Essenclo Girls Athletic Set Review: a practical 5-piece outfit for active kids

I got this Essenclo girls athletic set in size 7-8 for my kid who basically lives in sports clothes – gymnastics, biking, running around the house, you name it. I wasn’t expecting anything fancy, just something that could handle regular washing and not ride up or fall down every five minutes. On paper it sounded good: 2 tops, 2 shorts, and a headband in one pack, stretchy material, moisture-wicking, all that. I wanted to see if it actually worked in real life or if it was just another generic sports set from Amazon.

First impression when I opened the package: it looks like standard kids’ activewear you’d find in any sports store. No weird smells, colors looked like the photos, and the size didn’t look tiny or huge, which already was a good start. My kid is average height and build for 7–8, and I’d say this set looked pretty true to size right out of the bag. Nothing screamed cheap, but nothing screamed premium either – just decent sports gear.

We’ve used it mainly for gymnastics class, some backyard play, and a couple of bike rides. So far, it’s been through several washes and a few sweaty sessions. That’s usually where poorly made kids’ sets start to show problems: seams twisting, fabric going see-through, elastic getting loose, or the color fading quickly. I was watching for all of that, especially because the material is nylon/spandex, which can be hit or miss depending on quality.

Overall, my first takeaway is this: it’s not some fancy high-end athletic brand, but it holds up pretty well for normal kid use. The big plus is the value of getting 5 pieces in one go, especially if your kid changes outfits a lot for different activities. It’s not perfect, there are a couple of details that could be better, but for everyday sports and play, it gets the job done without drama.

When you look at the price of this Essenclo set and what you get – 2 tops, 2 shorts, and a headband – the value is pretty solid. Buying all those pieces separately from a big sports brand would easily cost you more. This isn’t premium gear, but for kids who grow fast and outsize clothes every season, paying top dollar doesn’t always make sense. Here, you get enough pieces to rotate outfits without doing laundry every day.

The key thing for me is that all five pieces are actually useful. The tops and shorts are practical for multiple activities: gymnastics, cheer, volleyball, biking, or just playing outside. The headband isn’t just a throwaway extra; my kid actually uses it to keep her hair back. So you don’t feel like you’re paying for filler items. If you break it down, each piece ends up quite cheap per unit, especially compared to single branded shorts or tops.

Of course, there are cheaper sets out there, but they usually cut corners harder on fabric thickness or stitching. On the other side, more expensive brands sometimes give you one top and one short for the same price. This Essenclo set sits somewhere in the middle: affordable, but not dirt-cheap. For what you get in terms of comfort, fit, and durability, I’d say the price is fair and even good value if your kid lives in sportswear.

If you’re very picky about technical performance or brand names, you’ll probably want to spend more elsewhere. But if your main goal is: “I need a couple of decent sports outfits that my kid can wear to class and to play without me stressing about stains or growth spurts,” then the value here is strong. It does the job, doesn’t feel like a rip-off, and gives you enough pieces to make it practical day-to-day.

The design is pretty straightforward: racerback crop tops and fitted biker shorts with a hidden elastic waistband. No zippers, no buttons, just pull-on pieces. For sports, I actually prefer this kind of design because it cuts down on things that can rub, break, or annoy the kid. The racerback cut gives enough clearance around the shoulders, so my kid can lift her arms in gymnastics without feeling restricted or having the straps slide off.

Visually, the style is basic sporty – solid colors, no big logos or childish prints. If your kid likes loud patterns, this might feel a bit plain, but for activities like gymnastics, cheer, or volleyball, the clean look is actually pretty useful. It pairs easily with school hoodies, casual jackets, or other shorts. The crop length might bother some parents who prefer longer tops, but on my child it doesn’t look too revealing; it’s more like a modern training top than a fashion crop.

From a practical angle, the hidden elastic waistband is a plus. There’s no big, thick band digging into the stomach, and nothing that rolls over. On my kid, the waistband stayed in place during cartwheels and running. I didn’t see the shorts sliding down or twisting badly, which is usually the first complaint I have with cheaper sets. The shorts also don’t have pockets, which for sports is fine, but if your kid likes to carry small stuff, that might be a downside.

So design-wise, it’s pretty solid but not special. It looks like standard gym wear, which is honestly what I wanted. If you’re after bright graphics or cute details, you probably won’t be blown away. But if your priority is a clean, athletic look that doesn’t get in the way of movement, the design does its job without trying to be anything else.

Comfort is usually where kids are brutally honest. If something scratches, pinches, or rides up, they’ll rip it off in two minutes. With this Essenclo set, my kid wore it for full gymnastics sessions (about an hour) and also for casual play outside, and I didn’t hear any complaints about itching or tight spots. The seams are fairly flat and didn’t cause any red marks on the shoulders or around the thighs, which is often an issue with cheaper sports shorts.

The tops sit close to the body but aren’t super compressive. They feel more like a fitted tank than a sports bra, which for a 7–8-year-old is fine. The armholes are cut wide enough that there’s no rubbing in the armpit area, but not so wide that the top is gaping. The racerback design helps keep the straps in place, so there’s no constant adjusting. The length is short but not ridiculously cropped, and my kid didn’t spend time pulling it down, which is a good sign that she felt okay in it.

The shorts are probably the best part comfort-wise. The hidden elastic waistband holds them up without digging in. They don’t have that super tight, cut-into-the-belly feeling that some cheaper leggings have. During cartwheels and jumps, they stayed where they should be. No constant wedgie situation, which is a very real problem with a lot of kids’ shorts. The fabric is smooth on the inside and doesn’t feel rough on the skin.

Overall, comfort is one of the strong points of this set. It’s light, stretchy, and easy to forget you’re wearing, which is exactly what you want for active kids. It’s not ultra soft like cotton, but that’s normal for this type of sports material. If your child is very sensitive to synthetic fabrics, you might need to test it first, but for my kid, it was totally fine and actually preferred over some thicker cotton shorts she has.

The set is made from 85% nylon and 15% spandex, which is a pretty standard mix for kids’ sportswear. In practice, that means it’s very stretchy and quite light. When you pull on the fabric, it bounces back well and doesn’t feel stiff at all. My kid could bend, stretch, and do splits in gymnastics class without complaining that anything felt tight or scratchy. The tops and shorts both have a clear 4-way stretch feel, so they move with the body instead of fighting against it.

On the flip side, nylon-spandex blends can sometimes go a bit shiny or slightly see-through if the fabric is too thin. With this set, I checked the shorts under good light, and they are not fully opaque at heavy stretch, but they’re decent. On a child, it’s fine for regular wear; you just don’t want a super light color with dark underwear underneath. For us, it wasn’t a problem, but it’s something to keep in mind if your kid does a lot of stretching or tumbling in bright light.

One thing I always watch with this kind of fabric is how it behaves after multiple washes. So far, after several machine washes (cold, then air-dried), the fabric hasn’t pilled and the stretch seems the same. No major fading either, which is a good sign. I wouldn’t throw it in a hot dryer all the time though; that’s how this type of material usually starts to lose elasticity faster. The care instructions say machine wash, which is accurate, but I’d personally avoid high heat.

In short, the material feels like decent mid-range sportswear. Pros: stretchy, light, dries fast, and comfortable for a kid who sweats and moves a lot. Cons: not as thick or compressive as some premium brands, and under strong light you can tell it’s not ultra dense fabric. For the price point and for kids, I’d say the material is pretty solid and practical, just don’t expect high-end compression quality.

Kids are basically durability testers in human form, so I paid attention to how this set held up after a few weeks. We’ve put the pieces through multiple machine washes (cold cycle), and I mostly air-dried them. So far, the stitching is still intact: no seams bursting, no big loose threads suddenly appearing. The shape of the tops and shorts hasn’t warped, which sometimes happens when cheaper nylon blends stretch out and don’t bounce back.

The color has stayed stable so far. I haven’t noticed any major fading or weird blotches. The fabric hasn’t started pilling yet either, which is usually one of the first signs of cheap material. Of course, I can’t speak for a full year of use, but for the period I’ve tested, it’s held up better than some low-budget sets I’ve bought in the past. It feels like mid-range quality: not bulletproof, but definitely not disposable.

One small thing: if you toss it in a hot dryer often, I can see the elastic and fabric aging faster. This is pretty standard for nylon/spandex. To keep it in good shape, I’d stick to cold wash and either air dry or low heat. When handled like that, it looks like it will survive a full season of regular use without turning into a saggy mess. The waistband is still firm, and the fabric hasn’t gone baggy at the knees or seat yet.

Overall, I’d rate durability as good for the price. It’s not indestructible, but it doesn’t feel flimsy either. For a kid who does sports a few times a week, I think this set can last long enough to be outgrown rather than destroyed, which is basically what most parents are aiming for. If your kid is extremely rough on clothes, you’ll still see wear over time, but nothing about this set screams “it will fall apart in a month”.

In terms of performance, I paid attention to two main things: does it stay in place during movement and does it handle sweat reasonably well. For staying in place, the set does a good job. During gymnastics, my kid did cartwheels, rolls, jumps, and general chaos, and the shorts didn’t slide down or twist badly. The tops didn’t ride up to her chest either, which is something I’ve seen with looser tanks. You might get a bit of shifting, but nothing that made her stop and readjust constantly.

The brand mentions moisture-wicking, and while this isn’t high-end performance gear, it does dry quicker than cotton. After a sweaty session, the fabric feels damp but not heavy, and it dries in a reasonable time once she stops moving. We also used it on a warm day for biking, and while she obviously still sweated, the clothes didn’t cling in an uncomfortable way. For kids’ activities like cheer, volleyball, or dance, I’d say the performance is more than enough.

The headband is a small detail but actually useful. It’s wide and stretchy, and it stayed on her head for most of the practice without sliding off. It helps keep hair and sweat away from the face, which my kid appreciated. It’s reversible, but honestly, that’s more of a small bonus than a real feature – it’s just nice to have one more practical piece in the set.

So in practice, for regular kid sports – gymnastics, basic training, school activities, playing at the park – this set performs well. It’s not professional-grade gear, but for its category and price, it handles movement and sweat in a solid, no-nonsense way. If your child is in intense competitive sports and you want very firm compression or technical fabric, you might look higher-end. For everyday active use, this set does what it’s supposed to do.

The set is simple: you get 2 sleeveless crop tank tops, 2 biker shorts, and 1 reversible headband. That’s it. No jacket, no extra gimmicks. For a size 7–8, all five pieces came folded together in a basic plastic bag. Nothing fancy about the packaging, but everything was clean, no loose threads hanging everywhere, and the stitching looked straight at first glance. For a kids’ sports set, I don’t really care about pretty packaging, I care more about what’s inside and if it survives the first wash.

The tops are cropped but not ultra short. On my kid, they land a bit above the waistband of the shorts, so you see a small strip of midriff when she lifts her arms, but nothing extreme. The shorts are proper biker shorts: mid-thigh length, not the super short type. The headband is a nice extra – reversible, stretchy, and wide enough to actually hold hair back during sports instead of sliding off in two minutes like some thin ones do.

What I liked is that the pieces are meant to be mix-and-match. So if one top is in the wash, she can still wear the other with either pair of shorts. That sounds obvious, but I’ve had sets where colors or patterns only looked good in one combo. Here, it’s pretty straightforward: everything goes together. It’s practical for parents who don’t want to think too hard about outfits before school or practice.

In practice, this set works well as a small base wardrobe for an active kid. Two outfits plus a headband is enough to rotate between classes and regular play. If your child does multiple activities like dance, gymnastics, and bike riding, this kind of bundle is handy. Presentation-wise, it’s nothing fancy, but it’s clear what you’re getting, and you don’t feel like anything is missing or misleading from the description.