Etsy shop: Cozy culture
Craft: Crochet
Item being reviewed: The Wabansia – Crochet Chain Strand Infinity Scarf
Shipping and presentation: Shipping was fast and super-speedy. It was well-packaged in a bubble-pack envelope, and good thing too because it happened to arrive when I had a lot of other mail and my mail person was a tad bit less-than-gentle with it. The scarf itself was wrapped in tissue on the inside of the envelope.
A nice handwritten card with follow up instructions from shop owner Jordan added a nice touch of personalization. PS: click on a picture to enlarge it; you can also scroll through the entire gallery that way
I especially liked the branded tag that was attached to the scarf for several reasons:
- It is a good way for me to find Cozy Culture again if I want to get another scarf, or other item for myself or someone else in the future
- I wouldn’t otherwise have known that I could find and follow Jordan on Twitter or that she had a website outside of Etsy at JordanTheGirl
- It’s a good way to drive traffic to your website where you can do more promotion of other items and perhaps even make more sales
Buying experience: Shopping at Cozy Culture was pretty easy once I figured out how the store categories worked. I knew exactly what I wanted because I had already been on the market for it for a while. However, the naming convention of the categories was not very self-explanatory. The naming of the categories is unique and not immediately intuitive, so as opposed to having product categories e.g. scarves, ear warmers, etc. they are named according to lines e.g. The Ainslie, The Orleans, The Wabansia, etc. and you have to click on each one to figure out what the actual products are.
I have to say though that it’s a pretty clever way to get visitors to your shop to click through all the categories and check out all the products you have for sale. On the other hand, some who are not quite as patient might not hang around long enough to do all that foot work.
Actual product: All winter I had been on the lookout for an infinity scarf so the choice was an easy one for me. Most of the ones I had seen were made of one solid piece of fabric. The Wabansia however is made up of single crocheted strands that are all gathered up and held together in a knot of sorts.
Initially I thought air would get through the individual strands and it might not keep me warm enough but I was wrong. First off, the fabric feels like it is of very high quality; that was my immediate impression once I held it in my hands and rubbed it between my fingers. Taken together, the scarf is very chunky but interestingly enough it is not heavy or weighty but actually feels very light around the neck.
I’ve said before that I am a “scent person” so when I buy clothing or items that are made of fabric which tend to be susceptible to scents and aromas in their environments I am always wary of what they will smell like when they get to me. The scarf smelled fresh and I was happy about that.
I’m in California and on the day I took it for a test-drive before writing this review the temperature was in the mid-70s; the scarf kept me nice and warm (I get cold very easily and feel cold at anything less than 85 degrees). The scarf is versatile and can be worn at least two ways, which I did try (see photographs below).
Final thoughts: I’m not particularly creative but it would be nice if there are even more ways to sport the scarf that diagrams of those be included. Don’t get me wrong, this infinity scarf is good enough as is, but this is just wishful thinking on my part.
PS: If you’ve enjoyed reading this product review and you’d like to have me review one of your own handmade products and spotlight your Etsy shop in this Product Reviews section, please use the contact form and send me a message (don’t forget to tell me what the name of your Etsy shop is) and I will buy something from your shop and review it! 🙂