Any parent will tell you how difficult it can be to convince kids to wear sunscreen. It can be a real battle – and it’s one worth fighting for the sake of their precious skin. Introducing CRAZY ARMS – a revolutionary product that will change the way you feel about the kids going outside.
What are Crazy Arms?
Cute name, awesome product. This is designed for kids aged between about 5 and 11 years old (give or take depending on your kid’s size).
Crazy Arms are sun protective sleeves that kids can wear with a t-shirt over the top. The fabric is lightweight and UPF 50+ which protects those little arms from harmful UV rays.
What are they made of?
Here’s the really cool part. They’re Australian designed and Aussie made out of recycled fabric. Specifically, regenerated nylon that comes from old fishing nets and other nylon waste. This saves all the precious sea life and bird life from getting caught up in the nets. Cool, functional AND enviro-friendly! Awesome.
What are Crazy Arms like to wear?
Initially, I was concerned that Mister Five would be restricted in his movement. He’s a flexible and really active kid (despite being camera-shy in this article!) so I wanted to make sure he could still have a full range of movement. Luckily, the second they were on he was so dazzled by the unicorn pattern that he started dancing with glee – showing off that range of movement immediately!
He said that it felt like he almost didn’t have anything on his arms but he kept touching them and pulling at them. (He told me later he was making sure that everyone could see them. Bless.) All reports from small child were that these were comfortable and WAY better than slapping sunscreen all over the arms.
He wore them outside for quite a while WITHOUT getting hot (rare move on his part!) and then to a family birthday party. I was hesitant at first to let him go in the sun that long without sunscreen on but I worried for nothing. I can happily, hand-on-heart report that his arms did not get burned through this product. It was great! The UPF 50+ fabric can block over 98% of harmful rays from the sun, and they certainly did so on my pale kid!
His Crazy Arms also went with him to kindy AND survived to tell the tale. If that’s not proof of quality and durability I’m not sure what is!
Mister Five has a favourite long-sleeved rash shirt that he likes to wear in the pool (he’s a fussy fellow) so I have to admit he didn’t wear these in the water. However, Crazy Arms are fine to wear in the pool or the surf (if you choose the dolphin design a donation is made to Healthy Seas!).
The Verdict on Crazy Arms
This is a fantastic product and an excellent initiative. Recycled products are definitely a hot topic when it comes to sustainable living practices and it feels awesome to be able to support such an idea. These are lightweight but offer excellent sun protection.
Crazy Arms have stopped the sunscreen arguments. It still goes on the other non-protected areas, obviously, but he’s just so proud of his Crazy Arms that he doesn’t mind. He’s even wearing them to kindy now (mainly to show off in true five-year-old style).
The Crazy Arms crew will continue to update their designs as time goes on and more people start getting involved. Click through here to see their full range of products.
Oh, and they’ve got ones for adults too! Score! You can even suggest design ideas and they’ll take your feedback on board.
Tips for Parents:
- These are quite difficult to put on if your kid is already sweaty. If they’re nice and cool, they’ll slide right on. My son runs very hot and his skin can be quite clammy – if you’ve got some little hot bods you might find the same thing!
- The sizing is pretty good but if your child is very tall for their age or has a little more meat on their bones, you might want to send their measurements to Crazy Arms to get their opinion. They have a great returns policy which you can find on their website.
- Crazy Arms™ come in (currently) 12 different designs in two sizes: S 5-8 year olds typical height 115cm – 135cm and M 8-12 year olds typical height 135cm – 150cm.
- These are really nice and smooth when they’re on so it’s easy for kids to forget they’re even wearing them. Please make sure that their shirt sleeves are long enough to cover the top of the Crazy Arms sleeves otherwise you’re still going to have to make sure sunscreen goes on.
- Get multiple pairs! You can see Mister Five modelling the unicorns in this post and he also has some bright blue ones.
Do you do adult sizes?