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Like Oprah has her favorite things, here are my must-haves, winter warmers, ski niceties on the mountain, to enhance your ski day, ski vacation and vertical time!
Skiing comfort starts from the inside out. I love Hot Chillys as a base layer bottom - great technical fabric with a seamless finish. SmartWool ski socks are a favorite too. Make sure your layers are smooth from your long undies to outer layers, no gaps or wrinkles - which get worse throughout the ski day. I just discovered adea, a Shrewsbury Mass company, they make beautiful base layer tops with Italian style and quality. Their tops are silky soft, but offer moisture wicking and UV protection, and the microfiber doesn't pill, fade or lose its shape. The base layers are super light, perfect for travel as they are stylish enough to wear to après ski, and you can hand-wash them and they dry in an hour (read: less packing).
My Sugarloaf friend Julie Swain invented the warmest bra on the planet, really! I challenge you to find a warmer boulder holder on the mountain than this Polartec fleece bra. Leave it to a Loafer to come up with this, but its wicked warm, 100% fleece, soft and fuzzy on your skin too. You can find the Fleece Sports Bra on Amazon or Etsy.
For the cheap but thoughtful date, I still swear by disposable pocket hand warmers and toe warmers. HotHands fire up heat inside your gloves and boots for 8 hours, great ski value at a buck a pair, even cheaper by the case, saving you potentially costly trips inside the lodge between runs. I admit I have a pack a day habit.
The Serius Snowdana is my security blanket neck warmer, it looks as stylish as possible and provides important face protection, lightweight cover from the wind and cold, and SPF. It's easy to wash and pack.
For your ski man:
The Ski Bumper is a magnetic strip that you place on your car to keep your gear upright when you are unloading and packing. Haven't we all watched our skis slide along our car, scratching the paint job before hitting the ground? Bo from Colorado's ski Bumper is $16, magnetic, totally detachable and eliminates that problem. All about the snow Bo also invented the Prep Pad for $13 for you to stand on in the parking lot while putting on your skis boots- keeping your ski sox, boots and your car carpet clean - priceless.
For the Kids in your ski car:
My kids loved skiing Legos and wicky stix, bendable ski figures that take up minimal room in the car, ski bag, condo, but allow the kids to use their big imagination. My ski kids are grown up now but they would have loved Shredz, pose-able snowboarding action figures with their own detachable helmet, snowboard, and ID card. Shredz start at $10. You can takethe snowboard action toys inside or out on the snow, and they have free ride dud handles like Brody, Chase, Luke, and Shane.
Enjoy your family skiing, stay warm stay happy & healthy!
