Assistance needed with insulated jackets

Lisa you may consider Feathered Friends EOS.  About 8 oz light than the Kelvinator (I think), certainly more compressible & a very good warmth to weight ratio.

Lisa you MH link goes somewhere else. FYI.

Ahh, whoops…Now people will forever know how I was feeling about potentially returning to the office someday. I don’t think there’s a way to edit a post?

Here’s the link I intended:  https://www.backcountry.com/mountain-hardwear-kelvinator-jacket-womens

Bang for buck it’s pretty hard to beat Montbell.  You may find the new Alpine Down Parka interesting at 14 oz and $299.  Certainly lighter and more packable than the Kelvinator and very likely warmer.

Im a huge fan of my Montbell Alpine Light (mens version). They can be found on sale for under $200, likely in the next couple months when summer closeouts happen.

I see the Womens Alpine Light only has 3oz down (vs 5oz in the mens) so the Womens Alpine (not light) with 6.5oz may be the ticket. That’s 46% down by weight. Pretty good!

You can spitball warmth estimates from down jacket to down jacket by doing the math.  6 ounces of down (what I’d guess might be in that Kelvinator) times 650 fill power means that (in theory) you have 3900 cubic inches of insulating muscle.  Compare that to 3840 cubes (800 x 4.8 oz) in the Montbell Alpine Light.

Shell fabric, construction, and how tightly the down is packed all make a difference but the numbers will let you at least mostly compare apples to apples.

If I company doesn’t list the down weight don’t bother.

I suggest you talk to Ben at Goosefeet Gear, he can customize a jacket to your exact specs, and the end result will cost about the same as off the rack.

Point of reference: a few years ago I had him make a puffy for me that has 3 oz of 950fp Downtek insulation and the whole jacket weighs less 6 oz and at the time cost $265. Not as warm as what I think you’re looking for but as I said he will customize.

Lisa,

Some great contenders mentioned already. Another custom option would be something in down or synthetic from Nunatak. They are known for very light and very high quality garments and quilts if you are willing to wait for items not in stock. Of course, down is generally more packable.

And I also wanted to mention the Western Mountaineering Flight Jacket. My wife uses hers in camp and at rest breaks as you describe and it has become a must-have in her pack. I don’t think there is a women’s specific version of the Flight, but still worth considering.

I am a big believer in proper fit — the last thing you want is a bunch of dead air space you have to heat up again and again. If Mountain Hardwear works for you there is the Women’s Ghost Whisperer UL Hoody — spendy but ultralight. Or if the more tapered cut of Rab is to your liking, consider the Microlight.

Online shopping takes patience — I often purchase two or more for comparison and then return all but my favorite. Best of luck.

Closing the loop on this one…I went with the Arcteryx Cerium LT hoody. It fits perfectly (which is a challenge for me, being very petite), is warmer than my Rab Xenon, is quite light but still feels fairly durable, and not so puffy that I won’t be able to fit it under a shell. The list price is outrageous but I was able to snag a pretty decent deal, making it a bit more palatable.