The lovely people at ‘We Do Safe and Dry’ have not only given us some Playground Waders to give away on our Facebook page, they also sent us some to test! What fun we had! Here’s how we got on…
We excitedly opened the package and inside found 2 handy storage bags packed with not only waders but, lovely warm felt welly liners, wooly insoles AND waterproof jackets!
The children immediately loved the colours (green for my little boy and pink for my little girl) and the designs on the wellies. I LOVED the quality which you can see and feel as soon as you unpack them. The rubberised fabric is thick and of excellent quality, my two were definitely warm and snug even on a VERY chilly day!
There are robust and easy to adjust straps and the wellies have a thick sole and feel squashy inside even without the liners- so walking over stones is no problem for little feet.
The elasticated waistline on the jackets ensures a snug fit and there is a drawstring hood which means you can stop the hood falling down. I also liked the reflective strips which are particularly helpful on low light days or as an extra safety measure when cycling.
We made our way to the beach to put the waders to the test…….
After a morning of torrential rain the sun came out and there was just a light drizzle. The wind was gusty and the temperature cold, however with the waders on I have to say that the children played as if it was a ‘normal’ day.
They rolled in the sand and climbed rocks without moaning that they were too hot/ cold, and they moved about easily as there is no ‘bulk’ to the outfit.
We carefully paddled in the rough sea which was great fun! They jumped, kicked and splashed the water around and were well protected from getting wet and cold. The water just ran straight of the rubber fabric.
My feet were a little chilly in my thin wellies and I think the felt liners (a bit like welly socks) that my son had and the wooly insoles that my daughter had helped keep their feet toasty. I don’t think you necessarily need either as the wellies are thicker than average however it does allow you to size up so that the outfit will last longer.
At the end of all our fun we dusted off the sand (which did stick a bit!) and put the waders (which were completely dry despite the splashing) in the storage bags to take home. ….particularly useful if you have had a ‘muddy’ time.
Overall Opinion;
‘excellent quality and very useful’
Probably the thing I like best about these is the easiness of them…..they go on without fuss which for some reason I was not expecting . My children had them on top of their normal clothes, including a dress, but because they are roomy nobody moaned about stuff being ‘bunched up’.
If you are an ‘outdoorsy’ family then these should be part of your essential kit. If not then just go for the waders rather than the whole outfit – you will use them at the park, beach, forest, farms etc..
All in all a very useful little outfit if you want to encourage adventures in the great outdoors whatever the weather!
