Play is beneficial for kids of all ages, and not just for entertainment purposes. Parents are learning just how important play is in terms of developing a number of important skills that are crucial in the happy and healthy growth of their little ones.
But a lot of parents struggle when it comes to giving their littlest baby the freedom to play independently. While independent playtime can begin as young as one month of age, many of us are held back by the reality that it’s not always so easy to keep your baby safe.
How can we be expected to sit back and let the magic happen if we’re terrified that they’ll manifest the worst predicament possible for themselves?
The answer is creating a safe play space for your baby - where safety is of the utmost priority and they can truly test their limitations, without any risk at hand. Here’s our guide to creating the ideal space for your littlest ones to play, all on their own, with the help of the very best Funsquare products.
1. Select the right space
The first and most important step in creating a safe play space for your baby is, well, the space.
An ideal area for independent playtime is often an enclosed space where they can have access to essential toys and comfort items, but bigger siblings and fur babies can be kept out of the way.
It should also have adequate lighting and ventilation, be somewhere that you can keep a close eye on them (without being right under your nose … we know you won’t be able to resist stepping in if it’s only moments away from where you’re working/relaxing!), and be a far distance from any hazardous objects or materials.
2. Furnish the space
When it comes to creating a safe play space for your baby, furnish it with soft flooring and ensure all furniture considers both storage and safety. It’s a good idea to factor in age-appropriate toys and activities, and work from there. If you have a sturdy bookshelf near them, we’d definitely consider relocating your safe play space to somewhere with only baby-safe furniture!
3. Follow all safety precautions
When caring for your little one, you likely already know which safety precautions to follow when it comes to keeping them safe. But make sure you follow these to an absolute tee in their baby-safe play space.
Childproof the space, monitor your baby while playing - even if that simply means putting them in the other corner of the lounge room so you’re not forcing yourself on their play, but easily aware of their temperament - and create a safe space for older siblings to play, away from this area.
We don’t want any basketballs or handballs falling into their safe area and causing any nasty bumps or injuries!
How to create a safe play space for your baby with Funsquare
At Funsquare, all of our play products are designed specifically with kids’ play in mind, and we’ve ensured that our items are ideal for all ages, including your youngest.
We have a number of play products that are ideal for enhancing your baby-safe play space, and can even be used on their own to create the perfect environment for their exploration.
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Funsquare Play Couch
The Funsquare Play Couch is Australia’s first fully customisable Australian made play couch and it’s the perfect solution for creating a safe place for you baby. While you may not envision plopping your little one down on a full size couch, the great thing about this play sofa is that it can be rearranged in a number of ways - including a baby-safe play area.
The best part about using the Funsquare Play Couch for this purpose, is that the materials used are super soft and gentle on their skin, and are purposely designed to be lightweight enough to never squash little ones.
Just look how effectively this mumma arranged this play sofa to create a perfect space for baby time!
But we’ve also seen a number of parents turn this sofa into the perfect play pit. The options really are up to you! It can be a couch, a fort, a cubby, or even just the perfect mat for them to crawl about on!
“We were finally able to save up enough to get our 2 babies (2.5y GDD & ASD toddler & 6m infant) a play couch, we use it a lot of the day, everyday … So very happy. I wish we purchased one sooner”
~ Abigail
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Funsquare Crash Pad
The Funsquare Crash Pad is another bubba-friendly play product that would work perfectly in their play space.
It provides a unique sensory experience for children, allowing them to gain proprioceptive input through activities such as squishing, tactile input through rolling and vestibular input, making it the one of our favourite pieces of sensory equipment - perfect for ultra little ones!
Like our Play Couch, they’re designed to be super soft and friendly to little ones, and even feature a safety zipper that can easily be hidden away for those ultra-careful moments.
Just look how happy this little bubba looks atop their Crash Pad! We recommend setting them up here in a play pit and letting their creativity go wild!
“Very big so great to use like a bean bag for adults or older kids. My little one loves climbing over the crash pad, it’s soft and firm.”
~ Sarah
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Funsquare Cloud Mat
The Funsquare Cloud Mat is a soft and luxurious Tatami Mat style that is safe, comfortable and stylish. It offers extra peace of mind when it comes to the safety of your baby playing - it’s the perfect surface for furnishing the area and creating an ultra safe experience for their learning and growth.
“We absolutely love this mat! It’s perfect for my kids to play in and absolutely perfect for my 6 month old to learn how to sit up and crawl on! Once it was out of the box and unrolled it expanded very quickly, and is nice and cushy!”
~ Dakota
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Funsquare Play Pit
There’s nothing more useful in creating a safe play space for your baby than a play pit. It keeps them in one spot at a time and the best part about the Funsquare Play Pit is that all the materials we use are soft on little ones’ skin and won’t crush them in case of falls.
If you’re at a loss on how to get started creating your baby-safe play area, we recommend starting here!
And, don’t worry, if you’ve been worried about investing in a play pit in fear you won’t use it after the first year - these Play Pits can easily convert into a mini Play Sofa and have also been “seen in the wild” in a number of indoor obstacle courses for once they get a little older…
“We gave our daughter the rose pink play pit for her first birthday, none of her other gifts even got a look in! She is absolutely obsessed and we can't get her out of it! Thanks so much Funsquare for an amazing product! 😍”
~ Alanah
There’s nothing more important to a parent than creating a safe space for their children to grow and learn, and there’s nothing more exciting than creating the perfect baby-safe play space for their littlest child to grow, develop, and explore.
We hope this guide helps you on your journey to creating the best environment for your baby. Because we really do care about bringing the best of developmental play to every playroom - one child at a time.
Explore the full range of baby-safe play products to learn more about how we can support your little one’s growth today.
