Joli Originals Smooth iPhone 6 Plus case review

The “new phone” experience just isn’t complete until you’ve gotten a new case for it, am I right?  The nice thing about getting a new iPhone is that you’re sure there’s going to be a plethora of cases offered for it, so you’ll have plenty of options.  If you like to use your iPhone naked, but you still want a protective case when it’s in your pocket or bag, Joli Originals have some beautiful leather sleeves that are sure to tempt you.  They sent The Gadgeteer one of their Smooth iPhone 6 Plus cases for review.

Although this review covers the iPhone 6 Plus sleeve, there are also Smooth cases for the iPhone 4/4S, iPhone 5/5s, iPhone 5c, and the iPhone 6; they also have one for the 5th-generation iPod touch.  I received a Smooth case in green with brown interior that’s no longer available, but you can still choose from brown leather with aqua, pink, or brown interior or gray leather with red or black interior.

There’s nothing that indicates that one side is the front, but I choose to think the side embossed with the Joli logo is the front.  The logo has a nice, handwritten look that appeals to me.  The exterior is premium Italian full-grain waxed leather.  It’s hard to fully capture the quality of the color in a photo, but the green is a bit variegated.  I don’t mean it looks blotchy or uneven;  it’s just a natural color variation caused by the texture and grain of the leather.  The stitching is even and straight.

Jolie says each case is handmade in their studio in Amsterdam.  Because of the natural materials and the handmade nature of the product, each case is unique.

Of course, the size will depend on the iPhone you have, but the iPhone 6 Plus case I received is 6.5″ X 3.6″ X 0.26″ when empty.  It weighs 1.5 ounces.

I don’t know if the packing was different because this was a review item or if each one is packaged this way, but the case arrived in a sealed manilla envelope with a little drawing and a note.  I also got a little handwritten note.  Notice the sticker on the bottom of the manilla envelope.  It shows you how to push up on the bottom of the case to help push the phone up and out of the case.

The back of the case looks as beautiful as the front.  The leather smells wonderful.  It’s a very light leather smell, without the harsh petrochemical smell that some leathers can have.

The sides of the case show the interior fabric.  The interior is lined with the “finest Dutch wool felt, 100% wool.”  This felt makes up about half of the thickness of the case.  It’s very cushiony to protect your phone against bumps.  Its soft, lofty surface will protect your phone from scratches, too.

You may have noticed that this case was very flat when it arrived.  The first pictures in this review were taken the minute I took the case out of the package.  My phone had never been inside the case until I took the above photo.  You can see that the case hadn’t been molded at all to accommodate the phone inside as part of the manufacturing process.

You can also tell that there’s no room for another case on the iPhone 6 Plus in this Joli sleeve.

Because it was so flat, it was very difficult to push my iPhone 6 Plus into the case the first time.  I’ll admit I was a little worried about pushing so hard;  I didn’t want to find out the hard way that the iPhone 6 Plus will bend!  If you push up on the bottom of the case with your thumb, as my husband demonstrates here, it makes it a bit easier to pull the phone back out of the case.  However, the iPhone 6 Plus is very thin and very slippery, and it’s hard to get a good grip on it while you’re pulling it out of such a tight case.

I actually emailed the folks at Joli about how difficult it was to get the iPhone in and out, and I was assured that the case will stretch with use.  It’s made tight so that it will still fit the phone properly after the leather does stretch some with use.  The phone will be easier to get in and out, and you still won’t have to worry that the phone will accidentally fall out of the case.

I did find that the case stretched and was easier to get the phone in and out of with some use.  It doesn’t get super loose, and I still feel that I need a bit more force than I like to get the phone in and out.  That phone is very slippery, and I’m afraid my grip will slip off the phone and I’ll end up dropping the phone to the floor.  When I use this case, I try to make sure I hold the phone and case over my lap or a chair or sofa when I’m inserting or removing the iPhone 6 Plus.

If you are looking for a fine-quality leather sleeve for your iPhone, you’ll find the Joli Smooth iPhone case is a wonderful contender.  It’s well made of strong but supple leather that should protect your phone from lumps and bumps.  Just be careful while the case is stretching to fit your phone in the first couple of weeks of use!

Source: The Joli Smooth iPhone case sample for this review was provided by Joli Originals. Please visit http://jolioriginals.com for more info.