Product Review: Totokidogo Dwinguler Fairy Tale Land play mat

Creating a  play space for children who are a mixture of ages under 8 is not always easy. As babies become more mobile you may wish for them to have an area where their play may be focused to direct them away from the older children's activities. This area needs to be inviting and stimulating for their development while also ensuring it is a comfortable and safe space. 

Totokidogo recently offered for us to try out and review one of their Dwinguler play mats. The mats are described as  non-toxic, waterproof and easy to maintain and provide excellent cushioning. I thought this mat will be perfect for play with two babies in the house. 

When the mat arrived the children helped to roll it out. I was very surprised at the size of the mat, we were sent a 'Large' mat which I know now is 2300mm by 1400mm. It takes up a huge space which is perfect for me for when we eventually get a conservatory but does take up a bit too much floor for our small living room. I was immediately impressed by the durable material and quality of the product. 

 The mat has two sides with a different image on each. The pictures above are taken from the fairy tales side which the children prefer. On the other side the mat has a repeated pattern of the alphabet, I think the alphabet side would have been more useable for activities if it the print was enlarged so it was only written once. There is so much detail in the fairy tale print that the children loved to sit and spot their favourite stories.  

Since having the mat I have found it very useful for creative, sensory and messy play activities with both the toddlers and babies. Using the play mat means that all the children can play at the same level giving toddlers more space to more and stopping babies from being restricted in what activities they can take part in. 

The mat is incredible easy to wash down with warm soapy water and being low down clearing up is even easier for my toddlers to join in with this part of our daily routine.  Where ever possible I now use the mat for our messy play it makes my life a lot easier. 

As well as this mat being good for messy play, it would be great for carpet times. We looked at the different characters to choose a story before lunch time and we used the alphabet with the older children to play a game where we needed to find an object around the room to pair up with the different letters on the mat. The older girls use the mat while practicing their gymnastics in the evening too which makes me feel a little more at ease that they will not hurt themselves. 

In the future I also plan to use the play mat for the children to stand on while doing our rise and shine exercises before or after the morning school run. 

There are so many different ways you could use this play mat in the home or and early years setting I'm really impressed with it. The website has a few different designs and sizes, prices range from £75- £160