Totter and Tumble Reversible Play-Mat Review (original) (raw)

I Found a Play Mat That Doesn’t Look Like a Play Mat

By ,a senior writer at the Strategist covering kids’ toys and men’s style. She joined the Strategist in 2019. She is a former writer for GQ and an accomplished illustrator.

Five months ago, when I moved from a two-bedroom apartment with a large living room to a one-bedroom apartment with a smaller living room, I told myself “Kids don’t need a ton of stuff” and tried to get rid of at least a third of my 3-year-old son’s toys and books. But one thing I made a point to keep was the reversible Totter + Tumble play mat we’d had in the center of his play area for almost as long as he’d been alive.

We originally used it to protect him from falls when he began crawling and then walking. I never expected to keep it this long. But if anything, it has become more useful the older and more energetic he gets — to cushion him while he plays and to dampen the sound of his jumping, stomping, and smashing down Magna-Tile structures for our downstairs neighbors. We use it daily for dance parties, puzzle construction, car races, and driving toy trains.

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It has become a very important piece of parental play equipment that allows me to comfortably crawl around on the ground and kneel for long periods of time while playing with my son. A lot of play mats are actually quite firm, but this one is made of squishy memory foam that sits about a half-inch above the floor and springs back with each step you take on it. It feels similar to a kitchen anti-fatigue mat and, in a pinch, has been comfortable enough for me to fall asleep on while putting him to bed.

View of both sides of the Harvester play mat in my son’s bedroom.Photo: Liza Corsillo

I also really like the way it looks. I have the Harvester design, which has an olive-green pattern that looks a bit like wood grain on one side and a tonal beige print that looks like moon phases on the other. There are 19 other two-sided options to choose from, including some lovely Morris & Co. botanicals, but I went with this one because I wanted a neutral that would look nice in photos.

I spent days sifting through dozens of play mats online to find one that was calming to look at, matched my design tastes, and was thick and bouncy underfoot. I also considered popular alternatives from Little Bot and House of Noa. But I didn’t love the Little Bot patterns (though the brand now has a series of Miffy play mats that are very cute). And while House of Noa’s designs are great, they only come in modular jigsaw tiles, which are not as cushy, or foldable tumbling mats that are too thick to keep out on the floor all the time. The Totter + Tumble play mat is somewhere between the two, with a stylish design and extra squishy cushioning that you can wipe clean and leave out at all times, like a huge fancy yoga mat. I appreciate that it is neither babyish nor attempting to fool someone into thinking it is a rug.

Parents are often concerned that foam mats like this will come out of the box with a chemical smell. But I never noticed even the slightest off-gassing odor when unpacking mine. The mat comes rolled up like a poster in a tall cardboard box and takes a bit of time to settle. I opened the box, unrolled it, and laid out some heavy books on each end to encourage it to stay flat. Within a few hours it was ready to go.

After more than two years of constant use, the mat looks exactly like it did when I got it — minus a few stains from a permanent marker I confused for a washable one — and it is still just as bouncy. The care instructions on Totter + Tumble’s website tell you not to run a vacuum over the mat, as many vacuums are heavy and the wheels might damage the mat’s surface. But I vacuum mine several times a week with a lightweight stick vac and have never had an issue. I also regularly wipe it down with wet paper towels and a spritz of all-purpose cleaner to remove remnants of everything from Play-Doh and glitter glue to applesauce and peanut butter.

My only regret is that I ordered the “compact” size, 49 by 72 inches (about four by six feet), which at the time fit inside our playpen walls perfectly, but which feels just a tad too small now that my son is a bigger kid. There are five sizes and shapes available including a round play mat and a runner. If I had known I’d still be using it for years down the road, I would have paid $30 more for the slightly larger standard size, 55 inches by 83 inches (about 4.5 by almost seven feet), which can accommodate larger train-track builds, more of my body at the edge of those builds, and more kids when we have friends over for playdates.

The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.

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