I graduated to a puffer jacket when we moved to Salt Lake City from Chicago. In the midwest, especially when living downtown Chicago, I wore long down coats that blocked the brutal lakeshore wind. The winters seemed so mild when we transitioned to Utah. And now they’re even more mild in Portland.

Walking past our coat hooks by our front door is hilarious to me. We’ve acquired quite the collection over the years, and I’m going to share which ones we use all the time. As I was going back to see what was available online, it’s interesting to see how the styles have changed over the last six years when we first started buying our jackets.

What I Wear:

Patagonia Down Sweater: This was the first jacket of our puffer coat collection. I bought it in November 2016 and it’s lasted and held up so well. I wash it more than any other coat I have, and there is no damage. It’s expensive, but these jackets last. They’re so easy to wear around town or on a hike.

Patagonia Hooded Down Sweater: I bought this jacket three years ago (we were still in SLC) because I wanted the option to have a hood. I definitely reach for this one more than the non-hooded jacket now that we’re in Portland and it’s rainy. Because of the hood, this does not fold up quite as small as the other jacket. But again, I love the option to have a hood.

What C Wears:

Mountain Hardwear Puffer: This was a Christmas gift from me to C a few years ago. It’s fine and it does the job. I wouldn’t say it is as high quality as the Patagonia jackets we own.

Patagonia Nano Puff: This was a gift from the company that C works for. He wears this jacket the most. Neither of the puffer jackets he wears have a hood, which is not ideal. We’ll fix that someday. This jacket is a much lighter weight than the down sweater jackets I own, but C doesn’t seem to mind. He’ll layer under the coat if needed.

What The Baby Wears:

Patagonia Hi-Loft Down Bunting: True story — a few years ago, when A was a baby, we went on an 8 mile winter hike to hot springs in Utah. About half way through the hike, A freaked out and… it was not fun. He was definitely cold, likely hungry, and probably tired. But as a new mom I was totally freaked out and on the verge of thinking I was sending my new baby into hypothermia. It was very traumatic and later that week I marched right into the Patagonia outlet store that was in SLC and scored one of these Patagonia buntings for $40.

When A was a little older, we had a trip planned to Yosemite for Thanksgiving. We bought the next size up and he wore it for the next two years on our hikes (the buntings run huge). We are in a season of life right now where we are hiking a lot less with our children, but we still reach for the buntings for G when we are going on walks or bike rides. If you want to be certain your child is warm, get this!

What The Kids Wear

Kids Lightweight Puffer Jacket: I started buying Primary’s puffer jackets for A when we moved to Portland, and I never looked back. They are the perfect amount of warmth for this climate and are very affordable (and usually on sale!). I do wish the colors were a little more muted, but I love that if one of the jackets gets lost or ruined they only cost about $50. I’ve thrown these in the wash so many times and they hold up. I’ll be buying my kids these jackets for as long as they’ll let me!