Zazzle Personalised Gifts Review

It may only be mid-November, but Christmas is definitely in the air. I love this time of year - the planning, the organising, the making and baking. It is quietly festive. No rush and bustle. No need to go shopping or be bombarded with Christmas music. I prefer to keep the TV off and live a bit of a hermit lifestyle In November. I craft and  plan, light cinnamon-scented candeles and drink lots of tea. Then, in the last few days before Christmas I dive into the Christmas spirit with music, last minute (but carefully planned) shopping, Christmas films and lots of hot port. 

This seaon my planning got a kick start when I was asked to review a few personalised products by Zazzle. In mid October I made my selection on the Zazzle website. I could have spent days on it! There is so much choice, both in the range of products and in the choice of personalisation designs. You can even upload your own photo or design and use that. 

I would like to point out that if you are using one of the Zazzle templates, make sure to personalise it completely. The gift tags I ordered have text on both sides. I didn't notice and only changed one side, so the other still has Zazzle's text on there. So that is one little thing to double check before you finish placing your order. 

A week later the parcels began to pile in and I was thrilled with everything I'd chosen. A cute monogrammed notebook for a friend, a t-shirt for The Bavarian, an inspirational print for my craft room and a set of stickers for my homemade preserves.

Finally my main purchase, a tea tray, arrived. I had chosen the design from Zazzle, selcted the colour - a nice festive red that will go well with my kitchen all year - and added our family surname, Zinnecker, and initial, Z. It measures 14.5 inches x 10 inches and is a nice size for tea for two. Initially I thought the price of 35.90 GBP a little pricey. Once it arrived I thought otherwise.

 The Bavarian happened to be at home when I opened the parcel and he was delighted with it too, being a fan of woodland themes. Just as we were oohing and aahing over it, I spotted a small crack in the black veneer in one corner. The damage hadn't come from the shipping. That was clear from the perfect condition of the carton the tray was packaged in. It seemed as if a screw had been tightened just a tiny bit too much. 

Now, Zazzle has a promise on its website and on the delivery documents that they will replace any product the customer is not satisfied with. That includes personalised gifts. I took a few photos of the damage and was straight on to them. The damage was very slight, but promise like that needs to be tested, right? Within minutes I had a reply from Zazzle to say, not only that they would send me out a replacement but that they would inform manufacturing of the issue to prevent it happening again.  

Just the other day my new tray arrived, as gorgeous as the first and completely flaw-free. I have been giving it a good testing, using it for my many tea and coffee breaks. Its glossy surface is easily wiped clean with a damp cloth and, so far, the tray gives a hard-wearing impression. On the underside there are little felt pads to prevent the tray scratching surfaces. I was particularly pleased with this since our coffee table is glass topped and our kithcen table is painted. Considering the finish the tray has and the fact that it is personalised, I think the price is quite alright. 

With its colour scheme and pretty pattern, it is really getting me into the festive mood. I will definitely be heading back to Zazzle shortly to do a spot of Christmas shopping now that I know I can rely on them for quality and for keeping their promise.

[Disclaimer: I was asked to test and review the Zazzle website and their personalised products and was given the above mentioned products free of charge in exchange for writing a review. All photos and all opinions expressed here are my own.]