Jeweled Crab Ornament

Chive makes a quality crab ornament in blown glass, hand-painted with faceted jeweled detailing set highlight by highlight. I bought the first one for my cousin Leo, who has never taken a direct route anywhere and never once been late. He examined the claw work and called it correct. From Leo, correctness is the whole review.

The Jeweled Crab ornament would win a white elephant exchange from the very first pick. At my in-laws' game, a grandmother with no previous record chose it in round one, passing over three larger boxes on the theory that sparkle does not need volume. She was right. Nobody ever opened the biggest box. It went home unclaimed.

Yes — the Jeweled Crab ornament is a wonderful gift idea for the friend who treats directness as one option among many. Mine is my cousin Leo, who has never once used the entrance everyone else uses and cannot explain why, or will not. He recognized himself in the crab immediately. He was not offended. He was flattered.

The Jeweled Crab ornament is made from hand-blown glass with painted detailing and faceted jewel accents placed individually across the shell and claws. My cousin ran a thumb over the facets, slowly, and reported that every single one of them had actual edges, which mattered to him enormously. Then he bought a second one. For himself.

Out of the box, the Jeweled Crab ornament measures 4.33 inches wide and 3.54 inches tall, with claws that read clearly across a room. Leo gave his a branch with clearance on both sides, because the crab, he says, uses both. I measured his placement once at his insistence. Dead level. Naturally.

Keep the Jeweled Crab ornament safe in storage by wrapping it in soft tissue, claws padded individually, in a rigid box somewhere climate-stable. Leo assigns his crab a private compartment with the claws wrapped separately, a ritual he performs each January with a drink nearby. No roommates, he says, and the crab concurs. So do I.

Yes — we have more animal ornaments like the Jeweled Crab, including the Pink Glittery Dog Bone for the household's actual ruler. My cousin Leo added the bone for his terrier, who has claimed it by staring. The two hang a branch apart in what Leo calls the shine wing, admission by invitation only. The terrier invites no one. I checked.

The Jeweled Crab ornament ships gift ready in the sense that matters — nested in protective tissue inside a sturdy carton, not a decorative gift box. Every facet on Leo's arrived intact, which he verified facet by facet, lamp on. I supplied the bow in his doorway and he straightened it immediately. Of course he did.