Hestra: Gloves for Year-Round Play

“Snow is cold!” exclaimed Hudson, the toddler son of former world champion skier, Jen Hudak, as he drove his tiny fist into the frigid mound outside their Utah home. As his Hestra mittens dangled from his wrists, Jen watched behind her giggles as he eventually deducted (after a few more plunges) that the snow was not cold—or, perhaps, that his hands would stay warm — with his mittens on.

“Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning.” —Fred Rogers


Jen has embraced learning through play throughout her life. As a halfpipe skier at the XGames, 2x world champion skier, Amazing Race finalist, and co-owner of the recreational trailer company, Escapod Trailers, she’s always viewed the outdoors as a giant playground waiting to be explored, mastered or bested. While the competitive drive that drove her across finish lines didn’t at first appear to prepare her for parenting, she has reflected that it’s made her observant of others and to see life “through their particular lens.” As a parent, she has moved from competitor to chief supporter with her husband Chris, their gloved fists in the air cheering Hudson’s latest discovery or win in nature.

Gloves for Mom

As an active outdoor family, Hestra gloves are part of Jen’s kit whether playing in the snow, working in the yard or enjoying a weekend date in nearby Park City. However, Hestra gloves and mittens are best known for their incomparable warmth, function and quality while skiing. For over a decade, Jen has relied on Hestra gloves for performance whether racing or touring. The Ergo Grip Active is her go-to glove on the mountain these days. This lightweight, 5-finger glove is constructed with goat leather on the palm for durability and grip and topped with breathable Gore-Tex Infinium™ Windstopper® material. As someone who has spent half her life on the snow, Jen loves that they keep her hands cool while trekking and warm making fresh tracks.

Mittens for the toddler

For her son, Jen finds that Hestra mittens are a new parent’s dream. Not only do they keep her son’s tiny fingers warm (before and after he’s dipped them into the snow), but the mittens are easy to put on the squirmy guy. With its unique side zipper, the Baby Zip Long Mitt has a clamshell design allowing parents to clasp it around a busy hand and secure it with a quick zip and strap. Moreover, like many adult Hestra gloves and mittens, they come with a handy elastic wristband to prevent loss during a young explorer’s investigation or imaginative play. Jen also loves the quality.

Work Gloves for Dad

Chris has been wearing his durable Hassium Tan work gloves to clear their forested property and build a mechanical tow rope for an eventual bunny slope (for Hudson or his parents, it’s still not clear). Jen further appreciates that because most of their Hestra's get year-round use and, if ever a seam breaks, the company will repair or replace them. “They’re made to last,” she said, a quality she’s come to trust and rely on.

Strong and stylish, Hestra gloves and mittens are, at their Swedish heart, functional. For over 85 years, in the upland village of Hestra, the Magnusson family has manufactured products for their lumberjack friends, skiing neighbors and, as word spread, the rest of an increasingly active and curious world. Function, however, is not just about doing but being.

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes,” a Scandinavian maxim that describes the need to connect with – to touch – the outdoors no matter the obstacle. As part of Jen’s family year-round kit, Hestra gloves and mittens allow her and Chris to not only connect with the outdoors but to connect with and cheer on young Hudson as he plays and learns about his expanding and enchanting world.

For more information about which Hestra gloves and mittens to add to your family’s kit, please go to Hestragloves.com or Hestrajob.com for their work gloves.

This content is sponsored by Hestra