Instajunction, what's your function?

I was recently given the opportunity to try out and review a new website called Instajunction. After checking out the site and placing an order, here are my overall thoughts.

The Concept:  To easily create beautiful calendars, key chains, ornaments, mugs and more by using the photos you have posted on your Instagram account. 

The Site: The site itself was basic and simple. Nothing that really jumps out and "wows" you and definitely not anything that is really memorable to me. There is no way to log in from the main page. In fact, you can't do anything until you choose a product that you would like to make.  This to me was a bit aggravating. 

The Process: In one word, FRUSTRATING! After choosing a product and signing into my Instagram account, I was given a selection of 10 of my Instagram photos at a time to choose from. There were arrows to the left and right of the photos to be able to select the ones you would like to use. Sounds easy right? WRONG. While scrolling through my over 2000 Instagram pictures, I discovered that each time I chose a picture or pressed the back button, I was taken all the way back to the beginning. This was extremely frustrating! When you have scrolled through about 50 pictures and accidentally pass one you want, going all the way back to the drawing board is extremely time consuming. In fact, I had originally chosen a calendar as my Instajunction item but changed my mind after getting so frustrated with the process and decided to go with a set of key rings which only needed 4 pictures instead.  Even after choosing the key rings, I didn't have the patience to really choose my best pictures because I didn't want to continue to scroll over and over and over again. In the end, I chose 4 of my most recent photos and called it a day. I was also a bit sketchy of the fact that I never received a tracking number.  Knowing that it was coming from Europe, I expected it to take longer than usual. But after a while with no tracking number, I began to think it was never going to get here. 

The Product: The prices were reasonable and the product turned out really nice. The pictures themselves were larger than I expected which was a pleasant surprise and the colors were vibrant and clear. I only wish the site was easier to navigate so that I could have used some of the better pictures. 

Overall: I'm pleased with the end product and I think that if some of the site "kinks" are ironed out, Instajunction could really be onto something. So many of us are proud of the "Insta"photographers that we've become and to be able to have our "art" in our homes or to give as gifts is a wonderful way to make it more personal and meaningful.