Bloomsbury Mill Nap Mat Review

Reviewed by Jo Tebbs

The count down to Christmas is on and I’m certainly trying to conjure up some ideas of practical yet fun gifts for others, so when I was offered the opportunity to review the Bloomsbury Mill Nap Mat, I jumped at the chance! This is a really novel (I hadn’t seen anything like this before) and super cute sleeping set for babies / toddlers (or younger children) which comprises of an ‘all in one’ built in pillow, mat and blanket. I think this would make an excellent Christmas gift either to give to others, or to receive for the little ones in your life!!

There is such a large range of scenarios when this nap mat would come in handy. These are just a few examples of the type of situation that it would come in useful for….

Let’s face it, if you have ever had to care for a toddler, then you have certainly experienced the ‘accident’ in the middle of the night, whether that be a projectile vomit or the ‘I didn’t quite make it to the toilet in time’ incident. The Bloomsbury Mill Nap Mat would act as an ideal emergency bedding set for those occasions! All you need to do is quickly undo the 2 Velcro fastenings, and a ready made bedding set awaits you. No need to worry about putting new fitted sheets on a mattress, or waiting for the duvet to get washed and tumble dried – that can get sorted out in the morning, and you can get back to your precious beauty sleep!!

Alternatively, this set could be stored and used as a spare bedding set if your child’s friend sleeps over, or your child is heading off to go on a sleep over them self. With it being an ‘all in one set,’ it’s highly unlikely that it would (or parts of it) get lost or left behind too. Not sure about you, but I find to very annoying having to do an inventory of your child’s ‘kit’ whenever they come home from being somewhere.

For Grandparents, this would make a lovely gift, perfect for when they take on baby sitting duties and your little one stays over for the night. It rolls up pretty compactly too so it doesn’t take up much storage room, especially if it’s only going to be used for the odd occasion here and there.

If you enjoy travelling, nights away and camping, then due to the built in mat element, you don’t need to erect a travel cot and can just pop it on floor of your tent, caravan, hotel room etc.

Babies, toddlers and even younger children all need to have daytime siestas, so this nap mat can actually just literally be used for that very purpose…a nap mat. With it rolling up neatly, it would easy fit under a pram or could even potentially fit into a larger baby carry bag, making it an ideal portable sleeping aid for when you’re out and about. If you’re at a friends house, you can just whip it out when your little one needs that important snooze, giving you the confidence that they will be cosy, comfy and warm whilst they ‘play’ in the land of nod!

If your child enjoys going on school trips or Beaver/ Scout adventures etc. then again, this is a useful piece of equipment that they can take away with them. It even has a name holder section so they shouldn’t easily loose it, or at least it makes the bedding identifiable.

One thing to note, is that the sewn in label states that this nap mat is suitable for children of a minimum age of 2+, but I think it could still be used for slightly younger children (if being used purely as a nap mat) whilst under adult supervision.

The Bloomsbury Mill Nap Mat even comes with a handy A5 care leaflet explaining the best methods to employ to care for and look after your nap mat, in order to keep it in optimal condition.

The sleeping set is made from a cotton and polyester mix making it suitable for even the most sensitive of skins. The cotton-blend is 52% polyester and 48% cotton. The filling inside is 100% polyester.

For me, anything that is used by children needs to be easily washed. I’m pleased to say that this nap mat is machine washable (hooray!) and can be washed at 40°C (you just need to remove the pillow cushion first). It can even be tumble dried (I would recommend on a low heat to avoid it shrinking) and therefore it only requires minimal ironing (always a bonus in my opinion) if you so wish!
Bloomsbury Mill advises that it is best to avoid using any washing detergents with bleaches in them, in order to keep the colours of the sleep set vibrant.

The dimensions of the bed set when spread out is;
Nap mat base (to include pillow): 48cm (wide) x 135cm (length)
Nat map duvet section: 73cm (wide) x 97cm (length)

The extra wide ‘duvet’ section means that you can either ‘tuck your child in’ or means that they have plenty of blanket to get all snuggled up under, making the nap mat less restrictive than conventional sleeping bags.

The dimensions of the bed set when rolled up into a cylinder and fastened with the 2 Velcro pieces is approximately;
49cm (wide) x 21cm (diameter).  It even has a little handle to carry it when rolled up and it’s very light weight.

If you visit the Bloomsbury Mill website (https://bloomsburymill.com/collections/nap-mats) you can see the gorgeous choice of nap mat designs that are available for purchase including a very apt Winter Wonderland edition, perfect just in time for Christmas!!

We received a ‘Safari Adventure’ design that is totally unisex but displays bright vibrant pictures of elephants, lions, giraffes, and flamingos to name a few. My little girl absolutely loves the mat – I think her naps seem like more fun and she doesn’t resist the idea of going to sleep quite so intensely when using it!

With this nap may being Oeko-Tex certified, I have confidence in the ethical sourcing of products and the overall production methods which Bloomsbury Mill have employed to manufacture their nap mat products.

It also received the Mother & Baby 2021 GOLD award for best bedding so as a parent, this gives me further confidence in the quality of this product.

The only few criticisms I have regarding this sleeping set, is that the 2 rough Velcro pieces sit on the underside of the mat so you just need to ensure that when using the item, the surface it is placed upon will not get scratched or hatched from the Velcro. I’m also not sure what Tog the ‘blanket’ section is, and I have not been able to test it out in the depths of Winter yet to see whether my child would be warm enough using it over night.

My daughter always sleeps on her front too, so I need to take the pillow out for her naps. Although this nap mat is very soft and comfortable, I probably wouldn’t choose to use this as her main bedding set for her cot at night though.

Overall, I really love this nap mat (as does my daughter!) and I think it would make an ideal present this Xmas especially if you’re visiting families during the festive season!

Rating: I would rate this product 4/5

RRP: The RRP for this item is £29.99

You can buy the Bloomsbury Mill Nap Mat from here:

Nap Mats