Lifestyle
Moose Knuckles Topland Review
About The Topland
The Topland, at $1950 USD, is one of the most expensive men's parka Moose Knuckles has available at the moment on their website, and for good reasons. Seeing photos of the Topland might not do it justice. During our review, taking the parka out of the box for the first time was quite an experience at the office. The raccoon fur is absolutely astonishing in person and it's hard not to notice. The combination of tough poly-twill materials used for the shell, soft rex rabbit fur for the lining, and raccoon fur for on the hood makes for a unique and undeniably exquisite look that's unlike anything we've ever seen.
First Impression
Standing out is something Moose Knuckles as a company happens to excel in. We've reviewed another parka from them previously and had similar first impression. Although in many parts of the US East coast, the brand isn't as recognizable as other Canadian brands, it still stands out from the crowd. At first glace, it looks sturdy, well made, and can probably take a beating from wear and tear. The material is flexible and surprisingly soft given how stiff the texture looks. Although we haven't tested it, Moose Knuckles claims it's water and weather resistant.The interior rex rabbit fur feels silky soft against your skin and also looks nice when worn unzipped. The raccoon striped fur around the hood is hard to miss. It's significantly bigger, fluffier, and more "luxurious" looking than most other comparable parkas.
Functional Features
We appreciate it when brands pay attention to the little details that make their product easy to use and functional. And the Topland comes standard with all the bells and whistles you'd expect from a parka that's setting you back almost $2K USD.YKK Zippers: The Topland comes equipped with large metal YKK zippers on the front to ensure it'll hold up for years to come. Surprisingly, the side pockets also have heavy duty YKK zippers.Water and wind resistant shell: You'll always have the peace of mind that you'll be fine rain or shine.Rib knit cuffs: The elastic rib knit cuffs are unique on the Topland. Most rib cuffs are simply sewed on at the end. Here, it's connected to a separate sleeve that's attached somewhere halfway up the arm. The sleeve that's attached to the cuff has it's own insulation, in addition to the insulation on the arm. We've never seen anything like it, hopefully the pictures will explain it better. It may sound bulky, but it actually gives you a lot of mobility and flexibility while wearing it. All the while preventing cold air from entering the wrists.Expandable wrist zipper: In case you have enormous forearm or need extra mobility, there's a zipper that gives your arm a bit more real estate.Adjustable tail: The parka can sit quite low, so Moose Knuckles added buttons on the tail wings so you can fold them up.Fur where it matters: This isn't much of a feature, but something we appreciate. The rex rabbit fur goes all the way up to your neck. So when you fully zip up the parka, your face is nicely insulated with luxurious soft rabbit fur. We're glad they went the extra mile and thought of their user's comfort.Adjustable hood: The hood is quite massive. And will likely sit over your eyes if it weren't for the adjustable straps on the back.Badge of authenticity: Not a useful feature, but definitely a unique feature. Inside, there's a "trippy" tag that verifies what you have, is the authentic Topland and not a cheap Chinese knockoffs.
The Fit And Feel
Usually when buying coats or jackets, you're inclined to buy something slightly larger so you can layer up. The Topland is slightly larger than your normal size. So we recommend buying the exact size you'd buy if it were a t-shirt. Our model normally wears a large, and he fit perfectly into the Medium.The Topland is by no means a light jacket. It definitely has a bit of weight to it, and that's to be expected given what it's made of. But the weight was hardly noticeable. Despite wearing only a thin t-shirt underneath, I felt toasty walking around the streets of Philadelphia in 18 degrees weather. We don't have very extreme weather around here, but given how comfortable and warm it kept me, I'm confident it can handle harsh Canadian winters and worse.
The Swag
We don't normally have a section for "swag", but this is an exception. I'm a ordinary looking white Caucasian male. And I don't normally get compliments or looks when I'm walking around Center City Philly. In order to review the Topland, I had to do a mandatory walk-of-fame around Center City and I recorded all the reactions and comments. They are some of my favorites:"Hey I'm sorry to bother, do you mind if I ask where you got the jacket?""Yo, what the F$%^ is he wearing?" (this one can be either good or bad)"Oh my god is that raccoon fur?!"And my favorite..."My Ni**a, that's different fam. I like it."I think it goes without saying that wearing the Topland (or any Moose Knuckles product for that matter) will get you a lot of attention. I don't know that will hold true in other cities, but in Philadelphia (one of the top 10 largest city in U.S.A) I can't cross the street without someone eyeing me.The Verdict
It's fairly reserved compared to some of the other Moose Knuckles' items, but even then it still stands out. We believe this is an absolute buy and a rare luxury item that's well worth the price. You're not just buying an expensive parka for the sake of the brand. You're getting a highly functional and well made parka that both looks good and can stand up to harsh winters of Michigan and Canada. Not to mention Moose Knuckles product tends to retain their value fairly well. Overall, we believe the Topland men's parka is a unique luxury item that exceeds your expectation and worth every penny.
Lo & Sons definitely hit the mark with the creation of the Hanover Deluxe. Similar to the original, the deluxe is also eco-friendly. The bag is made from recycled poly which, in a nutshell, is a highly resistant form of polyester made from recycled plastic water bottles. The poly is reinforced in a way that it prevents any unnecessary tears or rips that can occur from excessive travel or commuting. The process to making the bag is simple, yet effective and is part of their greater mission to protect the environment. The plastic bottles are collected, then they are washed and cut into small pieces. The plastic is melted and woven into fabric, and then turned into the Hanover travel backpack. Not only is the bag durable, it is spacious, lightweight, and convenient for commuters and consistent travelers.
Lo & Sons is dedicated to keeping the environment clean by removing plastic bottles that are clogging up landfills at an alarming rate. Recycled poly is a fairly new fabric which has given new life to plastic bottles. The goal is to take those plastic bottles and turn them into fabric in order to lengthen the lifespan of Polyethylene Terephthalate (often known as PET), and ultimately contribute to cleaning up the Earth. Lo & Sons is using the initiative to not only create products that are eco-friendly but to also purify some of the destinations that their customers will travel to with these backpacks. Recycling plastic makes a long term difference in ways such as producing less greenhouse gas emissions, keeping animals safe by having less plastic in the ocean, and keeping landfills clear.Though the Hanover Deluxe incorporates some new and useful features, they kept some of the features from the original. The Hanover Deluxe still has padded shoulder straps, easy to use storage pockets for water bottles and such, a key leash to keep track of your keys, and removable inserts for easy storage. The Lo & Sons website even has a new cool feature that lets you look at different heights of people to see how the bag will look according to your particular body frame. Some of the changes include outer pockets that are easy to access using one hand (perfect for people rushing to catch a train, bus, etc). The new insert in the front compartment is now gray and see-through so that you can easily view the things that you’ve packed.The Hanover Deluxe boasts a more organizational design than the original due to the complexity of the compartments that it has. The tech backpack now has removable pouches for your items, and are easy to remove to pack for the work week. The pouches in the front are more organized than the original and include a zippable compartment for smaller items that you may need but don’t want to forget. The tech backpack is engineered where the zippers can be opened using one hand. So, if you have your hands full you can easily reach and grab your water bottle or umbrella. The zippers were also woven together in a secure fashion so that they will endure constant traveling.The Hanover Deluxe retails for $148.00 and is available through Lo & Sons official website. If you are looking for an affordable, durable, and eco-friendly tech friendly backpack, the Hanover Deluxe is perfect! Supporting the long term mission that Lo & Sons has to clean up the Earth is not only admirable, but also solves a big problem. Recycling plastic creates less gas emissions which leads to less waste in the environment and conserves natural resources. Not only is this bag convenient for traveling, but is spacious enough to fit all of your tech related equipment and even light clothes and accessories. The backpack is a great gift for the entrepreneurs in your life who are always on the go, and need a lightweight source to transport all of their precious devices.
Rachel Smith is based in the city of Philadelphia, Rachel is on a mission to spread the fun of crafting through social media and blogging. Five years ago, she worked 70 - 80 hours per week, but craved for something more. She needed a creative outlet. That was when The Crafted Life was born. She started the blog while still working at her full-time job, with a goal of doing one DIY per week and documenting the process.Today, you can find Rachel Smith's work everywhere, from Pinterest to Facebook, and her favorite - Instagram. Her feed is filled with beautiful splashes of color with her cheery personality shining through. Social media has allowed her to meet people that she would not have met otherwise. She loves her work, even with the struggles that come with it. “It’s all consuming, and it’s hard to be curated and live a personal life at the same time. It’s a bit of a trade off, but worth it in the end.” No matter the difficulties, Rachel has found a work/life balance that is effective, and she wouldn’t trade it for the world.Aside from teaching DIY, photography is another passion that burns deep. Her pictures are meticulously created to showcase the brand aesthetic that is The Crafted Life. She uses Lightroom for photo editing and PicMonkey for quick collages. Rachel was able to combine her talents, and with the help of social media, was given the opportunity to quit her previous job and work on her blog full-time. She uses all types of materials, from rhinestones to contact paper. Her creativity knows no bounds, as you can see from this vase decorated using temporary tattoos.Rachel Smith's audience is especially important to her. Every post is based on quality with each subscriber in mind. “It’s really about a gut check. If I don’t feel good about a post or a project outcome, I won’t hit publish. More so than ever with all the content that’s on the Internet, it’s about quality over quantity.” Rachel encourages everyone to try DIY. If you are a beginner, she suggests starting with an easy project that only requires a few tools and takes around 10 minutes to complete. Practice allows for more difficult projects in the future. Some of Rachel’s personal favorites include this table makeover, these earrings that she wears on a daily basis, and shooting these DIY temporary tattoos.
Rachel’s schedule is filled with exciting adventures every day. “There is usually always a photoshoot happening, either for the blog or for Instagram, plus responding to emails, editing photos, sourcing props and materials, reading contracts, planning editorial content, pitching brands, writing actual posts, etc.” Rachel has expanded her brand to merchandise like the Shut Up Sassy Lip Enamel Flair Pin that you can purchase on Etsy. She loves her city and the people in Philadelphia and has no plans on leaving anytime soon. The energy is amazing and pretzels are fifty cents! For now, Philly is her home, and the city is very lucky to have her.What makes The Crafted Life different from other DIY blogs is the focus on the audience and the abilities within each person to create something amazing. The aesthetic of her social media pages is beautiful, filled with bright colors and gorgeous photography. Her instructions are very clear and written in a language that is disarming. Rachel understands her community and speaks to them as friends through the Internet. She took DIY to different platforms, teaching people around the world about the joys of crafting. Her encouragement helps build happiness around her, letting you know that there is a friend out there rooting for you. 
Lack of sleep is one of the underlying reasons for several mental and physical conditions. If you’ve ended up on this product overview due to uncomfortable slumbers, we’ll introduce a solution that’s too tempting to resist. If smartphones and smart homes are making waves in the market today, this particular “smart mattress” is something you don't want to miss.
Introducing the Eight Sleep mattress — the mattress that brings you convenience, comfort, relaxation, and connectivity. This Eight Sleep POD Mattress review will answer all your worries about having interrupted or lack of sleep due to several factors:
- Not having the right mattress firmness
- Material construction that absorbs humidity and hot temperature
- Foam that interrupts sleep due to noticeable motion transfer
- Sleepers that have back, neck, shoulder, or hip strains
The Eight Sleep App
We're actually going to start by talking about how well designed and feature-rich the integrated iOS/Android app is. The mattress is great, but we believe it's the well designed and functional app that's responsible for separating the Eight Sleep mattress from all other mattresses.
We were skeptical when any regular product comes packaged with an "app". 9/10 times, the app is barely functional, doesn't connect, or doesn't get enough updates to be usable by consumers. Fortunately, that isn't the case with the Eight Sleep mattress.
Polished, well designed, & coded: The App is polished, easy to use, and has a plethora of features to help you get the most out of the mattress and your sleep. I personally appreciate the White-noise feature that it comes with. The App will play a white noise track to help you fall asleep, then stop once you're asleep. Before I had another app for this purpose, but now I just use the built-in feature the Eight Sleep app provides.
Exceptional connectivity: The app connected to the POD device the very first time (very rarely does this happen) and has worked since then without any issues. Never once has the app failed to run or miscalculated the temperature or settings that we inputted. The App could either make or break the mattress and in this case, it definitely made the Eight Sleep mattress truly an exceptional mattress above the rest.
Loaded with features: The App comes with insightful analytics to give you a breakdown of how well you sleep. It also comes with an alarm (you can set it to change to a certain temperature to wake you up), ambient white-noise to help you sleep, coaching/relaxation tips, and can connect with Alexa.
Dual temperature control: You can also control the temperatures on both hemispheres independently. So if you have a partner that likes to sleep cold, you can adjust the settings to reflect their preference, meanwhile preserving your sanity.
Eight Sleep mattress at a Glance:
If you’ve been searching for a perfect sleeping companion that leaves you feeling refreshed in the morning, here’s a possible matchup. Let’s look at the Eight Sleep mattress benefits checklist:
✔ Just the right firmness
✔ Comes with thermo alarm
✔ Soft and comfortable foam construction with Active Grid Technology
✔ Provides just the right temperature between 55 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit
✔ Eight Sleep mattress app that tracks heart rate, REM, and more sleeping patterns
✔ Compatible with AI devices
Eight Sleep Mattress Benefits:
Let’s look into the Eight Sleep mattress features and benefits.
High-Density Foams for Full Support
The Eight POD Mattress is constructed with four-layer high-density foams for all-out support. All kinds of sleepers will undeniably sleep like a baby with this material type. The total mattress height is 11 inches to give just the right thickness — not too thick and not too thin. Luracor foam which encompasses the first layer provides that initial support. Next comes the Visco foam to ensure equal sleeper’s weight distribution on the surface.
The third layer is made of Polyfoam, measured at 2 inches, just like the first two. This layer acts as the support for the base which comes after. Last but not least is the five-inch base that is made of high-density Polyfoam. This final layer is the base that makes the Eight POD Mattress a force to be reckoned with.
With all these layers combined, it’s no surprise why the Eight Sleep mattress has stability and durability that can withstand more than the average weight.
Active Grid Technology for Pressure Relief
The high-density foam is only the cherry on top. The Active Grid Technology is what makes the entire product unique.
Active Grid Technology is embedded in the different layers that make the Eight POD Mattress so cool and comfortable to sleep on. Due to the perforated material, air flows seamlessly in between the mattress and your back — allowing for a more refreshing slumber. The malleable mattress also makes tossing and turning more satisfying as the foam perfectly hugs your back contours, regardless of any sleeping position you’re in.
Medium Firmness for All Kinds of Sleepers
From a firmness range of one to 10, the high-density foam has a firmness level of six. This provides just the right firmness for side sleepers, back sleepers, and stomach sleepers. The firmness also prevents any disruptive motion transfers from another sleeper. For sleepers on the plumper side, a firmer material may be more comfortable to hold their weight. However, the robust material ensures that they’ll feel sufficient comfort and support throughout the night.
Thermo Adjustment for Soundless Alarms
The Eight Sleep mattress is changing the way sleepers wake. From the loud, ringing sounds of alarm clocks to the POD’s thermo alarm, you can now wake up on the right side of the bed naturally, and quietly. You can set the temperature from the most comfortable levels at a certain time when you’re sleeping. Then gradually lower it to the most uncomfortable levels to give you a gentle nudge and wake you up naturally.
Eight Sleep Mattress Prices
For a full-size pod with dimensions 54 x 75 x 11, you only need to shell out a meager $1,995. A queen-size pod with dimensions 60 x 80 x 11 and a king-size pod with dimensions 76 x 80 x 11 only cost $2,195 and $2,495, respectively. The biggest, which is the cali-size pod with dimensions 72 x 84 x 11, will cost you $2,495.
Conclusion
To top all these features and affordable prices off, customers can take home an Eight POD Mattress and try this heavenly bed for 100 days. If in case they won’t like it, they can get a full refund after shipping the item back.
Excruciating sleeping habits will be a thing of the past with the Eight Sleep mattress. Try one of these now, and you’ll never want to get up from it — and don’t say I didn’t warn you!
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