Ocean Friends Baby Fabric Book with Silicone Ring

Ocean Friends Baby Fabric Book — washable, and still small enough for the bag

A soft cloth book of sea creatures in 100% organic cotton, 15 x 15cm, with crinkly pages, textured fabric and a detachable silicone ring that clips to a pram or doubles as something to chew. Machine washable at 30°C. Suitable from birth. Of our five sensory items it is the best compromise there is between carrying it about and being able to wash it.

🧺 Machine washable at 30°C, which decides it for most people

A cloth book for a baby is going to be chewed, dribbled on and dropped on a pavement. Two of our five sensory items can be washed and three cannot, and once a baby is properly mouthing things that single fact matters more than any feature on the page.

This one goes in the machine at 30°C and comes out fine. Our black-and-white Animal Kingdom and Marine Animals books are surface clean only and must not be immersed — lovely for the early looking stage, but this is the one to hand over once everything is going in the mouth.

📐 15 x 15cm — the middle size, and the useful one

Square, light and about the size of a drinks coaster, so it lives in a changing bag rather than in a basket at home. We should be straight about where that sits in the range: our black-and-white books are smaller still at 12 x 12cm, and our Wild Animals book is bigger at 18 x 17cm.

So this is not the smallest book we sell — it is the smallest one you can put in the washing machine, which for most people is the measurement that actually matters. The 12cm pair win on pocketability and lose on cleaning; the 18cm one is easier to prop open on the floor and harder to carry.

⭕ The ring does two jobs, and one of them is keeping the book

Clipped to a pram bar, a play gym or a car seat handle, the book is attached to where the baby already is instead of in a bag by your feet — and it does not get dropped on a wet pavement, which is how most soft books are lost rather than worn out.

The ring also gives a baby something firm to gnaw when the rest of the book is cloth, and something easy to hook a hand through at an age when gripping is still hit and miss. It detaches, so check it is properly closed each time, and keep an eye on it as a separate item once it is off.

🐙 What it does and does not do

Crinkly pages, textured fabric and sea creatures: things to feel, a papery rustle when a page moves, and pictures with enough contrast to register early. Page turning is a skill that arrives around nine or ten months, so before that it is a thing to grab, mouth and be shown.

What it does not have is squeaks, or the soft 3D tails that stand out from our Marine Animals book. The washable cotton books are the simpler, calmer pair — fewer things sticking out, more things to stroke. If you want sound and parts to tug, the polyester pair have those and cannot be washed. There is no version that has both, and we would rather lay the trade out than pretend one is simply better.

Specification

• Suitable from: birth, with adult supervision
• Size: 15 x 15cm
• Materials: 100% organic cotton, with a silicone ring. The maker states it is free from fluorescent whitening agents
• Features: crinkly pages, textured fabric, sea creature illustrations, detachable silicone ring
• Care: machine washable at 30°C. Quick drying — dry naturally rather than on a radiator
• Safety: the label carries a CE mark. Check the ring and the stitching before each use

❓ Frequently asked questions

Can it really go in the machine?
Yes, at 30°C, and that is the main reason to pick it over our black-and-white books. Take the ring off first and let the book dry naturally.

Is it certified organic?
No, and we would rather tell you than let the word do work it has not earned. The label says 100% organic cotton and nothing more — there is no GOTS or OCS certification number we can show you, so we repeat the claim as the maker makes it and leave it there. If a certificate matters to you for a purchase like this, buy on the basis that we have not got one.

Ocean Friends or Wild Animals?
Size, nothing else. This one is 15 x 15cm and fits a changing bag; Wild Animals is 18 x 17cm, larger and easier to prop open. Both organic cotton, both washable at 30°C, both with a detachable silicone ring.

Is the ring a proper teether?
It is a silicone ring that is fine to chew, and useful for it, but it is not a shaped teether that reaches back gums and it cannot be chilled. For real teething trouble, our teethers are the right thing.

Is it too small to be interesting?
No, but it is small. A 15cm book is the right scale for a baby's hands and the wrong scale for reading to a toddler across a room. If it is mostly going to be used at home, the larger one is the better book.

Does it go in the cot?
No. Keep a baby's sleep space clear of soft toys and books, in line with Lullaby Trust and NHS safe-sleep guidance. This is a pram, play mat and lap book.

📚 Which of our cloth books?

Five sensory items, and two things decide it: whether it needs to go in the wash, and how big it is.

Machine washable at 30°C — organic cotton, with a detachable silicone teething ring:

• Ocean Friends — this one. 15 x 15cm, sea creatures. Washable and still bag-sized.
• Wild Animals — 18 x 17cm, the largest, so the easiest to prop open on the floor.

Surface clean only, do not immerse — polyester, marked to ISO 8124 with UKCA and CE:

• Animal Kingdom — 12 x 12cm, the smallest pair. Crinkles and squeaks, black and white plus colour.
• Marine Animals — 12 x 12cm. Black and white, with soft 3D tails to tug.
• Black and White Rattle Set — not a book: a rattle and a maraca, 15cm each.

See them all in our baby books collection, or everything that works from birth. Our guide to the best sensory crinkle cloth books for babies covers what to look for, and why sensory play matters explains what a baby is actually getting out of it.

Safety information

For use with adult supervision. Check the stitching and the silicone ring before each use and stop using it if a seam opens or the ring splits or will not close. Keep a baby's sleep space clear of soft toys and books, in line with Lullaby Trust and NHS safe-sleep guidance. Keep away from naked flame.

❤️ From our family to yours

Carefully chosen products for babies, toddlers and parents. Browse more baby books and the rest of our sensory toys — free UK delivery on orders over £25.