My name is Rachel Tindall. I’m 34, I’m a freelance copywriter from Leicester, and I have a ten-month-old daughter called Margot who is, by any objective measure, a menace. She is also the best thing that has ever happened to me, which makes the menace part considerably more manageable. Barely.
Margot started crawling at seven months and pulling herself up at eight. By nine months she had developed a specific interest in the television cables, the dog’s water bowl, and the gap behind the sofa where things go to die. I was working from home three days a week, trying to meet deadlines while simultaneously preventing a small person from eating a charging cable. Something had to change.
Why I’d Resisted a Playpen
I’d been resistant to the idea of a playpen for longer than I should have been. It felt, in some vague way, like giving up — like admitting I couldn’t manage without containing my child. I’d read things about free-range play and the importance of exploration and had convinced myself that a playpen was somehow at odds with that.
Then I spent forty-five minutes of a client call retrieving Margot from increasingly dangerous locations while trying to sound professional, and my principles adjusted rapidly.
Finding the Callowesse
I’d been looking at playpens for about a week when I found the Callowesse Multi-Gate Playpen Room Guard in White. A few things made it stand out immediately from the alternatives I’d been comparing.
The multi-purpose design was the first thing — it functions as a hexagonal playpen, a fireguard, or a room divider, which meant it could adapt as Margot’s needs changed rather than becoming redundant the moment she outgrew one use. The white finish was important to me aesthetically; I’d been put off some alternatives by how industrial they looked in a living room. The Callowesse looked like something that belonged in a home rather than a warehouse.
The no-tools setup — pre-assembled, ready in four to five minutes straight from the box — was also significant. I have a limited tolerance for flat-pack assembly at the best of times, and at the worst of times (i.e., while managing a ten-month-old) it’s essentially impossible.
Why This One Specifically
- Multi-purpose design — playpen, fireguard, or room divider. One product that adapts to different needs rather than a single-use item that becomes clutter.
- Customisable size — extendable with additional panels (sold separately) and joinable with a second unit. As Margot grows and her play space needs change, the playpen can grow with her.
- Sturdy metal construction — not plastic, not flimsy. The kind of build that doesn’t flex when a determined ten-month-old pushes against it, which matters more than you’d think.
- No tools required — pre-assembled and ready in four to five minutes. Folds flat for storage when not in use.
- Wall fixings included — for use as a fireguard or room divider, the fixings are in the box. No separate purchase, no improvising.
- EN1227:2010 certified and SGS tested — proper safety standards, not just marketing claims. For something designed to keep a child safe, this matters enormously.
- White finish — looks like it belongs in a living room rather than a building site. A small thing that makes a real difference to how you feel about having it in your home.
Setting It Up
It arrived the next day. I set it up in the living room in about six minutes, which included stopping twice to redirect Margot away from the packaging. The pre-assembled panels click together cleanly, the gate opens and closes smoothly, and the whole thing felt solid and stable from the moment it was up. No wobble, no flex, no sense that it was going to collapse if leaned on.
I put Margot inside with her favourite toys, sat down at my desk three metres away, and opened my laptop. She played independently for forty minutes. Forty minutes. I cannot overstate how significant that was.
One Month On
The playpen is now a fixed part of our daily routine. On work-from-home days it goes up in the morning and comes down in the evening. Margot has come to associate it with play time — she crawls towards it when I set it up, which is either very clever or very well-conditioned, and I’ve decided not to examine it too closely.
I’ve also used it as a room divider to keep her away from the fireplace during the evenings, which is exactly the secondary use I’d hoped for. The wall fixings make it genuinely secure in that configuration — it doesn’t shift or tip when she pulls herself up against it, which she does constantly.
The Unexpected Bonus: The Dog
We have a three-year-old Labrador called Frank who is gentle but enormous and has a habit of sitting on things he shouldn’t. The playpen has also become Frank’s boundary — he can see Margot, she can see him, they can interact through the bars (which they both find enormously entertaining), but he can’t accidentally flatten her. This was not something I’d planned for and has turned out to be one of the most useful things about it.
What It’s Given Me Back
Time. Focus. The ability to finish a sentence, a thought, a client brief without interruption. The ability to make a cup of tea and drink it while it’s still hot. These sound like small things. They are not small things when you haven’t had them for three months.
I’m also a better parent in the hours I’m not working because I’m less depleted. The playpen hasn’t reduced the time I spend with Margot — it’s improved the quality of it, because I’m not arriving at the end of the working day completely wrung out from the constant vigilance of keeping her safe while trying to concentrate.
Who I’d Recommend This To
Any parent of a mobile baby who works from home, even part-time. Any parent who has a dog, a fireplace, or any other hazard that requires a reliable barrier. Any parent who has been resisting a playpen for the same vague reasons I was — because the reality is that a safe, contained space where your child can play independently is not a compromise. It’s a gift to both of you.
Where to Get It
The Callowesse Multi-Gate Playpen Room Guard in White is available from ALTOE. If you’re looking for more baby and pet safety solutions, these collections are worth a browse:
- Playpens — safe play spaces for babies and toddlers
- Pet Containment Systems — safe boundaries for pets of every size
- Pet Supplies — everything your pet needs, from containment to comfort
Rachel Tindall is a freelance copywriter from Leicester and mother to Margot, aged ten months, and Frank the Labrador, aged three. The playpen is up. Everyone is safe. The tea is hot. Life is better.
0 comments