The name Rumpl may sound familiar to regular GeekDad readers. That’s because Patricia Volmer covered the company’s Kickstarter for the Original Puffy Poncho last fall. This time around, I got some hands-on time with the Original Puffy Blanket.
This product may sound like an unusual choice for me, but it was actually a great fit. My family does a lot of camping, and a blanket that’s water resistant, dirt resistant, odor resistant, pet hair resistant, machine washable, and that packs into a compact compression sack is definitely something I’d want to have a look at.
The Original Puffy Blanket is made of synthetic material that’s similar to what you would find in a quality sleeping bag—20D Ripstop Nylon fabric and DWR shield. That offers the advantages of being light (the sample is just 2.1 pounds), warm, yet smooth instead of scratchy. Because the insulation is synthetic, it has the advantages of being cruelty-free and also machine washable/dryable.
This blanket would be perfect for camping. Unfortunately, we haven’t made it out camping again since the sample arrived, and let’s face it, November in Canada means the camping season is over for at least six months.
However, my wife glommed onto the Original Puffy Blanket almost immediately. I was sent the Throw size (50 x 70-inches) and it’s perfect for just that. On weekend mornings we sit on the front porch with a coffee to read, and with the fall coolness, the Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket quickly became her go-to. It also sees frequent use on weekend nights, when we often hang out on the back deck listening to music. From there, she began ignoring the piles of fleece blankets scattered around the house to use the Original Puffy Blanket when curled up on a sofa.
It’s not just that this blanket is warm (but not overpoweringly so), it’s also incredibly light.
And, it stands up to pets. That’s a big one around here. We have two fairly big and extremely furry dogs. While most blankets attract dog fur like a magnet and quickly smell like the dogs, the Original Puffy Blanket remains dog fur-free and odor-free. It’s also withstood them lying on it, standing on it, and slobbering on it. And yes, it also stands up to the typical abuse (spilled drinks, crumbs, and I don’t want to know what else) of teenagers.
There are loops sewn into each of the corners. These are handy for tying the blanket to a chair—at just a hair over two pounds, it wouldn’t take much of a gust to blow it away. You could also use them to hang it.
The printed pattern of my blanket is a snazzy version called Fiddlehead. It looks like it’s not currently available on Rumpl’s website, but there are over a dozen other options to choose from. And the company just announced a collaboration with Helinox as well.
The Original Puffy Blanket is a great choice if you want a versatile, lightweight, and extremely low maintenance blanket. We like it so much (I say “we” although I seldom have the opportunity to get my hands on it) that we’ve been talking about picking up the 2-person size (88 x 84-inches) to use on the bed in our trailer. We have half a year to decide on a pattern before we have to make that choice, though. Have to get through the winter first…
The Original Puffy Blanket starts at $99 direct from Rumpl (specialty patterns are a bit more and price goes up with blanket size), and you can also find many of the colors and sizes on Amazon.
Disclosure: Rumpl provided a blanket for evaluation but had no input into this review.
