Stick To The Paper

Pros:  inexpensive items, decent packaging,

Cons:  not as big selection as in catelog, hard to navigate.

The Bottom Line:  Check out what you are buying, some stuff is really junk. Look at their catelog first, better laid out than website.

Full Review
I get the Oriental Trading Catelog like almost everyone else in the world. My kids love looking through it at the neat and different stuff they offer. I like the bulk items especially for birthday favors and inexpensive gifts.

When I found out they had a website, I was thrilled especially when you got points or money back by linking through to their website (www.ebates.com).

I was seriously disappointed by their website. I found it very difficult to find what I was looking for. It seems that what I would consider a holiday item would be listed under crafts. It was much easier for me to sit with the catelog and enter an item number to find what I was looking for.

Perhaps I'm wrong but it didn't seem that what is offered in the printed matter is on their website. I find it takes a while to load the pages and they put about 10 items on a page with little icons for the pictures. You then click on the picture to get pricing, information and a bigger size picture.

It's been a while since I've ordered from them online (last November) but I believe their check out was easy to do and didn't involve too much hassle.

When I did receive my items, I recall that they were sealed in plastic bags as is normal and then just placed in the box with no additional buffering (ie. bubble wrap, peanuts, etc.). They did include an invoice though. And delivery was timely.

I would order from them again should the need arise (perhaps for school holiday parties and birthday favors). But I must sit with the catelog on my computer table and go through my selections online.