Baby Mobiles

Baby mobiles, from the first thing your newborn stares at to nursery decor that stays

Somewhere around week two, your baby will find the mobile. They will lock onto it during a diaper change and go quiet, and you will get thirty seconds to breathe. That is what this page is for: handmade felt mobiles from Nepal, plush musical mobiles that clip to the crib, wool ball and macrame mobiles, a Montessori set, and the wooden arms to hang them.

More about baby mobiles

Which kind fits your nursery

Felt mobiles. Needle-felted wool animals, stars and clouds on a felt hoop, about 10 inches across and 20 inches tall. Each one is made by hand so no two match, and they are the ones that get asked about in photos. They are decor, so they hang high and out of reach. Favorites right now are the corgi and sheep mobile, the solar system, the sea life and jellyfish mobiles, and the sloth with monstera leaves.

Musical crib mobiles. Plush animals on a rotating arm with a lullaby box, clamped to the crib rail. These are the classic newborn mobile; they soothe at bedtime and come down when your baby starts pushing up. NoJo makes the ones we stock most.

Montessori mobiles. The Montessori baby mobile set follows the classic sequence of black and white shapes, then color and movement, matched to what a baby can see in the first months.

Wool ball, boucle and macrame mobiles. Soft, neutral, quiet. Jabaloo wool ball mobiles and the boucle moon and cloud mobile suit a calm, gender-neutral nursery.

Hanging it

Most felt and wool mobiles come with a string loop. Hang it from a ceiling hook, or from a wooden mobile arm that clamps to the crib or changing table. Keep the lowest piece above where a standing toddler can reach, and check the loop when you change the sheets.

A gift that gets kept

A felt mobile is the baby shower gift that ends up in the family photos and then in the big-kid room. If you are choosing for someone else, pick the theme that matches their nursery colors; most felt mobiles here come in soft neutrals with one accent color.

We are moms too. The mobiles on this page are the ones we would hang in our own nursery, and we keep the felt ones in stock so a gift does not arrive after the baby does.

Frequently asked questions

When can a baby see a mobile?

Newborns see best about 8 to 12 inches away and are drawn to high contrast, so a mobile hung just out of reach above the crib or changing table is one of the first things they focus on. By 2 to 3 months they track it with their eyes; by 4 months they reach for it.

When should I take the mobile down?

The usual advice is to remove any mobile that hangs over the crib once your baby can push up on hands and knees, around 5 months, or when it is within reach. A mobile hung from the ceiling well away from the crib, or above a changing table, can stay up as decor as long as you like.

Are felt mobiles safe for babies?

Handmade felt mobiles are decorative pieces. They are made of wool with small parts, so they should hang where a baby cannot grab them: high above the crib, from the ceiling, or above the changing station. They are not a teething toy and should never go inside the crib.

Musical mobile or felt mobile?

A musical mobile has a wind-up or battery box, turns on its own and plays a lullaby; it clamps to the crib rail and usually comes down around 5 months. A felt or wooden mobile is quiet, moves with the air, and lives on as nursery decor for years. Many families start with a musical one and hang a felt one later, or use both in different spots.

How do I hang a mobile without a crib clamp?

Use a wooden mobile arm that clamps to the crib rail or screws to the wall, or a ceiling hook rated for the weight. Felt mobiles weigh a few ounces, so a small hook is enough. Hang it high enough that the lowest piece is above baby's reach.

A mobile is the first thing a baby spends real time looking at, so it is worth picking one you also like looking at. These are made by small studios, mostly felt and wood, and hung from a plain wooden arm that suits almost any nursery.

Choose by theme: farm and pets, sea life, the solar system, woodland, flowers and dinosaurs. Most are under $80, and free US shipping starts at $100.