Lakeside Collection review

Chances are, when the latest edition of The Lakeside Collection catalog arrives on your doorstep, you'll probably find something you'll want to buy.   This bright and glossy catalog is so packed with page upon page of trinkets and wares that it may be days before you come up for air.  The companion website--lakeside.com--is a virtual treasure trove of inexpensive giftware, apparel, home decor, and toys.  Once I've had the pleasure of thumbing through the catalog, I typically place my order through their website.  You can easily browse by theme, catalog edition, price point, and category.  If you have the catalog item number, you can fast-track to that portion of website and place your order in minutes.  But, even if I know the item number, I admit to being a bit of a browser.  I won't finalize my order just in case there's something on the website that wasn't in my most recent catalog.  I'm a bit obsessive about this point.

My most recent purchase from the Lakeside Collection** **was for gifts for some toddlers in my life--I'm grandma to one and auntie to several.   Both the catalog and the website feature a large selection of licensed character merchandise, such as:  Disney Princess Dress-Up Magnet Set ($4.95); Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Phone ($11.95); Disney Cars and Sesame Street Learn & Carry Books/CD Sets ($7.95).   In all, there were nearly 100 suitable toys and games to choose from.

My favorite gift to give young children is something educational.  Preferably a book, but I'm also known to give book/CD combos.  Happily, I found Mickey Mouse and Sesame Street DVD/Activity books ($14.95 ea.) that I knew my grandson in particular would enjoy.  It came with a kid-friendly remote control, so I figured if he had a toy one he could leave our TV remote alone.

The buoyant part of the Lakeside experience is the browsing and selecting.  The letting-the-air-out-of-the-balloon part is waiting to see if (a) it is really in stock, and (b) if it can be shipped and delivered before the recipient turns another year older.

For example, the shopping bag doesn't indicate whether or not the products are in stock, back-ordered, or require additional shipping time.  And woe to you if you let your shopping cart sit inactive for longer than 45 minutes.  If you do, the checkout portion may time out and you'll have to repeat the selection process. 

At any rate, my order was placed on the 16th but didn't leave the warehouse until the 29th. When I checked the status of the order, it was vaguely labeled as "in process."  A week after the shipping confirmation, my purchases arrived.  I'm happy with the items and I do think they were a good bargain. 

One last point.  After this order, I subsequently purchased a Fisher-Price infant toy expecting it to arrive in standard, colorful, Fisher-Price retail packaging like you'd find on a store shelf.  However, I was a bit surprised that it arrived in a simple white box like you see in the dollar stores.  I checked out the toy, and it appeared in every way to be the genuine brand and worked perfectly well. It's just that if you intend to give it as a gift, don't be surprised that the packaging may differ from what's on a retail shelf.  This only happened once, but it's worth mentioning.

All in all, I will continue to patronize the Lakeside Collection with these thoughts in mind:  buy early and browse often.