The HALO Bassinest Swivel Sleeper
I never had the opportunity to use a bassinet when I had my first daughter, Audrey, since at eight pounds eleven ounces and twenty-two and half inches, you could say I gave birth to a toddler. So needless to say she went from bassinet to crib within the first two weeks. Since I am set to have our newest little bundle almost two weeks early via c-section (due to complications) I’m really excited to have a bassinet as an option this time around and share my HALO Bassinest review with you!
First off, I had heard before how surprisingly heavy this was but not until I saw the look on the poor FedEx guy’s face did it really hit me, so FYI, it’s VERY heavy.
Assembling the HALO Bassinest
I decided to put it together myself just to see if someone eight months pregnant could do it, and really, it was VERY easy. In all my life of assembling everything from IKEA to kids toys did I ever see a product as well packaged as this bassinet. I would not worry about having this shipped anywhere to anyone, it was actually pretty impressive. The only thing I really needed help with was moving it from my dining room to the bed room since, like I said, it’s very heavy. My husband, who was my outstanding assistant and photographer, made a good point stating that the added weight makes it incredibly sturdy. And with a curious four year old and German shepherd I won’t have to worry about it tipping in the slightest.
After assembly I started playing with the features and noticed that although the sidewall goes down it doesn’t stay down like I had previously thought. It pops back up as soon as you let go. Also, initially its kind of hard to push down, I thought I was breaking it or forcing it to go down and had to re-read the instructions to make sure I was doing it right. (Reading instructions, go figure, right?) However, the more I messed with it the more it loosened up. Although, I have to say, I think I would prefer it if it went down and stayed down, but we will see if that opinion changes after the baby comes. I could be completely wrong.
The HALO Bassinest Style and Features
I really love the fabric and the pattern; it’s gender neutral, fits in well with my décor and doesn’t stand out as a “baby product” which is the worst. The padding is plush but firm without being overly soft or dangerous. And the swivel itself gives many options for placement next the bed. The music is quiet so I won’t have to worry about waking my husband from a sound sleep when I use it, same with the two levels of vibration. In addition there are two brightness levels on the lights which I know will be incredibly handy. I’m curious to see how the nursing timer will work when that time comes, but if it does work I think something like would be so smart.
Lastly, it does not come with a separate removable sheet but the pad itself is made from it own patterned polyester sheet material, which can be used on it’s own or with an additional sheet (as shown in the photos). But keep in mind that not any regular bassinet sheet will work. Because of the specific “figure eight” shape of the padding, a regular bassinet sheet would be too loose around the sides so they recommend you buy the sheet made specifically for the Bassinest. (Don’t worry, the price is comparable to regular bassinet sheets. I checked.)
We thought we had plenty of time but turns out Baby Abbey had other ideas and showed up four weeks early on January 28th at 10:57AM. Since she arrived due to complications, and via c-section, I found the Bassinest to be even more G-E-N-I-U-S than I imagined. Getting in and out of bed was more that just slightly painful (and even now, two weeks from delivery I’m still in pain) so just being able to pull her close to me with one hand so I can sooth her or pick her up was extremely helpful. Not to mention the ease of pushing it out of the way when I needed to get out of bed.
As it turns out the fold down side is helpful, but like I first thought, I wish it would stay down at times. When you can’t use your stomach muscles it’s hard to push down and grab baby at time same time. But like I thought it would, the sidewall has loosened up a bit making it easier to grab and transition, a definite plus.
The control panel on the HALO Bassinest is clearly laid out and I love the light that has two settings. Bright but not bright enough to blind the baby but still able to see when sneaking in and out of the room. The only thing I would change is if the panel itself was backlit somehow. When you’re blurry and cross-eyed from lack of sleep you end up hitting all the buttons trying to find the vibrate and the next thing you know you’ve got lights and music and now you can’t figure out how to turn them off.
In the end, Abbey and I highly recommend this bassinet if you’re in the market. The quality, size, and features make this one a must have for any new mother. It’s all the benefits of co-sleeping without any of the risk in a modern, high-tech and stylish package. It’s the best of both worlds.
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Disclosure: I was sent a HALO Bassinest for review. All my thoughts and opinions are my very own.
Comments
This bassinet looks great, and even better with your sweet baby girl in it! I like the swivel function of it. Super convenient for those mommies recovering from c-sections. Thank you for sharing!
I can’t wait to try this for baby #2! I had such a hard time healing from a surprise c-section and getting baby out of the play pen/bassinet and onto the floor for changing was so painful for me. I also thought that maybe that push down lever would be difficult, so I’ll have to try it in store. I have arthritis so I don’t have as much strength as others.