Need Parents' help!

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Hello all!

My name is Cheryl, and I'm a second year Design student in university. For my project, I am trying to make a raincoat specifically for Autistic children.
Although I can do as much research as I want, I realized that the most valuable feedback I can get is here, from real parents of Autistic children.

So please respond if you can-
what do you look for in a raincoat for your child?
what features do you wish it had that you can't seem to find in any jacket on the market?
do's/don'ts of jackets/clothing in general?

Thank you so much!

Other people may have other things to say but here is what I would want if I were purchasing a raincoat for my son.

The inside liner fabric should be smooth and not a fabric that would elicit a bad sensory response. There should be a minimum of seams, tags or anything that might be uncomfortable on the inside.

Autistic children often have issues with fine motor skills. So no buttons or anything complicated. If there was some kind of zipper that was easier to start (I do not know if there are special fasteners available) that would be great, but even a (sturdy) zipper would allow him to finish it once someone started it for him. Buttons etc would be a nonstarter.

It should have a removable hood, so that kids that don't like their hair getting wet would be happy, and kids who don't like things on their head could be happy.

It should fit so as not to restrict movement too much.

That is about all I can think of.

Last edited by ASDMommyASDKid on 24 Oct 2012, 10:20 am, edited 2 times in total.

My son has said that he would love a coat with magnets that snap together. Some of the lighter gram rare earth magnets would be coo, as they would stay together. NOt sure how magnets would affect other things, but it's a cool idea... No buttons of zippers to worry about if he has to do it on his own.

No seams. No tags. Soft lining, like fleece or something. MAybe something cooler, that could get hot. I'd go so far as to say that it really would need to be flexible and moveable, maybe more like windbreaker material than that stuiff rubber stuff. You know both the windbreaker stuff and fleece are relatively waterproof, could double up on them. Likewise could use a PUL fabric like what they use in cloth diapers, might be more flexible and breathable.

Yes to what everyone else has said! We recently bought a windbreaker type jacket to use for a raincoat (we live in Montana where it is pretty dry so torrential downpours are not something we have to deal with very often). I bought this specific coat because it appeared to have a nice soft inner lining (thin fleece type material) and water repellent windbreaker material on the outside. Only later did I realize, when DS said he didn't want to wear it, that the lining was only in the body part of the jacket and did not extend into the sleeves. So if he is wearing a short sleeved shirt, the inside of the sleeves are windbreaker material that feels cold and almost slimy on bare skin. I would not have bought it if I had realized the entire jacket was not lined.

I agree with what the others have said.

I have an additional suggestion, related to the need which some autistic children have to chew or twiddle with things. Perhaps the jacket could include detachable and replaceable collars to chew or the plastic chewy tags could be safely attached to the collar area.

Also, perhaps loops for the attachment of sensory toys to squeeze or play with?

Thanks for asking for our ideas and I wish you well with this project and your studies.

Sounds like a really interesting project! Could be difficult as they are all different lol! Some love pockets and practicality, some hate buttons, some might love buttons. What if you had a kind of basic coat with 'build your own' details with various options, buttons/velcro/zip etc. Maybe even a choice of designs, my daughter would love anything with snails on, others would love train designs or horses for example. Maybe addable extras like toggles in different shapes, almost like charm bracelets where you pick out your fave one, a cat/dog/bird bead toggle.

That sounds brilliant, Im sure any kid would love that!

The only thing I can think of is that for my daughter it would need to be very lightweight, she doesnt feel the cold so gets hot easily and would rather run around in a skimpy dress dancing in the rain than wear a stiff plastic coat that makes her hot and sweaty. Also I find all kids coats are too thick and make it difficult to strap them into car seats so something thin but waterproof would be good.

I also agree with the post above, you can buy chewable toggles for hoodys for autistic kids who chew things. Google "Chewigem" and have a look at their hoody toggles, could be a great addition to your design.

Good luck, let us know how you get on, interesting thread

A visor on the hood. My daughter hates getting water in her face. I second no buttons and no zippers. And for my son, big pockets. He likes to collect stuff and carry it with him.

Totally agree with above posters. Love the magnets idea. My first thought was: nothing crinkly! I can never buy my son raincoats because they crinkle or are too stiff. So ...something soft and flexible.