Is the Barefoot Dreams Throw the Perfect Mother's Day Gift, or Are 4 PureWow Editors Mistaken?

• Comfort: 20/20
• Appearance: 19/20
• Durability: 19/20
• Giftability: 20/20
• Value: 18/20

 TOTAL: 96/100

Mother’s Day gifts are quite difficult to find as grown-ups, aren’t they? It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to count on some molten ceramic made in art class to hand over, and honestly that was the last gift I could be sure she’d really care for. Until this year, when I considered the Barefoot Dreams blanket, which prompted this review.

Made by a company based in Malibu, you’d think as a Los Angeles resident I’d have heard of the brand through West Coast channels—or by seeing it in the hot clutches of celebs like Hailey Bieber and Khloe Kardashian (who use it as a travel blanket). Then there are the rave reviews from Oprah and Chrissy Teigen. But the endorsement that truly landed for me was the ALL CAPS praise on PureWow’s Slack channel (and our editorial coverage deeming it Best Overall in a blanket roundup). Executive Managing Editor Catrina Yohay wrote “I never thought I'd be so obsessed with a blanket but somehow I am. It's soft, warm and stretchy, while still being incredibly lightweight. I have about 10 throws stacked up in my living room just waiting to be used but this has replaced all of them with permanent residence on my couch.”

Two other editors quickly chimed in with intense envy that Yohay actually owned one, and then I recalled, I’d had my own run-in with the blanket. My BAE underwent a year of chemotherapy, and I was privileged to accompany her to an appointment. (She’s fine now, cancer-free more than a year.) Back then, she’d carefully pack her go-bag with the cuddliest sweaters, socks and gloves to counteract the cold cap she wore. When she pulled out a beige knit blanket to drape over her, it looked so soft and warm I had to ask her who made it. Yes, it was Barefoot Dreams.

Because the knit isn’t open weave, it doesn’t seem to fray or catch on buttons or doorknobs like some blankets. (I may be walking around a drafty house wearing mine, okay?)

Turns out the whole turbo-comfort-when-you-need-it-most is part of the brand’s origin story. Entrepreneur Annette Cook started Barefoot Dreams in the mid ‘90s and grew the company from her home base in Malibu. Conceived as a manufacturer of luxurious blankets and loungewear in calming colors, the company’s products, especially its signature polyester knit blanket, was a hit, nabbing a place on Oprah’s Favorite Things list in 2003. Tragically, Cook passed away from cancer at the age of 48 in 2012; her husband has run the company ever since, and I like to think of every blanket as still carrying a little of Cook’s love for her family.

Brand narrative aside, the company's signature CozyChic Throw blanket is on the pricier side—though at $158, it is way less costly than some designer throw that’s showboating a big “H” or interlocking G's. Also, it costs less than today’s fashionable alpaca and cashmere throws. However, for one hundred percent polyester, I was initially skeptical. Until I spent a few months with one, that is. Unlike throws I’d picked up at Home Goods or been gifted myself, the Barefoot Dreams blanket was generously proportioned, at 54 x 72 inches. And its knit fabrication has just enough give to seem like it’s hugging you (I know, it sounds corny but that’s the sensation you get when you wrap it around your shoulders on a chilly morning Zoom call). Additionally, because the knit isn’t open weave, it doesn’t seem to fray or catch on buttons or doorknobs like some blankets. (I may be walking around a drafty house wearing mine, okay?)