So, I was fairly dubious after receiving this item that is would successfully serve as a beach towel, since it looked and felt more like a blanket (and an unfamiliarly textured one at that). My initial impression could not have been further from reality.The towel had great absorption capabilities as promised but beyond that, it simply provided a whole new experience of toweling off at the beach!The silky and thin microfiber fabric efficiently whisked sand away when drying and instead of feeling the sand rub into our skin like sandpaper while drying off (like all other towels feel) something about this fabric seemed to lift the sand up off the skin first, and you never felt the sand again when drying! It felt so good on our skin that even as I was sunning myself, I would use the towel to wipe my face and chest and NEVER felt that scratchy sand feeling. I used it even when I didn't have a real need, just because it felt so nice on my skin!Even on a super windy day, when sand was blowing into everything and getting into every single crevice, covering all surfaces with a thin and invisible layer of sand, a quick wipe with this towel and it was gone! Sunglasses, water bottles, sunscreen containers, you name it, we tried it, always with success!We were actually giddy with amazement and it became a game on the beach, to see if someone could find an item that the towel couldn't perfectly clean with one swipe. The towel won. BTW it is hands down the BEST for cleaning phone and tablet screens of not just sand but fingerprints, even greasy or sticky fingerprints! Yay! Seriously, what kind of miracle microfiber IS THIS?!My mother in law noticed the towel and after inspecting it with suspicion, she seemed underwhelmed as I rattled on and on about the wonders of "The towel". But, when my 7 yr old ran past her knocking sand on to her iced beverage cup (covered in condensation), she grabbed a corner of the towel to clean it, looked back at the towel, then at the cup and threw her head back and howled laughing. She said " Now I see what all the fuss is about." Then she tried to steal my new best friend " The Towel"Besides its miracle absorption and sand removing tenacity, I have to say how I LOVE how tiny I can fold it up! It is so lightweight and thin, that I could actually take it anywhere.At night, we liked to walk to the beach to fly kites, look for shells, watch the stars come out etc. But no one wanted to haul the beach gear back down, not even just a towel or two to sit on, we had already DONE that battle during the day! Once again, " The Towel" was the answer! I simply rolled it up and slipped it into my small cross body purse and once we got to the beach and layed it out, it was big enough for me, my husband and my 7 yr old to sit on and watch the waves and relax. A quick shake and it released every grain of sand, allowing me to roll it right back up and put it back into my purse, no worries of sand getting into my lipstick or anything else in my purse. I just can't wrap my head around how awesome this thing is!Oh, and the quick drying is impossible to understand until you have seen it. It would be soaked to the point of needing to be wrung out, but I would lay it over my beach chair in the sun, and in the time I took a quick jaunt up to the boardwalk for a smoothy and returned, my buddy "The Towel" was dry and warm and ready for me to commence with lazy beach lounging.I know this is kind of an over the top review BUT this is kind of an over the top product, so it deserves it.The customer service provided by Venture 4th was also just amazing. They had sent an email to make sure we were satisfied with our purchase. At the time, we had not used it yet, however I was concerned the item was mislabeled on Amazon as it appeared to be more of a beach blanket than a towel. The owner of the company replied personally and explained it is a towel, just something new that I was unfamiliar with. She assured me the towel would be absorbent and she was confident I would be satisfied if I gave it a chance. And if after using it, if I was not 100% satisfied she would provide a full refund immediately. That was impressive, that she would allow me to use it on vacation and if it didn't meet my expectations it would be refunded?!? i couldn't turn that offer down and I promised her a full review once I had a chance to really use it. As you can see, I certainly do not need a refund. I am ordering more for the rest of the family as well as for Christmas gifts for my beach loving friends and family. This is an absolute WINNER!To Venture 4th: Thank you for this fantastic product. It has made my life a bit easier, and in this day and age that is shockingly rare and sincerely appreciated.
