Warm kids ski mittens

[lljc00]

Just wondering what brand/model insulation type/quantity (if you know) of mittens you've had success with for 20 degree days. My son is not bought in yet on hand-warmers (I think I finally sold my daughter), so I'm looking for what others have had success with.

I personally have a pair of Level Bliss Primaloft mittens that I feel gets me through in even the coldest days, while a pair of Gordini gloves were not warm enough (not sure what type these were; they are old, and my husband bought them). And my kids' C9 with 80 grams of thinsulate definitely didn't cut it. I'm not sure I can afford Hestra gloves at this time.

Are all insulation types the same - primaloft, thinsulate, thermolite, fiberfill, TNF heatseeker, Columbia Omni-heat, etc, and just go with the highest quantity of said insulation? Of course, this info is not always listed in the description. :-(

 

[CarverJill]

20 degrees isn't all that cold IMO. I love the burton mittens for my kids because they have the wrist straps (so they wont loose them) and the top fits over their jacket sleeves so you can put them on after a jacket and not have to tuck things in. I haven't tried other brands but I'm sure Hestra ones are a solid option too since they are great gloves for adults.

 

[lljc00]

20 degrees isn't all that cold IMO. I love the burton mittens for my kids because they have the wrist straps (so they wont loose them) and the top fits over their jacket sleeves so you can put them on after a jacket and not have to tuck things in. I haven't tried other brands but I'm sure Hestra ones are a solid option too since they are great gloves for adults.

Do you know what model they are? Or do they say what they are insulated with?

 

[diymom]

If you go with something like Burton youth Vent, it will be warm as is, but has the zip pocket on the back for a hand warmer if needed. I find the outside pockets aren’t quite as efficient as just stuffing the warmers in by my fingers, but it makes them less noticeable.

 

[Kimmyt]

I have the Obermayer Thumbs Up mitten for my son, its really easy to put on thanks to the strong velcro that runs up the back of the wrist and seems to keep him plenty warm in all temps. The specs say '227 grams polyester insulation'. This question was asked recently on a parenting forum I am on and many swore by the Hestra kids mittens.

 

[SnowSeeker]

My kids (8 and 12) use gordini and swany mittens and gloves. The issue we have is that none of them are wicking. Their hands sweat and then freeze in our cold New England temperatures. These gordinis have been much better https://www.rei.com/rei-garage/product/158300/gordini-maverick-mittens-kids. The swany mittens and gloves have been a big disappointment. If anyone knows of a good pair of kids mitts that wick and are warm, I would be curious to hear. I’ve moved my 12 year old boy into women’s medium sized gloves and it’s been much better bc adult gloves are a more technical design.

 

[SnowSeeker]

I have the Obermayer Thumbs Up mitten for my son, its really easy to put on thanks to the strong velcro that runs up the back of the wrist and seems to keep him plenty warm in all temps. The specs say '227 grams polyester insulation'. This question was asked recently on a parenting forum I am on and many swore by the Hestra kids mittens.

I just saw Hestra kids mitts on sale on a bunch of websites (backcountry etc) Still not cheap, especially if they lose one. I don’t find my own hestras to be that warm without a chemical warmer packet in them, but I bet they are better than the average kids mitt.

 

[lljc00]

Thanks for the responses ladies.

Hmm I have an older pair of Obermeyer mittens that look like the thumbs up that had been ok in he past when we were in warmer weather. My kids aren't so much into experimenting and conducting lab tests with different gloves so it's hard to say if those fared any better or not (though my daughter did let me have her try our TNF ones in the morning, and since they were cold, switched over to the C9 ones at a break, but by then the day was ramping to warm up to the mid 40s).

Does anyone have any experience with Scott Jr Tac 20 mittens? There are some on eBay for $15 and they say they have 170 g of "fiberfill" insulation (which is what Hestra Heli says too, but no info on quantity) . And they also have hand warmer pockets. In any case, 170 g has to be better than 80, right?

 

[CarverJill]

Do you know what model they are? Or do they say what they are insulated with?

We have the vent and profile I think.
https://www.burton.com/us/en/c/yout...nBQLymnOZhAMRoqTF62VA7Xvqtjgo_UxoCRP0QAvD_BwE

 

[Jilly]

Our local shop sells Swany for kids. And if we could ski at 20F, that would be balmy. Not sure what your budget is or how often your kids "misplace" their mitts. They have 1 at 200g and another at 120g.

https://www.swanyamerica.com/gloves/kids/

 

[Sheena]

My DH and I use Kinko gloves and bought some of the mittens for kids. Since we got them no more complaints of cold hands! These gloves for us and mittens are super affordable and work great. Cost for kids is under $30 and where we are at least adult gloves are around $35-$40

https://www.kinco.com/product/1929pl-kids

 

[Sheena]

We had used the Swany brand, and they are nice for littles as they have a little velcro closer and zipper on the back of the hands that made it easier to get them on, but the Kinko have been warmer by far.

 

[lljc00]

Thanks for all the suggestions ladies. Hopefully I can find some of the ones mentioned on a season end clearance.

 

[allright]

Love the Swany x-change and use the vent to put the heat packs. Only way sons hands stay warm.

 

[AusinCanada]

These are the best mitts we have ever had for our son. They are goretex, leather palm, and have a working wool liner. My friend has the adult version and loves them for her sweaty palms. We only use them for riding though, not everyday, because they are expensive.

He actually wore out the palm just below the leather but I think that’s because he is a snowboarder and is therefore much harder on mitts than a skier and he was riding a lot this season. I used a goretex patch on the hole and it was fine.

I suspect he will go for style over substance next season...

 

[snowboardmom]

I find that any brand that has gortex is going to be the warmest as it won't get damp/wet quickly. We switched over to some Kombi mitts that were gortex and the kids hands were actually hot on a -20C day. (sorry I'm Canadian, just note that it's super cold)

 

[Iwannaski]

We have had success this season with the REI 3 finger mittens... and they do have the wrist strap, but no heater pouch, so the packet can be stuffed right into the big part of the mitten pouch... for a benchmark: we've skied in 15 degree weather and daughter was fine without the hothands.

That was the day son thought he would try to be smarter than his mom and wore other gloves... he was the one who cried uncle first because "Mom, I can't feel my fingers." He has since worn the REI gloves and been really satisfied.

https://www.rei.com/product/177709/rei-co-op-timber-mountain-split-finger-mittens-kids

I have suggested that they could wear glove liners, but you know, I don't know anything ;)

 

[SarahXC]

Depending on how big your hands are and how big the kids are.... what I have started doing is just making a family glove/mitten collection that either I or my two kids (10/12) can wear. A few years ago it seemed their hands were cold/wet and they were always happier wearing my extras I carried with me so I just started skipping right to that step and as a bonus I can wear them too versus spending nearly as much on something just a bit too small for me that they were growing out of each season.

 

[Ski and run]

I saw this is an older post but perhaps people are still reading it. I want to share what I figured out.

Buy adult (women’s) extra small gloves or mittens for your kiddo as soon as they are big enough (if I remember correctly, mine were about 7 or 8). Kids hand wear are total junk. They Soak up water, not insulated enough. Totally not good enough for active kids who spend time IN the snow.

Once we started buy our kids gloves made for grown-ups, they were so much warmer, could stay out longer and had more fun bc hands weren’t frozen. Insulation was better, construction was better, water/wind proofing was there, gauntlets were big enough to keep snow out of the sleeves. The only downside is that they mostly were black-no color choices. But we explained color/style doesn’t keep your hands warm and they were cool with that as long as their fingers didn’t freeze.

I recommend to anyone who asks-get your kids adult hand wear as soon as they will fit into them. It’s so very worth it. Women’s XS is a great place start (boys don’t know if it’s women’s or men’s-they look the same).
I hope that helps.

 

[alr]

20 degrees isn't all that cold IMO. I love the burton mittens for my kids because they have the wrist straps (so they wont loose them) and the top fits over their jacket sleeves so you can put them on after a jacket and not have to tuck things in. I haven't tried other brands but I'm sure Hestra ones are a solid option too since they are great gloves for adults.

+1 on Burton mittens. The ones I bought my son also have pockets for chemical warmers which he needs in single digits (F). I also have leather goretex Burton mittens for myself and I don’t need any chemical warmers in them and they aren’t as puffy as the down mittens I had before which I like. Wrist loops are a necessity for me and the kiddo.