Fitting Children For Accessories

In fashion wear accessories are the final decorative pieces but in winter wear they are the final performance pieces. They add warmth and can help to cover up any fit issues that may have come up in the previous categories. Accessories are hats, headbands, scarves, neck gaiters, glove liners, goggles and sunglasses.

Lets talk first about hats, headbands and scarves – first let me say they have no place on the hill for a child. Hats, love ‘em. Wouldn’t go out without one – for kids, however, they should be saved for the walk from the car to the lodge, headbands too. Kids should be in helmets on the hill. Safety is the first and best reason for kids to wear them. As my 6 year old went sailing into the trees today and came out with only a small brush burn under her goggles I thanked the helmet no less than 100 times. I really don’t think I need to go on and on about helmets for kids on the hill. You either get it or you don’t – if you don’t, e-mail me and I’ll provide you with some of the statistics on what a head injury could mean to your child’s future. But hey, it isn’t that skiing is so dangerous. Not any worse than just being a kid! It is just that on the hill you can do something about it. Anyway if the safety part of it isn’t enough for you keep in mind that helmets are far warmer than hats. But for when you are done on the hill, playing outside or just walking around town a hat is a good idea – luckily it is also in fashion!

For a kid it is easy to get a poorly fitting hat and frankly it doesn’t matter. If the kid likes it and is willing to wear it – it is fine. If you want one that fits though, that is easy too. Keep in mind that kid’s heads don’t grow that much, by the time they are 10 they are in an adult size hat. For little kids they will want a toddler sized hat for the depth of the hat and how big around it is, that way it won’t come down over their eyes. As they get bigger a hat that is too small will not cover their ears but can also be too tight around the head. This is not only uncomfortable but it can lead to headaches over time.

Headbands are basically the same. Too big and it will slip down or be too wide for them and too small may lead to headaches and simply won’t cover their ears. Keep in mind headbands are not a great idea for kids because over 20% of your body heat is lost through your head and while a headband will keep their ears comfortable it will not keep their body heat up.

Scarves are another thing to keep off the mountain. Sure they look cute but they can be bulky and dangerous. Scarves can get caught in chair lifts and rope tows with ugly results. Plus most scarves are not made out of performance fabrics so they get wet and do little protect the neck and face or to retain heat in the jacket like a neck gaiter will.

I think neck gaiters are the greatest invention. They take up the space around the collar of the jacket trapping warm air next to the body and not allowing it to escape. They also protect the neck and chin from the hardware of the jacket and the environment. They should only be purchased in performance fabrics that keep warm and dry because moisture from breathing can build up and if it is not dissipated can do just as much harm as being exposed to the elements. They do come in two sizes but the smaller kids sizes are really only for very little kids. They are narrower so they will stay closer to the neck and short so as to not bulk up under the collar of the jacket when it is zipped up all the way. The larger adult sized neck gaiters can be used for any child as long as it lays fairly close to the neck and dose not bulk up under the chin.

Glove liners should fit the child’s hand snuggly with not a lot of extra material at the end of the fingers. Some liners have nice little pockets to hold chemical heat packs and I highly suggest them. They will keep the heat pack away from being directly on the child’s skin and in a place where they won’t come out easily if the child has a Yard Sale fall where everything but their boots come off!

Goggles should always be fit with the helmet. The strap should fit easily around the entire helmet and the frame should fit directly onto the face inside the rim of the helmet. The foam of the goggle should press gently on the child’s face leaving no gaps around the edges. Gaps will let air in and may make the child’s eyes tear up making it hard to see and tears may freeze up inside the goggle or on the child’s face.

It is my feeling that children should wear goggles rather than sunglasses but either way they should have some sort of eye protection. My biggest issue with children’s sunglasses is that rarely are parents willing to shell out the money for a decent lens. Poor lenses rarely have adequate protection from UV A, B and C rays, lack impact resistance and cause so much distortion that the kids end up with eye strain. Having been a sunglass buyer for years this is an area near and dear to my heart so I should probably allow myself a full rant on the subject another time but if you are going to put sunglasses on your kids on the hill make sure they fit properly. Sunglasses should be narrow enough for their face, cover the eye entirely and fit snuggly at the temples but not tight. I would also suggest some sort of a strap to keep them on – again for the potential Yard Sale but also so when they go into the lodge they can just slip them down around their neck and not have to worry about them – especially if you are one of the rare parents who will shell out for a good pair.

Accessories play and important roll and should not be over looked. Both on and off the slopes accessories keep the snow from getting in and heat from getting out. As a rule of thumb always check to make sure that they fit properly with the rest of their gear and they should fit close but not tight.

Hope that helps! See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin

Hands On: Fitting Children fro Gloves or Mittens

Gloves and mittens play a crucial role in the warmth and comfort of a child on the hill. It is important to remember that children lack the physical awareness to feel cold in the same way adults do. This makes it more likely that they will try to take gloves and mittens off if they feel restricted or uncomfortable. The first rule of fitting then is to insure that it is comfortable for the child to improve the chances that they will stay on for the entire day.

Determining whether to buy a glove or mitten is the first issue. Younger children lack the dexterity to do much with their fingers anyway so they typically don’t mind wearing a mitten. Mittens are warmer and easier to fit and are therefore the best choice if the child is willing to wear them. The older they get the more likely they will push for gloves over mittens but it is my suggestion to keep them in mittens as long as possible.

Style choices for both glove and mittens vary widely. They all work effectively and the choice should really be left up to the personal preference of the child. Gloves and Mittens can come with long or short gauntlets. Longer gauntlets are often thought of as a snowboarding style but they will work for skiing just as well. Short gauntlets are offered in 2 different styles. The first is your typical style where the cuff of the glove or mitten comes to the base of sleeve and often has a snug inner cuff that can fit under the sleeve making a tight junction insuring that no warm air escapes from the jacket or mitten and that no snow gets up into the sleeve. The second is referred to as an under glove or mitten. The entire cuff of the glove or mitten is designed to go under the entire cuff of the sleeve. This is also considered a snowboarding style but again, equally effective for skiing.

Regardless of style the fit issues are the same. To check for the proper fit of a glove or mitten start at the fingers and work your way to the wrist. When fitting a mitten you only have to be concerned that the longest finger has enough room to straighten out and that there is not too much fabric left over around the rest of the fingers. For a glove, however, each of the child’s fingers should fit into each of the fingers of the glove. If there is more than a pinch of fabric at the tips of the child’s fingers then the glove is too big. This can be tricky because the ratio of finger length is different on every child. Gloves are made based on a standard ratio of finger length and this may leave you with a well fit index finger but lots of floppy material left above the pinky finger. This extra material not only makes the glove challenging to negotiate but it also makes it hard to keep sensitive fingers warm as there is too much air space to ever warm up effectively. If this is a problem for your child have them try on several styles and brands as they all vary a bit.

Once you have a glove or mitten that seems to fit the length of the fingers check to make sure that the glove sits comfortably in the webbing between the fingers by placing your index finger between each of the child’s gloved fingers including the thumb and just between the thumb and index finger when fitting a mitten. Have them open their hands wide spreading their fingers. When properly fit the material will not push against your finger as they open their hands while a glove or mitten that is too small will force your finger out of the gap between their fingers. In a glove or mitten that is too small this ‘bridging’ is caused by there being too little fabric to move with the child. This restriction in movement can cause the hand to fatigue through the day causing cold, numb hands.

When you are confident that you have a glove or mitten that fits the finger length and fits well at the base of the fingers move to the back of the hand. To test the volume of the glove or mitten, pinch the fabric at the back of the hand. You should be able to pinch a bit each layer of the glove or mitten but not be able to pull it far from the hand. A glove or mitten that is too big in volume will not keep the hand warm because there is too much air to warm up effectively.

Most gloves and mittens have a bit of a break at their base as it transitions into the cuff. This break should hit right at the wrist as it helps to increase the mobility of the wrist. The cuff of the glove or mitten should not be too tight nor too loose around the child’s wrist. A cuff that is too tight will restrict the flow of warm blood to the fingers and a cuff that is too big will allow warm air to escape from around the child’s hand. Some gloves and mittens have a strap to cinch around the wrist for this reason – just make sure it isn’t cinched too tightly.

Hand wear is incredibly important to a successful day on the slopes because children don’t need to have cold hands to have a warm heart!

See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin