I love Buff Headwear, but while my Coolmax Buff is great for summer
wearing, it isn’t as great during the winter. So I was really excited
to get a chance to try out the Polar Buff with its Polartec panel.
The Polar Buff looks like an Original Buff with a Polartec tube sewn
onto one end. The Polar Buff is 50% longer than the Original Buff
because of this extra Polartec panel. There are two seams, one where
the Polartec joins with the Buff and another forming the Polartec into a
tube (this one is a flatlock seam). With the extra length and
different fabric zones comes a larger versatility in forming the various
styles.
Bonnet mode, similar to Pirate mode
The Polar Buff, like all Buff headwear, is very versatile to wear.
There are 9 basic ways the Polar Buff can be worn. The styles include
headband, scarf, mask and neckerchief (aka neck gaiter). These four are
pretty easy to figure out. The remaining styles include the Sahariane,
cap (aka beanie), balaclava, bonnet, and pirate. These five styles can
be a little tricky to make, but are well worth figuring out. With the
two different sections of fabric, it is possible to make each style with
the Polartec against the head or away from the head as is the case with
the pirate and bonnet styles.
Neckerchief, a.k.a. neck gaiter mode
The Polar Buff has been a great addition to my cold weather clothing.
I have been wearing the Polar Buff either as a beanie to keep my ears
warm, or as a neck gaiter and face mask. The Polar Buff is just as
versatile as the Original Buff but I find that the Polar Buff, with the
extra length, is a little easier to work with when making the beanie.
The beanie has been my go to for head protection as the material can be
doubled up over my ears keeping them extra warm.
Polar Buff as a Scarf
Worn as a Balaclava while Biking
When I first started to use the Polar Buff, I was concerned that the
extra length would make it harder to form the beanie or pirate head
covering. I was pleased to find that the extra length didn’t impair
making the beanie and actually gave me the extra coverage over my ears
that I always wanted. I did find that the pirate mode was a little
trickier, but with a little effort, I was able to make it work. The
great thing about the Polar Buff is that I can wear it with the Polartec
section against my head for added warmth or away from my head when the
weather is warmer..
I hate having cold wind whistling past my ears as it makes them hurt
and gives me a headache. I was wearing the Polar Buff in beanie mode
and loved that the extra length ensured good ear coverage. In fact,
there was enough material to fold up another layer back onto my ears,
essentially quadrupling the coverage on my ears. This more than kept
the wind out of my ears and kept me warm. The temperatures were around
freezing and I found this worked very well for me. As the temperature
warmed up, however, the quadrupled material became too warm, so I simply
switched to a single layer of Polartec and was again fine. The
quadrupling of the material did put some pressure on my ears which was
noticeable as my sunglasses were caught between my ears and head. Once I
shifted the arms out from behind my ears, the pressure decreased
substantially.
Sahariane, for extra neck protection
Wearing the Polar Buff as a neck gaiter on cold snowshoeing trips
really helps seal out the cold drafts that seem to work their way down
my neck. Also, the soft Polartec works really well as a nose wipe. The
Polartec dries quickly and is ready for another wipe in a few minutes.
I can hardly tell I have been wiping my nose after the hike is over. I
do wipe on the outside of the Polartec section just so it isn’t against
my face and to encourage it to dry faster.
Arr, there be Pirates here!
Face Mask mode
I have been using the Polar Buff out in the Wasatch Mountains, and in
Canyonlands National Park. The Polar Buff has gone on several
snowshoeing trips as well as backpacking and hiking in Canyonlands. On
the Wasatch Front range, I wore the Polar Buff on a short mountain
biking trip while the trails were still clear. The flexibility of the
Polar Buff allowed me to wear the Polartec section over my head and face
while still having a neck gaiter. Wearing the Polar Buff like a
balaclava worked well with my helmet causing no interference while
keeping my ears and neck warm.
Headband mode
The Polar Buff washes up easily. There is no shrinkage between the
different materials, nor did I notice much pilling of the Polartec
material. It was still as soft coming out of the wash as when I first
got the Polar Buff. The seam where the Polartec meets the Buff does
create an added stiffness. This little stiffness does make forming the
pirate headwear a little more difficult but otherwise doesn’t seem to
interfere in any other way.
The Polar Buff is now my go to winter Buff. It is very versatile and keeps my head and neck warm.
No comments:
Post a Comment