Jolee's by You: Dimensional Stickers/Embellishments
Technically, today we're not looking at toys at all, but rather materials intended for memory books, a phenomenon I don't understand and don't care to.
These items were produced by "Jolee's by You." I have no idea what that means.
At any rate, my wife and I were in New England for a week during the summer. While there, we made a point of stopping in as many stores which don't exist in New York City as we possibly could. Included in that was A.C. Moore, a large arts and crafts chain similar to Michaels. Among other things, my wife was interested in picking up some scale scissors. Along with those, we also found a similar pack of miniature keys. They weren't too expensive, so we grabbed them both.
The scissors come in a pack of two: one gold and one silver. There are six keys in a pack: two gold, two silver, and two bronze.
These items were produced by "Jolee's by You." I have no idea what that means.
At any rate, my wife and I were in New England for a week during the summer. While there, we made a point of stopping in as many stores which don't exist in New York City as we possibly could. Included in that was A.C. Moore, a large arts and crafts chain similar to Michaels. Among other things, my wife was interested in picking up some scale scissors. Along with those, we also found a similar pack of miniature keys. They weren't too expensive, so we grabbed them both.
The scissors come in a pack of two: one gold and one silver. There are six keys in a pack: two gold, two silver, and two bronze.
Appearance and Construction:
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Keys: 8/10
Scissors: 7/10 Needless to say, these are small items. How small? Well, the picture to the right shows them compared to a dime and a quarter. The key's a hair longer than the dime. I measured and it looks to be about three quarters of an inch: almost exactly the length of a penny. The scissors are larger at one and five-sixteenths of an inch, assuming I measured correctly.
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In terms of appearance, they vary quite a bit between colors. In the case of the keys, the best by far are the tarnished bronze ones, which have a nice, layered look. Unfortunately, you'll need to look closely at the pictures to even get a hint of this: I couldn't get the camera to capture the full detail.
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The other keys look fine, but they're not spectacular. Up close, they seem a little toyish, but the truth is, from even a foot or two away, they all look like miniature antique keys.
The scissors are a bit harder to rate. I think if there'd been a bronze pair included instead of one of the ones included, I'd have given them the extra point. As is, they look good but not great. The sculpt is a bit simplistic around the blade, though the handles look nice. Once again, these are supposed to appear antique, an effect that's hindered by the bright silver and gold coloring. My real complaint - if the word applies here - is that these are sculpted closed. I understand a working hinge would be a lot to ask for at this scale, but, had they been sculpted partially open instead, they'd have turned out a little better. At least I think they would have. I was actually going to score these lower - a seven and six, respectively - until I remembered the other part of this section. These feel like they're made out of aluminum or some other light metal. For their size, they have some heft, and they certainly seem sturdy. |
The solid construction bumps the score of the keys up to eight and the scissors up to seven. They're nothing spectacular, but, at this size, they really don't need to be.
Packaging and Extras: ----
These came in small, clear bags hanging on pegs. While that's not too exciting, the bags make it easy to see what you're getting. Be sure to count these before heading up the register: sometimes the packs will get torn and pieces drop out.
I do have a bone to pick with the labeling, though. While the scissors are labeled "Dimensional Embellishments", an accurate title, the keys' packaging advertises them as "Dimensional Stickers", which is odd, since they don't stick to anything. At all. It's not a big deal - I could see what I was getting in the store - but it's a little strange.
These are extras themselves and, as such, they don't come packaged with anything special. If these had been absurdly cheap or if they'd come with more pieces, I might have considered a bonus here. But, as it is, I don't see the two scissors or six keys as an unusually good bargain for your money. It's not an awful deal, but it's certainly not in bonus territory.
I do have a bone to pick with the labeling, though. While the scissors are labeled "Dimensional Embellishments", an accurate title, the keys' packaging advertises them as "Dimensional Stickers", which is odd, since they don't stick to anything. At all. It's not a big deal - I could see what I was getting in the store - but it's a little strange.
These are extras themselves and, as such, they don't come packaged with anything special. If these had been absurdly cheap or if they'd come with more pieces, I might have considered a bonus here. But, as it is, I don't see the two scissors or six keys as an unusually good bargain for your money. It's not an awful deal, but it's certainly not in bonus territory.
Play and Display: ----
I actually had more trouble than I expected getting these into the hands of action figures. In particular, the keys really aren't intended for that purpose, and it shows.
The best use I could think of for the keys would be to string one to a piece of thread and tie it around an appropriate figure's neck. Sadly, I don't really have an appropriate figure. They'd also be effective as scenery dressing for a scale pirate cave or a dungeon or something... but how often does that come up?
The scissors actually have a little more use, at least in our collection. My wife picked them up for one of her customs (photo at the end of the review), and it works very well in that context. In addition, these work well for some six inch figures: I like the effect of the Joker above. Of course, these would work better if they looked sharp or were partially open, but... these weren't really intended to be miniature weapons.
If the scissors opened, we'd be talking bonus points. Probably two. But, since they don't, I'm not touching this category.
The best use I could think of for the keys would be to string one to a piece of thread and tie it around an appropriate figure's neck. Sadly, I don't really have an appropriate figure. They'd also be effective as scenery dressing for a scale pirate cave or a dungeon or something... but how often does that come up?
The scissors actually have a little more use, at least in our collection. My wife picked them up for one of her customs (photo at the end of the review), and it works very well in that context. In addition, these work well for some six inch figures: I like the effect of the Joker above. Of course, these would work better if they looked sharp or were partially open, but... these weren't really intended to be miniature weapons.
If the scissors opened, we'd be talking bonus points. Probably two. But, since they don't, I'm not touching this category.
Price Tag and Final Analysis:
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Keys: 8/10
Scissors: 7/10 If you've spent any time on this site, you know I'm an advocate for shopping outside the box. You can find some cool stuff in unlikely places if you're willing to look: arts and craft stores, dollar stores, even pet stores (really, take a look at their fish bowl accessories some time).
And, for all their faults, these are certainly neat. If you're looking for scale keys and scissors, I'd take a look. Of course, I doubt there are that many people out there looking for scale keys and/or scissors, but that's completely beside the point. Isn't it nice to know they're out there, anyway? Anyway, lets talk cost. These ran me $1.99 a pack. Considering how small they are, I don't feel like I got an amazing deal. On the other hand, I don't feel like I got ripped off, either. |
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If you want to see more pictures of the above doll, head on over to The Blue Fairy's Workshop, where my wife posts information about her customs. And, when you're done there, stop by The Middle Room, where you're liable to find movie reviews, articles, and... well, probably just movie reviews and articles. But what else do you need?
