An Unexpected Gift - Garden Shoes Online

I recently made the acquaintance of Patrick, a garden blogger of Bifurcated Carrots.  I “found” his blog and his website when I was learning about celeriac.  Patrick has proven himself a wealth of data on a wide range of gardening issues pertinent to our situation here in North Carolina and he is all the way in Amsterdam! 

Last Thursday or Friday he sent me an email saying that an online retailer, Garden Shoes Online (GSO), had sent him a $50 coupon with the hopes that Patrick would make a purchase then blog about the experience.  Unfortunately, GSO didn’t realize that Patrick was not in the US and they are not able to do business internationally (yet).  So, Patrick, very generously, offered to pass the coupon on to me.  I accepted with much appreciation!

The first thing I did was peruse the website.  The selection is small and focused on gardening shoes that are dedicated to functionality.  They also carry a few other “side” items including hats and gardening tools.  I liked this a lot because I was able to focus on what I actually needed rather than a ton of stuff that may or may not pertain to my needs of the moment.  It took me 10 minutes or less to quickly browse their entire inventory.  Another plus because I value my time.  10 points for utilitarian functionality.

Now I had to consider just what it was that they needed that I wanted.  We live on a very limited, fixed income and every spare dime is divided between paying off debt and investing in our farming venture.  I haven’t had a new pair of shoes in more than 5 years so gardening shoes were really tempting.  However, I really need a garden apron more.  I’ve been mentally designing one for years now and GSO had one that appeared to have good functionality at a price I was willing to pay, $35.  So, leftover money!  10 points for value.

What next?  They have hats!  My husband has genetic macular degeneration and is legally blind.  White light, like sunlight, can be down right painful.  So, he wears a hat.  His current hat, purchased for $7 last year, looks like it went through a tornado.  On top of that, it got soaking wet during a recent rain and shrunk. 

GSO has a great selection of hats AND they focus on the brim width in their detail descriptions!  This was truly excellent.  I just selected the hat with the widest brim, 5”.  The hats are all straw which is another excellent feature for gardeners.  Some have vents, ours did not.  Not a big deal, the extra wide brim was the most important feature for us.  At $29, the price was completely reasonable.  This was over our $50 limit, but I was prepared to pay the difference.

By Monday morning Mike and I had discussed the purchase, agreed that we could afford the overage and agreed on what we wanted to get.  I placed the order.  My first surprise was a $2 “Mix and Match” savings.  Wow, off to a great start there!  Next, no shipping charge!  Wow!  Talk about impressive, I figured I would have to wait 7 to 10 full days but then, I could handle that.  The grand total was $61.94.  I entered my coupon information then paid the extra $11.94.  10 points for efficiency. 

My next surprise came in the form of an email that arrived about 3 or 4 hours later.  The email informed me that FedEx (no less!) was in possession of my order and provided a tracking number.  NO KIDDING?!?!  I immediately checked the tracking info figuring that like UPS there would be a 24 to 36 hour delay between data received and tracking information availability.  I was WRONG!  There was the information with the estimated delivery date of April 1st.  I was in shock!  Of course the order originated in New York and came to North Carolina.  That helped keep the time to a minimum.  Yet, the speed and efficiency of the entire process was startlingly crisp and “utilitarian”.  I really like utilitarian.  10 points for quality servicing by 3rd party services.

I had to run errands yesterday morning and when we got home, there was the package, neatly bundled in a plastic bag to ensure it wasn’t damaged by rain.  5 bonus points for taking the extra step.

I got Mike to come in and check out the hat.  He was so excited!  I knew there was a chance the hat would be damaged from the delivery but I couldn’t have been “more wronger”!  The apron, boxed in a flat half carton, was taped to the bottom of the box guaranteeing that there was no chance for the hat to be squashed.  I was thoroughly impressed.  10 points for packaging wisdom.

The hat is a thing of beauty that will last a good long time.  I haven’t had a chance to checkout the apron but I like what I see so far.  I need to get my corn planted today or tomorrow so I will post an addendum regarding the apron because I will put it to the test planting the corn.  But, based on what I’ve observed thus far, 10 points for product quality.

10 points for utilitarian functionality
10 points for value
10 points for efficiency
10 points for quality servicing by 3rd party services
5 bonus points for taking the extra step
10 points for packaging wisdom
10 points for product quality

That is a total of 65 points.  10 being a perfect score in any category and 5 being the maximum bonus points.  I really like Garden Shoes Online and I will certainly look to purchase from them in the future.  I encourage you to do so as well.

For Patrick’s kind generosity and GSO’s great quality and service, I am TRULY THANKFUL!

ADDENDUM:  It's about 10 hours later and I've tested both the hat and the apron.  It's a windy, drizzly, gray day and I purchased some cabbage starts that needed to get into the ground.  So, after setting some leftovers to heat for supper, I went to put the apron together.  It comes in 3 pieces, the main body, a holster and a wide webbing belt.  The belt is pretty darn ample.  It fits me (and I'm no skinny Minney) with a nice long tail.  The pouch itself is "made whole" by zipping up both sides.  It has rigid sides so it stays open.  The pouch itself is roomy enough for a good 5 to 8 lbs. of stringbeans.  Don't ask me how I can guestimate it this way!  It's sort of like being pregnant, it's large and cumbersome, but well worth the effort in the long run.  The holster is perfect for clipping shears, a hand trowel or other small tool.  There are netting pouches on the sides that would be perfect for additional tools, seed pouches, or pretty much whatever else your heart might desire.

Now about that hat.  OH MY GOSH I WANT ONE!  I didn't get a single drop of rain on my glasses.  My hair didn't get at all wet.  The elastic innerband made it fit nice and snug.  The wind would have still ripped it off so I used the handy, adjustable lariat thingy to keep it on my head.  If you want to send me one, I take a large!  ::smiles wistfully::

Comments

[philippines gift]

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[Jo`]

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[philippines gift]

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vee

[carpinteyrovck]

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