**REVIEW** Jewelry by Passage 7

This review post will be a little different from my usual type. This time I am doing a review for a set of items from a brand.

Some months ago, I became acquainted with the Passage 7 brand. They carry various types of goods (as you can see from their Seller page on Amazon), but I was able to try several pieces of their jewelry.

 Nice, yes? I think so. I actually gave each of the items away as birthday and Christmas gifts recently. When I got the first item, I was intending to keep it for myself, but it was so nice that I thought it would make a really nice gift. The jewelry is so well-made and impressive-looking that I decided that I would give the other pieces away as Christmas gifts. I'd have kept cheaper-looking stuff for myself!

The reason I thought the items might not end up looking as nice as the product page photos was because of the prices. There are some places locally that sell plated jewelry for about the same price and... well, they are not so great. It's from the "get what you pay for" school of reasoning.

One of the other things I like about the pieces I have is that they feel like nice jewelry. What I mean is that they aren't flimsy. The thickest chain (that I gave to a nephew) was weighty and solid in my palm.


Another thing that gives adds to the appeal of gifting this jewelry are the pretty velveteen bags they come inside of. The gold lettering is nice, but on one of the bags I got, I could see the square outline of the whatever was used to make the impression. That was a minor thing and I was able to use a dry cloth to rub away the outline.


By the way, each piece comes in a thick and protective plastic sealed bag. The plastic bag is inside a pretty blue pouch. When I gifted the jewelry, I just put a name tag on the pouch string and hung the bag from a branch of the Christmas tree. (Tell me I'm not creative! LOL)

I'm over at the Seller page looking at some of the other items that are offered. Some of their leather goods are much pricier than the jewelry but they look amazing. When I mention that the leather goods are pricey, I don't mean that they are out of the normal range for good quality items. The attaches look really nice and I'm thinking they would make great gifts for the college grad or a spouse. There's a gorgeous expandable leather backpack. These are the kinds of things that you would gift a person with when they are more responsible or have accomplished something. Beautiful looking goods.

Now that I am being more savings-minded than ever, I'm glad I found a spot to pick up some nice and affordable gifts for special occasions throughout the year.

I will review other Passage 7 products as I purchase or receive them. For now, I can tell you that the jewelry pieces are great quality items as a really good value.

Peace
--Free

**REVIEW** Metal Earth 3D Model Kit by Fascinations Inc

You're only as old as you feel, goes the cliche. Well, I must feel about fifteen because I got this for myself while I was Christmas shopping:

At least, that's what I will (or should) have once I put it together.

That's the 3D metal model of a praying mantis It's from a collection of kits from Fascinations, Inc's Metal Earth kits. I got mine from a local store (they are available on Amazon and from Barnes & Noble stores, etc).

My niece and I saw the praying mantis, different military machines, and some iconic buildings. My niece got one planes (I think the F-22 Raptor) and another machine for her brother. The praying mantis was my favorite because it was just so pretty. Thankfully, it was one of the cheapest models which ranged at that store from $12-15. 

They show the end product on the label
just to lure me in!

 At least, it will be (maybe) once I get it assembled.

Assembly might be tricky for someone with my motor skills and other brain (mis)functions.

My soul shivered with some regret the minute I opened the instructions. Those pieces are not as clearly numbered as the diagram indicates. And that is only a small portion of the instructions.

I don't see numbers on some of the piece...

 Still, this is such a cool concept. Most people, I imagine, will be able to put these kits together without too much hassle. I love the gleam and precision of the metal. (Warning here: be VERY careful handling the metal sheets and pieces.)

I was able to view some fully assembled items in the store and I'm impressed. One of the pieces we looked at had quite a few moving pieces. That one was pretty elaborate.

These make great gifts for certain people. My nephew, for example, likes tinkering and he has the patience to work on something like this. I am nervous about starting mine. I took it out of the wrapper and spent half and hour with a magnifying glass just inspecting the sheet of pieces. I will work on it with my nephew when he is assembling his plane.

I gave the warning about the sharp edges of the metal, but I think that once these are fully assembled (by an adult), they would be great to put on display in a child's room. DJ is really into dinosaurs right now.I'd love to have those kits put together for his room. How cool are these?

Check out their site and Amazon for the different ones. When I get my mantis done, I will update this post. Or not. Depends on how decent it looks!


Peace
--Free

**REVIEW** Essential Oil Pocket Doctor (Davina Oils)

The name of this one might throw you, so let's do the visual...

 A collection of 8 EOs (2ml size) on a keychain.

This is called the Essential Oil Pocket Doctor (love the name), and it from Davina Oils.

That is the best concept ever. For someone who loves essential oils as much as I do, it perfect. How perfect? Well, I'll put it this way: after using for the review, I was going to pass this along to a friend. That, uh, won't be happening! LOL (I'll wait til a birthday or other occasion to spread this joy.)

I appreciate that the company didn't use the "cheapest" oils in this set. I love something about most good quality EOs, regardless, but there are some that are so "common" that they sell for a lot less. I love every one of the oils in this collection except for one. I'm not especially crazy for anything with a Eucalyptus scent. However, there is a good use for it. I know this because of the little reference card included in this collection.

By the way, I try not to hang heavy items on my keychain because I once heard that you shouldn't stress your car ignition slot. ~shrug~ However, I do hang this on the inside of my purse. The clip will, of course, attach to just about anything. It would be great for clipping to your gym bag...

Here is what you get in this set:
(all the EOs are in 2ml bottles)

• Basil
• Bergamot
• Rosemary
• Grapefruit
• Clary Sage
• Eucalyptus
• Geranium
• Sage
• 15ml Fractionated Coconut Oil to use as carrier oil
• A card (also keychain friendly) of reference for oil use
• A padded & sturdy bag that holds the EOs (not the carrier)
• The 100% guarantee

This is a handy little collection. As mentioned before, this makes a perfect gift to someone who already loves EOs and for someone new to the game. For instance, I've been letting my friend sample some of my oils and she is really interested in everything about them. She is ready to start ordering her own, but this is a good way for her to try 8 different oils before she commits. (But, uh, I won't be parting with this little item for now! Hahaha!)

I mentioned in my Amazon review that I originally wondered if the price was too high. I backed off of that idea as soon as I priced other bottles of the same size. The cost would be higher for these bought separately, plus it wouldn't include the case and chain. I haven't looked yet at any other keychain type cases, but I will update this with a comparison when I do.

5-star summary:

5 of 5 for concept (I'd give this part 10 stars!)
4.5 of 5 for oils selection (because of Eucalyptus)
5 of 5 for quality and fragrance
5 of 5 for pricing and offered guarantee

Peace
--Free


DISCLOSURE:

In exchange for providing my fair and honest review, I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free or at a discount using AMZ Review Trader. Regardless, I only review products that I have personally used and can give an opinion of.

***REVIEW*** Travalo Refillable Perfume Perfume Atomizer

Found this at Perfumania here in Anchorage while looking for Mother's Day gifts. 

Cute, handy, affordable

 It's a refillable atomizer by Travalo. Other than being perfect as a gift, here are the other plusses of this item:

• Cute (see the colors below)
• Sturdy (is glass, not plastic)
• Handy (really does fit well in purse or pocket)
• Refills (at least at my local Perfumania) are just $10
• Refilling with your own perfume spray bottles is pretty easily done
• 65 sprays for your 10 bucks
• compared to "mini-sized" fragrances, it's cheaper

sounded simple, but I wasn't convinced!

I was worried about how messy it would be to refill the atomizer until I watched the clerk at Perfumania set up my gift bottle. It was really pretty simple. I had one of those wish-I'd-thought-of-that moments when I realized the process is similar to using butane lighter.

glass bottle

Good thing I found this. The perfume I wanted to gift was in the $90 range. That wasn't going to happen this year!

couldn't find this size in local store :-(

It's Honey by Marc Jacobs. By the way, I am in love with this perfume myself. If I start saving up right this minute, I might be able to "put a little something on it" by next year. Beautifully layered fragrance! Just amazing.

How freaking cute is the bottle!!!

You know that bottle is one you'd keep forver...

Before I forget, here are the various colors the Travalo atomizer comes in:

I'm partial to the gold one

Peace

--Free