Helly Hansen Women’s Odin Infinity Minimalist Jacket Review

DISCLOSURE -THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.

Reviewed by Melody

Helly Hansen is well known for selling high quality sports and outdoor wear, including a range of waterproof apparel for hiking and other sports. The company was founded in 1877 by a Norwegian Sea Captain, Helly Juell Hansen, after whom the brand is named, and is still based in Norway.

In my spare time I enjoy walking and getting out in nature. I also spend a lot of time standing on the side of wet and windy sports pitches watching my sons playing rugby and football. Over the years I’ve bought a large number of waterproof coats, trying to find one that is both comfortable, practical and actually waterproof! I was therefore delighted to be asked to review the Helly Hansen Women’s Odin Infinity Minimalist Jacket, which is a waterproof and packable jacket that has been developed in conjunction with a professional mountain guide. The jacket is part of Helly Hansen’s “Odin” collection, designed for serious mountaineers and athletes, which was launched in 2008.

The Odin jacket is available in two colours, black and cranberry. I opted for cranberry and was pleasantly surprised when it arrived as it is a lovely bright pink colour with black trim so will really stand out.

Having consulted the handy sizing guide on the website I opted for a Large size. I’m a curvy size 12 and wanted the jacket to be large enough to wear over layers if needed. This was a good choice as the jacket fits well and is quite roomy, I would have personally liked it to be a little longer, but it is intended to be a short jacket.

The jacket arrived promptly after being ordered by courier, in a very sturdy cardboard box and clear plastic bag.

Looking at the Helly Hansen website I can see that the Odin jacket is packed with features (some of which sounded very technical!), including the Helly Hansen Lifa Infinity bi-component membrane to make it exceptionally waterproof, ultra-breathable and windproof and Elly Tech professional. The jacket also has a “RECCO reflector” on the hood which, from a little research, is a system used by mountain rescue teams to search for missing people. The rescuers have a detector which can detect the RECCO reflector to locate the person. These detectors are incorporated in many different outdoor products. Whist I’m unlikely to be mountaineering in the coat, I do feel a little more comfortable knowing that I have it should I ever need it.

As well as the technical features, the Odin jacket also has a range of practical features including:
• Fully sealed seams
• Lightweight Fabric
• Soft fleece chin guard
• Full inner front placket
• Adjustable hood, which is compatible with helmets
• Adjustable bottom hem
• Chest pocket with secure zipper closure

My first impression of the Odin jacket was that it is very lightweight and a lovely bright colour. It looked very smart and I liked the fact there were subtle Helly Hansen logos on the hood and breast. There was also an Odin logo on one of the sleeves. When wearing the jacket I found that the hood seemed to be exceptionally large, although this was improved by adjusting it with the drawstring. The jacket was comfortable to wear, and didn’t stick to my skin when wearing it with short sleeves underneath. There is one pocket on the front of the jacket which is a good size for a phone or other small item. I would have liked to have had some pockets on the sides to put my hands or items in as I usually pick coats that have these.

The jacket also packs away into a pocket/pouch so that it can be stored in a bag or attached to a bag with a carabiner. It was quite tricky to get the coat into the pocket, and I think that if you kept it stored for long it would look very creased when you put it back on. However this is a good feature.

I’ve worn the jacket to watch football matches and also to work on a rainy day and found it to be comfortable and it kept me both dry and warm. The only real negative, for me personally, was that the material the coat is made of rustles when I wear it which I don’t like as it makes me a little self-conscious. I was initially worried that the material was so thin it could tear easily, but having pulled it around a great deal I’m now confident that the material is actually very strong.

The jacket retails at £380 which is a higher price than I would usually consider paying for a coat, however it is a great quality coat which I am confident will last for a long time and will get many compliments.

Rating: 4/5
RRP: £380

This product can be purchased from Helly Hansen here: https://www.hellyhansen.com/en_gb/w-odin-infinity-minimalist-jkt-63502?color=634535