Stonz Outerwear for Kids (And a Giveaway!!)

We had a lot of crazy winter adventures last year that included hiking at -30 C (as a family with a 4 and a half year old,) snowshoeing 11 km into a backcountry cabin (again as a family over a very chilly weekend,) and playing outside in winter gear for what had to have been six months.  In those six months, my son never once had cold feet!  He also never had cold hands on even the most frigid of days.

Enjoying winter in Stonz Mittz

The reason my son was warm all winter is because we finally found a kids' outerwear company that is absolutely brilliant at keeping cold away from little fingers and toes.  Stonz Wear is much more than baby booties and I highly recommend checking the company out for your toddler, preschooler, or school-aged child.

What does Stonz Wear sell?

 

Stonz Booties - for the little kids

The Stonz company is most known for their baby booties.  These booties fit children from newborns through two and a half year olds.  They look and feel like sleeping bags for your feet and can be paired with the Stonz Sherpa-fleece linerz for cold days romping around in the snow.

Stonz Booties - in the snow

The booties come in the coolest designs from pirates to rocket ships to pretty pink butterflies.  To see all of the different styles and colors, visit the Stonz website and look at baby booties, or toddler booties.   For more on how they are made, for washing instructions, and all the other useful stuff, click on the pair of booties that you like on the Stonz website.  All of the features complete with a video and reviews can be found here (and if you'd like to win a pair to put under the Christmas tree this year, go to the end of this blog post for the opportunity!!)

Stonz Booties for the little ones

Stonz Winter Bootz - for the bigger kids

The best option for lightweight kids' winter boots on the market:   Once your child grows out of their booties, it's time to move on to the Stonz winter boots and I would like to challenge you to find a pair of lighter weight kids' boots on the market.  The Stonz  winter bootz weigh between 0.28 kg and 0.8 kg per pair, which is less than 2 pounds per pair at the largest size.  The smaller ones weigh less than a pound.  And that's for two boots!  Again, as I said, I challenge you to find a lighter pair of winter boots!

Hiking in Stonz Winter Bootz - and it was -30 Celsius on this day

Stonz Winter Bootz are WARM:  As I mentioned in the first paragraph, my son hiked in temperatures down to -30 C last winter, he spent four hours outside hiking into a backcountry cabin, and he spent a lot of time outside in cold temperatures.  His feet were always warm.  The Stonz bootz are rated to -50 C and I'm inclined to believe that might just be accurate. (I have no desire to test them at that temperature though!)

Snowshoeing in Stonz Winter Boots and Mittz

Other reasons to invest in a pair of Stonz Winter Boots:

• They are easy to put on.  My son still struggles with his fine motor skills and can barely put on a pair of Boggs without help (and they are supposedly the easiest pair of boots ever for a kid to put on and take off without help.)  He can however, put on his Stonz boots by himself - and get them off again.  That counts for a lot in my world!!
• They have warm liners inside that can be taken out for fast drying
• They are comfortable.  My son never once complained of sore feet.
• They perform well in mud, on ice, and in all kinds of conditions from late fall through early spring
• They stay on!  Ask any mom and this is a #1 priority with a toddler boot.  Nobody wants to find their child running around the playground in his or her sock feet because their boot fell off (yet again.)  This never happened to us with the Stonz bootz  thanks to the adjustable drawstring at the top, and buckle near the bottom.
• They are waterproof.  We played in a lot of soft soupy snow and I don't recall my son ever having wet feet. 

Mud, Snow, Ice - all good!

For more information on the Stonz Winter Bootz, visit the Stonz website.  The bootz come in sizes ranging from toddler size 5 up to size 13, and then from youth size 1 up to size 8. For all details on the boots, materials used, sizing, and to see a video or look at reviews, click on the pair of boots you are interested in on the Stonz website.

Stonz Winter Bootz

Stonz Mittz for babies, toddlers, and older children

The final Stonz Wear product that we are in love with is the Stonz Mittz. We talk a lot about choosing the best pair of mittens or gloves in my outdoor playgroup community and I can tell you what parents are looking for.

• We want mittens or gloves that will stay on!  (and that our young toddlers can not pull off by themselves.)
• For the older kids going to school, we want gloves that they can put on and take off by themselves.
• We need them to be warm!  And waterproof.  
• We need them to keep snow out!  Any mitten that lets snow get into a child's coat and touch their skin has failed.
• Kids must be able to actually use their hands when wearing the gloves or mittens.  They can't be walking around like penguins with their arms out to the side saying, "help me."  We want them to be able to climb a slide, to play in the snow (while using their hands,) to help us shovel, and to even eat a granola bar while out on a winter hike.

In all of the areas above, Stonz Mittz excel!!

Playing in the snow in his Stonz Mittz

Why I love the design of the Stonz Mittz so much:  I love that the Stonz Mittz fit on over the child's coat.  Snow can't get to the skin if there is no gap between gloves and coat.  They don't fit underneath and they don't just come up to the child's wrist.  We call those mittens "going shopping mittens" because that's all we wear them for.  To play outside in the snow, you need real mittens or gloves that fit over the coat and go well up the child's arms!

Would you let your kid do this in short little fleece mittens?

I also love how the Stonz Mittz stay on the child's hands thanks to TWO adjustable straps on them.  If you cinch both straps tight, there's no way these mittz are coming off.

Two adjustable straps per glove keep these Mittz tightened

The final cool things about the Mittz is this - they have a soft fleece patch on the thumb for wiping runny noses.  Tell me that isn't extremely useful in winter!  And oh yeah, they come in a bunch of cool colors too.

Blue gloves - bad.  Pink Mittz - awesome!  (guess which child was warmer?)

For more information on the Stonz Mittz, visit the Stonz website where you'll find a complete list of all mittz from infant sizing (no thumbs) all the way up to youth sizing (4-8 years old.)  Again, for specifics on sizing, materials, to see a video, and to read reviews, click on the pair of mittz that you are interested in.  And note to shoppers, they fit big!  My soon to be six year old is still wearing the mittz for kids ages 2-4 (and they fit well.)

Another look at the awesome pink Stonz Mittz for families with girls

Snowshoeing in the Stonz Mittz last week

Why am I telling you about Stonz Wear?

I love this company, I love that they are Canadian, and we plan to wear the Stonz bootz and mittz for another winter in our family.  We were sold last winter on the quality and I won't go back to any other pair of boots or mittens for my son.

THE GIVEAWAY:  Win a pair of Stonz Booties for your baby or toddler

Stonz Wear has generously offered to give away one pair of booties to one lucky reader.  Please enter the contest below if you are interested.  The winner can choose their preferred color and size of booties.  Note, the giveaway is just for the booties though, and not the Bootz or mittz.  Bootz and mittz can be ordered on line though and would make great Christmas gifts.  :)

The contest is open to all residents of Canada and the US.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Disclaimer:  Stonz Wear has provided me with gear for this review.  I was not compensated in any other way.  All words and opinions are my own.