A warm, weather-resistant jacket with the ability to convert into a sleeping bag.
With thoughtful design features and impressive warmth, water repellency and comfort, the
VOITED Slumber Jacket has the potential to tick lots of boxes for campers. And the ability to convert from jacket to sleeping bag might just make it as the versatile camping jacket you’re after. But did this innovative design win me over? Read on to find out.
VOITED Slumber Jacket: The stats
| Best for: | Car / van camping, post-swim warmth, winter at home, winter everyday wear |
| Weight: | 1150g / 2.53lbs (size S) |
| Waterproof?: | No, water repellent |
| Limit temperature: | 7°C / 45°F |
| Comfort temperature: | 11°C / 52°F |
| Eco-credentials: | Ripstop is made from 100% recycled plastic bottles, Bionic Finish®Eco Fluorine Free DWR coating, insulation made out of a post-consumer recycled content of at least 80% |
| Overall rating: |
Features of the VOITED Slumber Jacket
Insulation
The VOITED Slumber Jacket owes its cosy warmth to PrimaLoft Rise insulation. This is a synthetic insulation that is designed with durability, loft retention and breathability in mind. Another benefit of this type of insulation is that it’s effective at retaining warmth even when wet. Plus, it’s made out of at least 80% post-consumer recycled content.
Outer fabric
With a Hydrostatic Head (HH) rating of 13000mm, the 50D Ripstop recycled REPREVE polyester outer couple with the Bionic Finish Eco Fluorine Free durable water repellent (DWR) coating provides very good water resistance in short spells of light rain or drizzle. It’s by no means waterproof, but the protection it does provide against the elements is perfectly sufficient for its purpose.
Sleeping bag mode
There’s a zippered compartment at the base of the jacket which houses the “foot” of the jacket. When not in use, there are internal toggles that keep the foot in place inside the jacket (and also provide an extra layer of insulation at the back). Undo the toggles, pull the foot out, get your feet in there and zip them up into sleeping bag mode!
Hood
Insulated with the same fill as the rest of the jacket, the hood provides a really snug fit with the ability to properly block out the elements thanks to the adjustable toggles. There are two toggles at the front to cinch in around the face and another one at the back to deal with any excess space in that area. There’s room to wear a wooly hat underneath the hood, but not one with a bobble on top!
Pockets
The two hand pockets are really deep and lined with the most delightfully cosy fleece fabric. They have popper button closures. There’s also an internal chest pocket with Velcro tab closure which is handy for storing your phone.
Cuffs
A really nice added feature is the thumb loops which are stretchy but snug around the hands and really help keep out the draft. The cuffs can also be cinched in using the Velcro tabs.
Zipper
The zipper runs from around the crotch area all the way up past the chin. This means that you have to step into the jacket rather than put it on like a normal jacket. To help keep out the draft there’s an internal storm flap beneath the zip. This is lined with a soft microfiber fabric. Additionally, the toggle on the zipper is big enough to use when wearing gloves.
Packability
There’s nothing especially packable about this sleeping bag jacket. But it’s also not designed for lightweight adventures. That said, it’s not huge when packed down, taking up the space of an average-sized, non-technical, synthetic sleeping bag. Just small enough to fit in a day pack with other essentials for a beach campfire!
VOITED Slumber Jacket review
My initial impressions of this sleeping bag jacket were ones of skepticism; jackets are for wearing as jackets and sleeping bags for sleeping in. Campers need two separate items and the two don’t cross over. Or do they?
Clearly, VOITED believes that they do cross over. But has the Slumber Jacket won me over as a replacement for my jacket and sleeping bag? Or have my doubts about its usefulness been confirmed?
Jacket mode
As a jacket, the Slumber offers some really nice features which I’ve been very much enjoying through the autumn. It provides instant post-swim morale (once dry) and provides just about enough room inside to use as a changing robe. This does depend on the size you go for. I have a small jacket (I’m usually size 8-10 UK and 5’5”) but I’m also pregnant right now so space is getting more limited by the day! I would recommend sizing up, if in doubt.
As a small aside, the Slumber is actually a great solution as a winter jacket for pregnant women as, despite it being size S, there’s still plenty of space for the baby to grow. I won’t need to invest in a maternity specific jacket for such a short period of time but I know the jacket will get well used even when I’m not pregnant! When the time comes, I also think there will be plenty of space to carry my baby on my chest inside the jacket. I’ll be sure to update this once I’ve tried it.
Having a winter jacket that’s long is a really appealing feature for me, especially living in Cornwall when rainy squalls come out of nowhere. Yes, it’s a little inconvenient to step in and out of rather than having a zipper that goes right to the hem. But actually, doing up a very low down zipper can be a pain too.
Overall, the jacket is comfortable, warm, impressively water repellent, dries quickly and has some pleasing design features – cosy pocket linings, thumb loops and good hood – that all make it a great choice for wearing during cool camping nights around the fire, at beach campfires, outdoor movie nights, for post-swim / -surf cosiness and changing, and for everyday wear in cooler conditions.
For me, the main downside of the Slumber in jacket mode, is that there’s not loads of room at the knees. Big strides and big steps up or down are restricted and you need to hitch the bottom of the jacket up for such maneuvers.
Sleeping bag mode
There are a few occasions when the ability to convert the jacket into sleeping bag mode comes into its own. Sitting around camp, for outdoor movie nights or around a beach campfire on cool evenings are the main times I’ve found this useful. However, as soon as you want to get up you’re instantly limited and will either need to bunny hop to your destination (assuming the ground is dry). Or unzip, step out and slip on shoes, if needed, carrying the trailing “foot” with you as you go.
There is one other scenario I’ve found the sleeping bag mode to be very useful and that’s at home! Evenings on the sofa when it’s not quite cold enough to put the heating on or when you want to conserve a bit of energy and need some extra warmth, it’s great. And it’s THE most efficient way of keeping warm when you’re working from home and don’t want to have the heating on for your whole working day.
Is it a good solution for campers to actually sleep in? Some people will get on just fine using it as their sleeping bag, providing the temperature doesn’t drop out too much and assuming they don’t need to get up at night.
But in all honesty, it’s not for me. If you need to get up in the night to pee, you’ll need to unzip the foot and carry it as you walk to the toilet where you’ll have to hitch the whole jacket right up to do your business. Alternatively, you’ll need to get fully out of the jacket to walk to the toilet. But you might need to put on another jacket to do this if the night is chilly. And if it’s raining then you’ll certainly need to take it off fully and put on another jacket.
Additionally, if you’re like me and constantly have cold hands, you’ll need to wear gloves to bed. Although, it is possible to retract your whole arms out of their sleeves and bring them into the main part of the jacket or you can just sleep with your hands in the cosy pockets.
I also find that I feel quite restricted sleeping in the jacket, especially my legs. Yes, you can vent by opening the foot zipper a bit. But you can’t get your legs out easily if they need more space or air. I’m used to sleeping in underneath a quilt when camping, so this may not feel as restrictive if you’re more used to a sleeping bag.
On the flip side of that, there’s no getting tangled up when you turn over, like often happens in a traditional sleeping bag. This is a big plus if you toss and turn a lot at night.
Another plus is if you like to read before sleep once you’re in bed. In a normal sleeping bag your arms get exposed to the cool air to hold your book. Not with the Slumber Jacket!
What I love the most about the VOITED Slumber Jacket
It’s impressively water resistant, warm and comfortable as a jacket with some really nice features like the fleece-lined pockets and thumb loops.
I also love it as a winter jacket through pregnancy!
What I don’t love so much about the VOITED Slumber Jacket
It’s narrow at the legs to walk around in and negotiate steps. And I feel that the sleeping bag mode has limitations that won’t suit some people.
Verdict
The VOITED Slumber Jacket is warm, comfortable and well designed as a jacket. And there are certainly campers and van-lifers out there who will really love the versatility of this jacket-cum-sleeping bag and will get a load of use out of the sleeping bag as much as the jacket. But for me there are some limitations that mean I use the sleeping bag mode for extra warmth on evenings sitting outside rather than for sleeping in. As a jacket, however, there’s certainly a lot to love about its design and functionality.
Find the latest price at:
VOITED
Disclaimer: Cool of the Wild received this product free in return for an honest review. We only recommend gear that we love from companies we trust and we are under no obligation to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are that of the reviewer and we are in no way influenced by the brand or company.
The post Review: VOITED Slumber Jacket appeared first on Cool of the Wild.
