbyn! I was trying to remember what that one was called to suggest it, too.

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Jun 10, 2010

• #5

I bought this last year for DS and returned it because I didn't like the hard sides...sure looked easy to clean, though! http://www.landsend.com/pp/ClassicC...1.html?cm_mmc=Froogle-_-null-_-FP-_-data_feed

 

mom2juliarose

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #6

munchkin said:

I hate the soft insides too. They start to smell and then I just chuck the whole thing rather then trying to clean it.

How about just one lid? This looks pretty neat. It is dishwasher safe! (Well I guess except for the stickers.)

Click to expand...

I saw that but on a few sites I read that the reviews aren't too good (including here)--they're hard to open and don't really keep the food separate.

Qarin said:

What about Planetbox?

Click to expand...

Oooh I've NEVER heard of them! I really like the look of that!

 

mom2juliarose

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #7

joolsplus3 said:

I bought this last year for DS and returned it because I didn't like the hard sides...sure looked easy to clean, though! http://www.landsend.com/pp/ClassicC...1.html?cm_mmc=Froogle-_-null-_-FP-_-data_feed

Click to expand...

I had that one for myself, and although all I did was the simple "wipe down" daily, the insulation started peeling and it got smelly. LE gave me a refund for it.

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Jun 10, 2010

• #8

Oh, and I hear putting even soft sided lunchbags on the top rack of the dishwasher works pretty well (I'm old enough to remember how people raved about these plastic frame things to put your baseball caps on and how clean they got in the dishwasher, a decent soft sided lunchbox is at least that sturdy, lol).

 

munchkin

Active member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #9

mom2juliarose said:

I saw that but on a few sites I read that the reviews aren't too good (including here)--they're hard to open and don't really keep the food separate.

Click to expand...

Well :thumbsdown:. I was thinking about getting one, but can't stand for my food to touch.

 

M

mommyof3tx

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #10

That planetbox looks great! I've been looking at laptoplunches.com for the boys next year

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Jun 10, 2010

• #11

mom2juliarose said:

I had that one for myself, and although all I did was the simple "wipe down" daily, the insulation started peeling and it got smelly. LE gave me a refund for it.

Click to expand...

oh well, glad i returned it!

 

tiggercat

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #12

Qarin said:

What about Planetbox?

Click to expand...

Oh, that one is cool. Greg has a laptop lunchbox, but I'm not sure what to get for Megan when she goes full days. Shipping to Canada is crazy though.

 

MomToEliEm

Moderator

• Jun 10, 2010

• #13

joolsplus3 said:

I bought this last year for DS and returned it because I didn't like the hard sides...sure looked easy to clean, though! http://www.landsend.com/pp/ClassicC...1.html?cm_mmc=Froogle-_-null-_-FP-_-data_feed

Click to expand...

I returned my lands end lunchbox as well. The wipe down feature didn't really work as the inside coating started to chip away.

 

sirrahn

Active member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #14

MomToEliEm said:

I returned my lands end lunchbox as well. The wipe down feature didn't really work as the inside coating started to chip away.

Click to expand...

I had 4 of those and two of them peeled, but the other two were still fine after 2 years' use I cared for them all the same way so it was weird. I did also get a refund for the peeling ones.

We have the LE lunch sacks now that can be turned totally inside out and really washed and so far so good, but I noticed that the lining of DD1's has gotten tiny holes in it from packing a fork (she's not much for sandwiches and takes a lot of thermos stuff) so we'll see how it does as time goes on.

The kids' have also had Arctic Zone lunchboxes with hard plastic liners in the past, and they do clean up well. They were normal lunchbox size, but it seems like I could only find them when the back to school stuff came out. I had some that lasted for years, but the last set I bought all cracked within the first month of school so the liner did no good. I haven't tried them again so it could have just been a bad batch, but it was quite annoying. I don't think my kids are that overly rough.

If you find the perfect lunchbox, let me know. I guess the soft sided ones are much better insulated than the ones we had, but I agree they leave a lot to be desired in the cleaning department. Almost makes me want to just get a big pack of brown bags and call it a day.

 

natysr

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #15

We love the lunchsense lunchbox that we got Jordan last year. The entire lunchbox can be washed in the washing machine.

 

An Aurora

Senior Community Member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #16

Goodbyn! They rectified the problem with the lid being hard to close in March 2010.

 

TerisBoys

Well-known member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #17

The plastic ones with thermos/water bottle are usually out around back-to-school time too. The rest of the year I only see the soft siders.

Otherwise - ebay?

 

BudgieStew

New member

• Jun 10, 2010

• #18

Qarin said:

What about Planetbox?

Click to expand...

Oh that looks cool!!

We have a Laptop Lunch and a Goodbyn for DS and both are okay. I have an older Laptop and wish I had the new version with the extra covers.

 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician

• Jun 11, 2010

• #19

I have a planetbox. Got it in anticipation of Leah doing lunch once a week a preschool, but the on and only time she stayed extra I tossed some random stuff in an older lunchbag at the last minute She likes eating out of it, though, and dd1 may have used it once or twice in 4th grade.
I highly recommend getting the carry bag that comes with it, as it fits the box perfectly, and I find the clasp on the box seems very easy to open (good for a young kid, bad if you wanted to toss the whole thing into a different bag!). The little extra metal containers are good for wet foods, they are very easy to open, and stay closed when placed properly in the box.
It's been in the dishwasher just fine a few times, but I can't comment on how hard it might be to clean the outer bag if something spills...it's nylon and should be wipeable, but yeah, nothing like a plastic lunchbox (which I think like Teri, I DO see in the back to school department at Target in July/August, definitely give that place a shot in hopes of it... or lunchboxes.com seems to carry darn near everything, even the rust-prone old things I had to tote around )

 

CommMom

Senior Community Member

• Jun 11, 2010

• #20

I know you were talking about something primarily hard plastic...but if you wanted something soft, I LOVE the [ame="http://www.amazon.com/BYO-Rambler-Lunch-Built-Inc/dp/B0037BOCUS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1276278212&sr=8-1"]BYO lunch bags[/ame]. The whole deal is neoprene. I have a couple for DH (who tends to leave stuff in his lunch bag and then leave the bag in his car...sometimes for days). If something spills, I turn it inside out, toss it in the washer on cold and then hang to dry (or tumble it on the air only setting). I usually find them on clearance at Target or Walmart. I have several of the lunch bags, plus a couple of the can and bottle sleeves which I love even more.