Saturday, June 5, 2010

Finding My Direction: A Father's Day Review

The nice folks over at RedEnvelope recently contacted me and asked if I would be willing to review and post about an item from their Father's Day selection. I have never done a review post before, so I was a bit uncertain if this was a direction I wanted to go with LIAYF, however I have been a long time customer of RedEnvelope and have been extremely happy with the products, packaging, and service I have received thus far, therefore I decided to take them up on their offer to send me one of the products from the selection.

Of all the items on the list, one thing in particular caught my eye. It was the Pocket Compass by Dalvey of Scotland. Ever since Lukas was born, I have been excited about the prospect of taking him out to explore the natural beauty of our region in the form of hiking, biking, and boating. A good compass is a must have as trips gets more involved and the thought of having one that might also serve as an heirloom to hand down to my son excited me. -
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The compass, which is constructed like a pocket watch, is made of stainless steel, 2 3/4" in diameter, and has has a world map on the inside cover arrived yesterday. As is always the case the packaging from RedEnvelope was nicely presented with the compass box packed inside a Red Envelope box neatly tied with a cloth ribbon.

As for the compass itself, this wouldn't be a true review post if I didn't give my honest opinion. Frankly this wasn't quite what I initially expected it to be. It was a bit larger than I had expected making it difficult to fit into a pocket. But the most disappointing aspect of it was the overall feel of the construction. Even though the compass was made of stainless steel, the shell felt thin and not at all substantial while the interior glass was not glass at all but rather plastic.

Contrary to my initial reaction I actually like the compass and will undoubtedly use it on many excursions in the future, however was expecting something more befitting the heirloom tag that the company used in the advertisement.

That being said, I have actually returned items to RedEnvelope in the past and, as I mentioned previously, have had only stellar customer service.

By the way, readers of Luke, I am Your Father will receive 10% off of their purchases by using the code: 10offred. I hope you are able to use this 10% off, read the reviews, and find the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one for this Father's Day.

Full disclosure: All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. I have been compensated and given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

4 comments:

Ed said...

So how did you really feel about the compass?

Mrs. M said...

I love Red Envelope. A couple years ago I got Mickey their men's PJ's that had a red "tattoo" heart on the side of the shirt that I could have my name put on. They have great stuff!!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the honest review! Sounds like we have some room for improvement - I'll pass this feedback on to the product team.

Best,

Jake @ RedEnvelope.

Irrational Dad said...

Oh no... review blogging! EEK!

I think compasses are cool, but I don't see them ever being a part of my daily life. I like to look at the built-in one in my car, but I can't think of a time that I've ever needed one while walking down the street.

If I ever get lost in the woods though, I'm sure I'll be singing a different tune.