Review on Red 3.1 Inch Amlong Crystal Feng Shui Meditation Sphere Ball With Wooden Stand And Gift Box - Ideal For Divination And Decorative Purposes by Jessica Day

I had read the reviews on this before purchasing, so I went into this hoping for the best (I have purchased A LOT from Walmart and 9 times out of 10, the reviews are not very accurate). The quality of the Quartz crystal ball is absolutely SECOND TO NONE I HAVE EVER SEEN! It is absolutely magnificent. It is, without sounding "pun-ny" "Crystal Clear". I am so very glad I purchased it simply for the ball alone. Now, to the stand and the "gift box". I have posted images of the box and the stand (THANK YOU AMAZON FOR USING LOTS OF THE PACKING "AIR BAGS"!). First thing I noticed was a rattling coming from the box. I thought the ball was doomed. Upon opening the box, immediately, the entire box separated on one side and part of another. The lining was completely torn away from the interior, and there was NO FOAM IN BETWEEN THE LINER AND THE BOX - it is simply cardboard with some white satin inside. I CAREFULLY lifted the ball out, only to have the stand, while still in the box, fall into two pieces. The screw that was supposed to be holding the stand together is not long enough, nor does it fit the hole in the top half of the stand it connects to. The extremely thin redd-ish velvet lining was pulled away from the top half of the stand and was crinkled up. Figuring that this was the cause of the rattling, after carefully securing the ball, I lifted out the two halves of the stand. It was then that I noticed what was actually making the noise - Four small ball bearings/buck shot! I have ABSOLUTELY NO CLUE what these were doing in the "gift box", but I am just grateful that they did not scratch or damage the ball in any way! After attempting to screw the screw into the bottom of the stand (fruitless, as I mentioned because the screw is too short and the hole too large), I resorted to my trusty Super Glue to join the two pieces together and smoothed out the "velvet" the best I could. As I said, the ball itself is FAR BEYOND ANY EXPECTATION I HAD! I would not hesitate buying another, as I was not purchasing for the stand or the gift box. My concern is that if all of these are shipped this way, the likelihood of damage to the Quartz is high. The first thing I am using the crystal ball for is to try and attempt to solve the "ball bearing mystery"! Seriously, I can purchase my own stand, and the box is of no consequence to me - my concern is for potential damage due to the shoddy packaging and the potential for the stand to damage the ball. However, for the price and the quality of the Quartz Ball, you cannot go wrong.