It all started with an A3 scratch map blu-tacked to the wall beside my bed at uni. Frustrated with being stuck in one place for up to 12 weeks at a time each semester, I would slowly bring more and more travel-related items into my room to keep me from going stir crazy.
After the A3 scratch map came dozens of postcards from my friends’ travels. Then came the tacky souvenirs I insisted I picked up on every trip, despite how naff they looked. Before long, my room looked like a mish-mash of travel tit-bits which gave me inspiration to save up money and get planning those trips.
Fast forward to four years later, and nothing has changed. (Well, apart from the fact I no longer live in crappy university halls.) That scratch map still adorns my wall, and postcards are littered around in various drawers. And those naff souvenirs? Yep, still there – much to my mum’s disdain.
SO GOOD. Definitely not naff, right? Right…?
No matter where I live, I’m always keen to surround myself with travel inspiration. So when I was offered the chance to try out some personalised magnets from PicStick, my heart did a big flutter.
Magnets are a cool, and relatively inexpensive, way to inject a hint of the exotic into your kitchen. And, for me, it makes total sense as the fridge is probably my most visited place in the house.
What is PicStick?
For just £9.50 ($14.99), PicStick will print 9 of your favourite pictures as glossy goodness, suitable to attach to all magnetic surfaces. They also ship worldwide for free, and images can be uploaded from your phone, computer, Facebook account or tablet.
It’s super easy to use, with a simple interface from which to upload pictures. You can also crop each picture to ensure only the most important bits are used.
Delivery
After ordering my magnets, I braced myself for a long wait. Just a couple of days later, however, the magnets fell through my letterbox and onto the doormat. 10/10 for speed, guys.
I was super excited to see my pictures – I’d chosen images from some of my favourite travels, and also added my friend’s picture of a Caribbean beach in order to remind me of what I’m currently saving up for. Oh, and I also got a magnet made of my cat. No regrets.
First things first: the magnets arrived safely and securely. Printed as one big magnet, each image is able to be torn apart easily via the perforated edges. They brighten up the kitchen no end, and provide endless conversation starters when I have friends over. They’re also much appreciated when I’m up late making my packed lunch for work to save a precious few pounds.
One thing I will say is that some of the colours weren’t as vibrant as I was expecting. However, I think this is partly my fault at uploading a couple of images that were quite dark. The ‘faded’ colour look does give the images a bit of a vintage feel, but I would recommend submitting light pictures if possible.
Overall
I’m chuffed to bits with my magnets which brighten up my rather plain kitchen no end. The magnets are strong enough to hold up postcards too, so they also serve a practical purpose as well as an aesthetic one.
I do feel that images of scenery do show up better than those of people, which may be something to bear in mind if you plan to get some printed.
Overall: top marks for service and ease of use. Definitely a cute little idea for a gift or just to treat yourself!
Fancy having a go for yourself?
The folks at PicStick have very kindly given all Cosy Traveller readers a code to get 25% off their order!
Simply choose your favourite images, and add the following code at the checkout: COSY125
Enjoy!
