Review & Giveaway: The Minkey by Olie

Although the weather is warming up quite nicely for us in Southern California, much of the world is still experiencing Winter. When I received our Minkey by Olie, we were in the thick of our (3 weeks of) cold temperatures. Trying to keep children properly warm is a daunting task, at times.

I don’t know about you, but I’m always losing gloves, especially! Thanks to this very unique invention, now I have an all in one option for my kids! The Minkey provides a hat/scarf/glove garment with sleeves, making dressing the kids for cold weather a snap.

There were a few design options to choose from: A plain blue, a plain pink, a purple or pink one with a flower on the side of the hood, a pink one with little ears, dark green with red and blue dino features and the one I chose, a mint green with purple and pink dino features.

I originally thought I would be ordering one for my 5 year old but, sadly, it only sizes up to a 4t – and she would need a 5t. So instead I option for their smallest size, 0-6 months, for my 5 month old.

Penelope’s Minkey arrived in less than a week’s time, neatly folded in a plastic packaging. It was extremely soft since it is made of 100% fleece. I couldn’t wait for my daughter to wake from her nap so I could try it out.

Putting it on my baby was very easy, as I expected it to be. Her face seemed to take up most of the head hole, but I did notice that if she turned, the hood didn’t turn with her. Instead her face would turn inside the fabric, which could be a safety concern for smaller babies. She seemed to only tolerate it for small period of time, but I think when she gets older she will prefer it over the 3 piece options.

It was actually quite humorous because she has a trademark Pterodactyl screech, which paired wonderfully with her adorable dino get-up! I love that I could ‘take her gloves off’ by flipping the hand part backwards, without fear of losing yet another pair!

I noticed early on the circle pieces (dino spots) seem a little shoddy compared to the rest of the construction. They are also fleece, but seem to be cheaply adorned using a hot glue gun. They have surprisingly stayed on through two laundry washes, but I don’t believe they will last much longer - if I had the skill, I'd stitch these parts on for better durability. This wouldn’t be an issue with the plain or flower Minkey options.

One other dislike, though I don’t think there is a way to remedy it, without losing the product fit, is that the hood is unable to go down. Due to the way her face was turning inwards, I was hoping to pull the hood down while I was driving, but instead was having to take it on and off.

Even so, I would buy this product again. I would likely wait until she was a bit older if I wanted it to be often used. However, you can’t beat the cuteness factor of this on a baby!

I hope to see more design options from Olie in the future, as well. Sizes are available 0-6m, 6-12m, 12-24m, 24-36m, and 3t-4t.

Most of the Minkey by Olie’s retail for $19.99, mine included. However the plain ones and the one with ears are only $15! Since the child is likely to outgrow it before it's worn out, this strikes me as a good bargain.

Olie the Minkey on Facebook

The Olie Website

Minky by Olie is giving away one of their $19.99 Minkies in any size they offer (0-6mo, 6-12mo, 12-24mo, 2-3T, or 3-4T). The winner can select from the Dino Minky in either mint or green, or the flowered Minky in pink or purple!

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment in this entry as instructed by the Rafflecopter, then leave the name you commented under and your email in the box in the Rafflecopter entry. (This allows us to contact you if you win!)  This will open up additional optional entries to increase your odds of winning.

This giveaway is open to US & CANADIAN RESIDENTS ONLY
and will end just before midnight ET on 4-1-15. 

The winner will be notified by email within 24 hours after the end of the giveaway.  In order to claim the giveaway prize, the winner will need to respond within 24 hours of notification, or an alternate winner will be selected.

Good luck everyone!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway