Balloon 3

Three hot-air balloons with little wooden baskets, drifting in the air currents above a crib or a bed. Christian Flensted designed Balloon in 1979 and it has been a first-mobile favorite ever since: the shapes are simple enough for a baby to track, the colors are bright, and the movement is slow and gentle rather than busy.

This is the smaller of the two Balloon sizes, about 18 inches tall and 15 wide, which makes it the right pick for a nursery corner, a standard-height ceiling, or a spot above a changing table. The balloons arrive flat and fold into shape in a few minutes (the fold is the whole trick; no glue, no tools).

Handmade in Denmark by the Flensted family, who have been making mobiles for children since a pair of paper storks in 1953.

At a glance: Design: Christian Flensted, 1979 · Size: 17.7" H × 15" W (45 × 38 cm) · Materials: cardboard balloons, beech baskets, stainless steel · Elements: 3 balloons · Assembly: fold balloons into shape · Handmade in Denmark · Ships from Princeton, NJ