If there’s one thing I wasn’t expecting with parenthood is the sheer amount of time you spend on a play mat with your newborn. It’s the best place for them to learn and conquer all those many milestones within the first early months of their life. They will go from lying on a mat looking up at you to grasping at toys and rolling onto their tummies. While there are several play mats on the market, Etta Loves created one to specifically support the needs and development of your little one. Read on to see why.
Art and science aren’t often paired up with a play mat. In this case, it is with Keith Haring providing the beautiful artwork for the Etta Loves play mat to brighten up any nursery. Keith Haring partnered with Etta Loves contributing two iconic prints for a reversible play mat. Etta Loves has brought to the market a new concept of play mats for infants. They consulted with an orthopedist to combine science and art in their unique play mats to contribute to your baby’s brain development. Yes, you read that correctly! Babies are born with blurry vision. They are often drawn to high contrast patterns with black and white being the most vivid for the first few months of their lives. Etta Loves created a play mat to support this development as one side of the play mat has black and white high contrast patterns while the flip side has colorful scaled patterns. Therefore, you may start tummy time with your newborn on the black and white side for the first three months, and then move forward to the colorful side as your little one’s eyesight expands at four months. The scientifically scaled patterns motivate babies to use their back, neck, and shoulder muscles to push up to capture the fascinating images in front of them more clearly. I’m not sure about you, but this is definitely the first play mat I’ve used that was created with so much careful thought in its product development.
Upon opening, I notice right away that it’s soft and durable. Made out of organic cotton with a padded fill, it feels ready for my baby to explore on. The size of the mat is big enough for two babies or if you have a wiggly baby who is on the move. It’s machine washable which makes everyone’s life a little bit easier with the inevitable spit ups. My four month old put the play mat to the test by scooting in all directions immediately. He is making the most out of every inch on the mat by practicing rolling. He is eager to push up on the mat to see the patterns from as high as he can go. I foresee this being a perfect gift for a newborn. Keep in mind that by the time an infant reaches the colorful side designated for babies surpassing four months, they are scooting and can outgrow the mat as they age. I find it to be a particularly great gift for young babies before they begin crawling. The ease of the mat being machine washable is a wonderful addition. While it’s easy to spot clean spit up, it can be challenging to locate the spit up with the colorful scaled patterns.
Caretakers may place toys in a circle along the rims of the mat. This will encourage your infant to attempt scooting around the mat and catch their toys. The size and durability of the mat will motivate young infants to discover all of their new capabilities as they move through milestones in those first few early months of their life. What’s more, it will delight parents to have a moment of calmness while their little one is easily entertained as their attention is captured by the contrasting patterns on both sides of the play mat. Parents will love that the mat comes with a convenient strap to roll up for easy storage on the go, the ease of it being machine washable, and how much of an appealing addition it makes in any nursery.
Etta Loves prides themselves on creating play mats that are backed by science to support infants’ visual and cognitive development. Parents will feel reassured that all their time spent on a play mat is further nourishing their baby’s development. As they say, the days are long, but the years are short. The hours spent on the play mat are not wasted. Check out the desirable Etta Loves X Keith Haring collection today.
