Quality Winter Coats for Kids
I’ve always lived in an area where there were all 4 seasons. Growing up in Idaho, our winters were bitter cold. Now living in Utah, they aren’t much better, but I have to admit that I love the snow. I don’t necessarily love driving in it, but love having the winter season. As a mom, naturally I want the best for my child, especially when it comes to cold weather conditions. My 6 year old is in kindergarten, and I want to ensure that he’s warm at recess and for outdoor play. Plus, we tend to do a lot of winter activities like sledding and playing in the snow. I need something that is going to hold up. I am definitely one that has been influenced by brands in the past. Sometimes I will buy something just because of the brand and without really doing my research. I’m here to attest that brands that you are familiar with might not always possess the quality that you would think, and vice versa. We had the opportunity to participate in a blind coat challenge for 6 year old Chandler. We received 4 brand name coats, without knowing who was sponsoring the challenge. I thought this was an incredibly unique idea, and allowed me to really compare and contrast. I was definitely up for this challenge.
A lot of us base coats on first impressions, but we really need to look deeper. As soon as we pulled the coats out of the box, I did a short video to show you our thoughts directly out of the box. This was just briefly looking at the features without paying attention to what the coat was actually made of. This video gives you a good idea of what the coats look like.

Now for the challenge. My opinions changed a bit when I really started looking at the materials, putting them to the test, and of course getting input back from my little man. I’m going to review the coats in the order of quality, features, and overall impression. They will be ranked from 1-4, with 1 being the best, and 4 was our 4th choice.

#1 Choice – Land’s End Expedition 4-in-1 Parka

The Land’s End Expedition 4-in-1 Parka coat was the total package. It was a size 5/6, and it fit Chan the best of all coats. This is probably because it was the only coat that was a 5/6, the other coats were a 6/7. He is on the small side of a size 6, so I liked this fit best. Believe it or not, I had my mom look and feel these coats along with me. I trust her opinion, she is a super outdoorsy skiing, playing kind of woman. She’s had a LOT of coats in her day and 6 kids so I trust her opinion. She first told me to look at what the coat was made of. She said that the more down it contained, the warmer it would be. I believe this after watching Chan outside with these as well.

The Land’s End coat is 80% down, which I was pleased with. Although it is the lightest of the 4 coats, it is one of the warmest. I like that it is light as Chandler still wears a 5 point harness in the car, and he’s not trying to fight with a huge bulky coat while buckling up. The material is also very nice and soft inside, and the stitching looks tight and neat. The hood size is pretty great for Chan’s head, and I like the detachable fur on the top of the hood. Overall look and feel of this coat is that it is very well made.

Now for the features. This coat is packed with tons of useable features. There are a lot of outer and inner pockets, to put lots of little boy treasures. There are side pockets that they can put their hands in and an inner pocket for other storage. The drawstring along the waist is great for snow playing, and the fleece inserts inside the cuff of the coat are genius. Your child’s thumb fits through the fleece to keep wrists warm under their gloves. No snow getting in there! I also like the reflectors on the coat. It provides for good visibility when it starts to get dark. On the inside of the coat, there is a place that you can write your child’s name, and this coat has grow-a-longs, which means that it grows with your child. Coat getting small next winter? Simply pull the seam on the inside of the sleeve and the sleeve is instantly a few inches longer. The fur on the front is detachable. I could on and on with features on this coat, but I won’t. Instead, I would tell you as a mom that I would recommend this coat, and would buy a Land’s End coat. This particular coat is priced at $159 but on sale for $111 right now, but I believe a child could get up to 3 years out of this coat because of the grow-a-longs, so it definitely makes it worth it.  If I were to pay full price on this coat, I might buy the L.L. Bean one instead.

There are only a few improvements that I would make on this coat. The next coat I am going to talk about has elastic inside the hood. I would like to see elastic or drawstrings around the hood to keep it closer to my child’s face. I would also like to see the pockets lined a little better, the ones that a child would most likely put their hands into.

#2 Choice – L.L. Bean Kids’ Baxter State Parka
Coming in at a close second was the L.L. Bean Baxter State Parka. At a size 6/7, it fit true to size. As far as warmth, this is at least 80% down, which means that it has as much as Lands End if not more. I think the coats are about equally warm, but this one might have a bit more down. It is a size 6/7 and fits true to size. The outside of the coat is a bit stiffer fabric. It has a nylon shell, which helps keep your child warm and dry. The hood also has a fur around the top which is removeable. The hood has elastic around the hood to keep it down close to your child’s head. This keeps it from falling off and is one of my favorite features. There is a name tag inside of this coat, and a drawstring on the waist. There aren’t as many pockets on or features on this coat. Only 4 pockets on the front, and one inner pocket. The cuff of the coat has fleece at the wrist and then the outside of the parka has a velcro closure. This would be good around gloves, but still might come up causing the snow and cold to get up under it.

Improvements include more features like the Land’s End coat and more reflectivity. There is only one reflector on the back of the coat, and even it is small. I also know the outside of the coat is meant to stay dry, but I don’t like how stiff it is or how it moves. It’s also a bit bulkier than the Land’s End Coat. It retails for $109 which I mentioned above would be a selling point for me if I were to buy it versus the Land’s End Coat at full price.  I think it is very comparable to the Land’s End Parka, and although it’s got a few less features, if it came down to $50, I would buy this coat instead.

#3 Choice – J. Crew (crewcuts) journeyer parka
Right out of the packaging, the crewcuts journeyer parka was incredibly soft and the outer material felt nice. The fill is 60% down so it isn’t quite as warm as the other two coats. I love the color and style with this coat, my son really liked the way that it looked. Like the other two coats, it has a spot for your child’s name. Overall, the stitching seems to be done well and there is a drawstring at the very bottom of the coat. The hood snaps down to give your child more coverage on their face, and the fur also snaps off for washing.

Those things needing improvement included the cuffs. There is only elastic around the wrist with nothing else to protect the wrist and snow and cold from getting in. There are big buttons up the front which aren’t reasonable for a child, they will never get done up if it’s up to my 6 year old. The pockets on the front are also a bit odd. They have a big button and then fold up before you can put anything in them. The hood seems overly huge and my child’s head was swimming in it. Feature wise, this coat didn’t offer much. This coat retails for $138. I guess it’s an ok price, but I probably would not purchase it.

#4 Choice – GAP Warmest Parka
I have to say that I was a bit disappointed in this coat. I’ve purchased the warmest coats from GAP before and have loved them. They’ve usually had some down in them and been good quality. Right out of the box, I assumed that because there was extra fleece and that it was heavy, it would be warm, however I was wrong. The coat is 100% polyester which means it most definitely is not going to be as warm as the coats made with down.  I assumed it was down at first because GAP coats I’ve had bought in the past have been down.  It looks and feels soft, but I feel that can be deceiving. The hood is fleece lined which is really warm, so I think they’ve done a good job there. There is a double cuff on the sleeve, but no sort of cinching or getting the snow out. This hood has a piece of velcro on the hood and I don’t exactly understand what it is for. As far as features go, there aren’t a lot. There is one inside pocket and four pockets on the outside. No side pocket for your child to slide their hand into, instead they have to undo the front pockets to put their hands into.

This coat is priced at $88, which is the cheapest of them all, but I think sometimes you get what you pay for. Before doing this coat challenge, I assumed that I was probably going to really like the GAP coat and while it was a good coat, I don’t think there was anything in particular that really stood out to me, and once again I’m disappointed it has no down. That’s not to say I wouldn’t buy a GAP coat again, I’d just be leery about what it is made of and the features before I were to buy it.

Overall, all of the coats had pretty easy to follow care instructions and were easy for my child to zip up. I would most likely recommend either the Land’s End or L.L. Bean coat to a friend.

The Quality Coat Review was a blind review. In order to give my unbiased opinions, I am unaware of the company that sponsored the effort. While the opinions are my own, I am being compensated through MomDot for my time.

Popularity: 1% [?]