Going out on weekends with family or a group of friends to enjoy a wonderful trip in a park or suburban area full of blooming spring flowers is just thrilling to think about. Of course, just playing around isn't enough; you also need to prepare delicious food, sit on the grass for a picnic, and enjoy eating, drinking, and having fun with friends and relatives. This is the best outdoor activity. So first of all, we need to choose a good picnic mat.
A picnic mat, also known as a multi-functional mat or picnic carpet, is mainly used for outdoor picnics, as a tent floor mat, to prevent moisture and sand, and for fitness, etc. Picnic mats originated in Europe and America, adopting an integrated folding design. When in use, they can be spread out to a large area, and when not in use, they can be folded up. They can be put into a box or a bag, which is convenient for storage and carrying, providing a lot of convenience for home life and travel. An excellent picnic mat has comprehensive functions: it is waterproof, moisture-proof, and sand-proof, and can be used in various environments such as lawns and beaches; it has good wear resistance and is not easily scratched by stones; finally, it is dirt-resistant and easy to clean. Only with these capabilities can it be a fully functional and excellent product.
When choosing a picnic mat, the main aspects to consider are as follows:
First, before selecting a picnic mat, you need to consider its size, which actually depends on the number of people going for the picnic. Whether it's a trip for two friends, a gathering of three to five friends, or a family picnic with everyone involved, the specifications of the picnic mat need to be flexibly changed accordingly!Usually, a 150*200cm picnic mat can accommodate 4-6 people sitting or 3 people lying down, and a 200*200cm one can hold 6-8 people sitting or 4 people lying down.
Second is the picnic location . When considering which picnic mat is good, you must take the picnic location into account to choose the material of the picnic mat. For example, if you are having a picnic in a relatively humid place, then you need to consider the moisture-proof property of the picnic mat. If it's in a relatively dry place, then a fancy piece of cloth can meet the needs of a picnic mat.
Then there is the portability, cleaning, and maintenance of the picnic mat. After the picnic trip, the mat will more or less get some stains, which will affect the use of the next picnic. So when selecting, the convenience of cleaning the picnic mat is also important, whether it needs to be hand-washed or can be directly put into the washing machine. Also, the portability of the picnic mat. Many picnic mats, for the sake of easy carrying, are mostly designed with a strap, which can greatly facilitate packing and can also be directly carried on the back.
Finally, consider the material of the picnic mat. Currently on the market, the most common surface materials for picnic mats are cotton and linen fabrics, Oxford cloth, PVC, and polyester fiber. Before selecting a picnic mat, you must have a good understanding of the characteristics of each material.
1.PVC material
PVC is a plastic material with high waterproof and moisture-proof properties, and can also be used on the beach. It is easy to clean when stained with oil. The disadvantages are that it is not easy to fold, inconvenient to carry and store, and PVC material contains chemical materials, which is not an environmentally safe material. It is recommended that you do not choose this material.
2.Cotton and linen fabrics
Picnic mats made of cotton and linen materials have the advantages of being light, thin, soft, easy to carry, and convenient to clean; the disadvantages are poor waterproofness, low comfort, and difficulty in cleaning when stained with oil. They are suitable for use on flat ground, not for beaches and wet grasslands.
3.Oxford cloth material
Oxford cloth picnic mats have three layers of fabric: the surface, the inner layer, and the back layer. The uppermost surface requires dirt resistance, easy cleaning, flexibility, and wear resistance, and Oxford cloth is the best material; the inner layer is a sponge of a certain thickness, providing people with comfortable softness; the back layer is the bottom layer, which, because it is in contact with the ground, needs to be waterproof, sand-proof, wear-resistant, and easy to clean, so a waterproof aluminum film is used. This is currently the most durable and easy-to-use picnic mat.
4.Polyester fiber
Compared with the previous three, the most prominent advantage of polyester fabric is that it is skin-friendly and environmentally friendly. It not only has the softness and comfort of cotton and linen fabrics but also has the firmness and wear resistance of Oxford cloth, and it is anti-static! It does not absorb water, dries quickly after wiping, and you can lie on the picnic mat to take beautiful photos with peace of mind when your skin touches the surface. Relatively speaking, it is a very suitable choice, but the price is higher than the previous three.
After choosing an excellent and suitable picnic mat, we can start a happy outdoor picnic activity!
