Subscription Boxes

All the unboxings and details about subscription boxes (bookish or not)

Books, Subscription Boxes

Break the Curse Fairyloot Unboxing

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So, after a long delay due to COVID19 issues, and the parcel being sent to the wrong address despite replying of needing address changes to all book boxes *sigh*, I have the March Fairyloot.

Starting on the top right and going clockwise:

  • Postcard about bieng in tough times.
  • Break the Curse theme card
  • A hard headband (not an elastic one) with a Raven Cycle print. The print is nice, but I will never use the headband because those hurt the hell out of my head and give me an instant headache, which is a shame.
  • Passport cover, again, nice idea, but most airports don’t like passport covers and ask you to take it out and then it is one more thing to try to balance and not loose, so yeah, just not happening (plus, I don’t think a lot of people are going to be travelling soon).
  • A list notepad.
  • Zippered booksleeve. It is cushioned and has a zipper on top and it is gorgeous, so I really like it.
  • A lankyard for Caraval. The lankyard is nice, but I am fed up of Caraval everything.
  • Tarot cards. Nice art, do not collect them.
  • A Holly Black tumbler, which is nice but I don’t really use this type of tumblers so won’t be used at all.
  • Bone Crier’s Moon, with gorgeous shimmering green edges. I am excited for it.

All in all an interesting box. The items are nice but most of them I won’t use which is a bit of a waste and sad. The book is definitely gorgeous, specially the subtle shimmering on the edges. Not a bad box, just a little less useful/less to keep for myself.

Subscription Boxes

Ghibli’s Delivery Service Yume Twins Unboxing

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Everytime Yume Twins does a Ghibli box I have to have it and so far they haven’t disappointed. And obviously, the best way to present the contents is on top of a Ghibli puzzle, right?

  • An origami set, the options were My Neighbour Totoro or Kiki’s Delivery Service, and honestly I think both are great so I am happy with mine!
  • Kiki’s Delivery Service chopsticks set. The chopsticks are usually great and this pair looks awesome with Jiji.
  • A leaflet of contents and other tidbits of info.
  • A My Neighbour Totoro tubmler with a straw and everything.
  • A random Ghibli pin.
  • A mini puzzle, mine was Spirited Away. I have one for Howl’s Moving Castle and from experience know the pieces are tiny and the puzzle is a nice small size but really good.
  • A bento pile up box, mine was Jiji and I am so happy I got Jiji over Totoro even if both were super cute.

As you can see the contents were good value, delivery was fast and I am really glad I got this box. And of course, I am getting June’s because it is also Ghibli inspired and I can’t wait for it!

Books, Subscription Boxes

Cursed Kingdoms Book Box Club Unboxing

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One thing I admire about the girls is that somehow they’ve maanged to make a great box despite the delays in deliveries other boxes seem to be struggling with (and delayes in delivery, etc). The box even suffered from a change of the main featured book, but somehow they still made it on time. So, let’s unbox this, starting from the top center:

  • Zelle inspired soap.
  • The invite to the Clubhouse.
  • Framing both sides of the picture, are set of gorgeous prints that I can’t stop admiring.
  • A patch that says “Rule the World” (I am not big on patches, but I like this one is not iron on but more like “sew on”).
  • Seven Endless Forest, which is by the same author of Boneless Mercies and I am so excited to read it!
  • A sampler to The Book of Longings. I got hooked on Sue’s books with The Secret Life of Bees so was excited for this.
  • An eye mask to give you the best sleep out of a 100 year curse 😉
  • A biscuit, which was yummy and my husband even recognised which fairytale this was from without a hint from me.
  • Thorn, which I am utterly excited to read and heard great things about it.

There was also a promotional for Tales by Mail their middle grade box that will start soon.

All in all, I enjoyed the contents, the box doesn’t feel like less quality than usual (I’ve been feeling this with another book box so I highly appreciate all the care of this one) and one thing the girls get right is how the box looks all together not just each item. I am very pleased with it.

Books, Subscription Boxes

Natural Magic WeReadBox Unboxing

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I managed to get a nice deal for the WeReadBox of November 2019, since there was some issues with the one for The Strangeworlds Travel Agency. As expected, as soon as I saw the fox theme I had to have it (what else, right?). So to unbox what is inside, let’s start on the top right:

  • A jigsaw puzzle for the image on the box. This is to match both books, and I love it.
  • The Clockwork Crow and The Velvet Fox, as the two featured books by Catherine Fisher.
  • A bookmark that is two sided one per book.
  • A super gorgeous fox enamel pin (it is inbetween the books).
  • A tiny acorn phone charm (it’s on top of the black piece of paper)
  • And the final item is a craft to make an ornament with an origami fox and crow and a cog.

This was my first WeReadBox and I am glad I got it, plus the theme was wonderful and it has a lot of foxes. The craft intrigues me, but you need to go to their website to find instructions and I kinda wish there had been instructions on the leaflet that comes with the books just in case, but otherwise I like the contents of the box and can’t wait to get the one for Strangeworlds!

Books, Subscription Boxes

Worlds Collide Illumicrate Unboxing

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This is March’s Illumicrate box, and I am aware it is missing an item (it is listed in the card, so we know what is misisng but I won’t spoil it) and that is due to the pandemic affecting deliveries, so I won’t be counting that into this unboxing. They were more or less communicative about delays, but they were late in doing so and not very clear, which is not a great point to them (yes, it is a bit of a weird time, but most companies have been quick to notify and let customers and everyone know what’s going on).

So let’s see what was in the box, starting from the left and going clockwise:

  • The featured book, which is Havenfall by Sara Holland. I was looking forward to it and the edges are a gorgeous turquoise, really lovely.
  • This month’s coin and the previous month’s too (so they do keep their word of sending them once they have them). I am not big on the collectible coins, so this rarely ever weights in my opinion.
  • A clear plastic keyring. The artwork is nice and I get that they made it transparent to see the bottle through and all that, but it feels really cheap and like a “filler”. Specially if you compare to keyrings included in previous boxes.
  • A very nice print for City of Brass/Daevad trilogy, which I find gorgeous.
  • A mug, the artwork is nice but the quality is slightly blurry which doesn’t bother me much, but when it is next to the other mugs it feels a bit meh and doesn’t shine as much as it could have done.
  • Shrestha candle. It is glittery and smells delicious.

And the missing item. But even if that had been in the box, the recent boxes definitely feel like the quality and love have been missing from them. This makes me very sad, because given that at least hte last 2-3 boxes were much lower quality and felt underwhelming, I will probably have to cancel my subscription. Hard to do since I’ve been a subscriber for so long (from their fourth box, the Nevernight one). But I can’t keep paying for something that isn’t making me happy and that is lowering the quality and care for the box.

Books, Subscription Boxes

Music of the Night Owlcrate Unboxing

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The one thing I have to say about Owlcrate boxes so far is that they’re definitely making the effort to try ot be unique and have some special value item (either by the art and effort, or the item type). So let’s see what this one had, starting from the top left and going clockwise:

  • The theme card, I like the style so it was fitting for the theme.
  • Owlcrate socks, we all know I usually like socks if they’re soft and comfy and these are. And they are to celebrate Owlcrate’s anniversary 🙂
  • A Phantom of the Opera poster which was interesting to receive and I had to pile everything on it to keep it flat but really appreciated the fact it came rolled up and protected to avoid damage.
  • A mini portable speaker, which is the fun interesting item here and I was surprised and happy to see it in the box.
  • Ex libris cards with an owl and books, can’t complain at all.
  • A wooden plate in relief(it’s kinda carved?) with a quote from V. E. Schwab and the Monsters of Verity series.
  • A lip scrub which is probably the least interesting item for me and that I may not use.
  • Goblin Grove candle, it smells delicious.
  • The theme pin which is a great match to the featured read.
  • The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu. I am very curious and it is gorgeous so hoping it is a good book as it looks interesting.

As it tends to be, this was a great box once again and I was happy with the contents so it feels like good value for money.

Books, Subscription Boxes

Mythical Monsters Book Box Club Unboxing

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Who doesn’t like the idea of mythical creatures? But what about mythical monsters? This box was full of a nod to them and so I’ll unbox starting in the bottom left and going towards the right:

  • The main book, Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury. It sounds a bit more horror like but I am very curious to read it!
  • A pin for hte Dark Compass
  • The theme card, which is very eerie.
  • A super ultra cute Niffler magnet which is adorable and immediately went unot my fridge (but I did debate giving it to Asha…)
  • Baby Nessie, the very charming mosnter of the tea (aka a tea filter in the shape of “Nessie” the Loch Ness monster).
  • The clubhouse invite, for our meeting with the author to discuss the book. Can’t wait, but first need to read the book!
  • Tea to fill Nessie’s belly! In this case a “Dragon” tea to go with the theme.
  • And finally, underneath it all, a gorgeous banner that I’ll probably use more as a tea towel than a banner because it is cloth and it is gorgeous. Love the colour of the illustrations of all the monsters/creatures of myths!

In general this was a great box with amazing stuff in it that made me smile and feels very on point for the theme. Nothing to complain about and the fact that the tea had a tea filter and it matched the whole theme was perfect. Bonus points for that!

Books, Subscription Boxes

Sparks Fly Illumicrate Unboxing

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A slightly delayed unboxing of Illumicrate’s February box since the box itself was delayed due to the pandemic. So let’s see what was inside!

Starting from the center with the theme booklet, and going clockwise:

  • Sparks Fly theme booklet/spoiler card
  • A book shaped tin. I like these because they’re useful for trinkets and look so good on the shelves. This one is inspired by Stalking Jack the Ripper.
  • A roll-on perfume, it smells amazing even if the name makes for amusing “what scent are you wearing?” “I’m wearing god of lies”. I like the roll-on ones because they’re easy to apply and “top up”.
  • Sorcery of Thorns pop socket. I am a bit torn on this one. The quality looks bad and the artwork which is nice doesn’t look too great, so it is tricky (also, how often does one change the pop sockets? I haven’t changed the one on my phone since I first put it a few years ago, so this won’t get used any time soon).
  • Coasters inpired by A Darker Shade of Magic pairings.
  • Serpent & Dove inspired bookmark clip.
  • And the book, which is The Midnight Lie. I haven’t read any of the other books by the author, so I am curious to see how it reads.

All in all the box still feels like there’s not enough love going into it (I know that there was no coin so I am not taking any points out due to that, delays have been affecting everyone, this pandemic isn’t the reason the box wasn’t as great). I just wish I could feel all the care going into the boxes as they used to.

Books, Subscription Boxes

A Power Within Owlcrate Unboxing

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So far, Owlcrate has been the overall favourite in the office and it is not hard to see why. They seem to have the most interesting items and feel like quality plus less “you only get it if you like the fandom” and more “even if you’re into the the fandom, you’ll enjoy this item” which helps attract people to the box (they love it at work). So what did this box include?

Starting from the top left corner and going clockwise:

  • Chain of Gold sampler. Don’t care much about it, but sure others did.
  • Throne of Glass playing cards. I am very much a “do not want this item if it is SJM inspired”, but I swooned for the deck here. The cards are more hard plastic than card stock, a gorgoeus purple with a stunning gold design and they feel amazing when you shuffle them. The artwork is an added bonus which is gorgeous (even if I have no clue who they are).
  • The monthly pin just underneath the card box, probably not the best one but not bad.
  • Ok, this for me was the best item in the box. A bento box with cutlery set and space for it. Look at it. It has the clips on the side to ensure it closes, it is just SO good and a cute light green. Oh, and the symbols are from Mistborn series and all the metal allomancies, which is extra bonus.
  • Another unusual item and I am so happy to have it, a glasses cleaning cloth. With stunning artwork and it came in a cute pouch and I was like “heck yeah, one to keep”.
  • The Magicians inspired keyring. It is fun and has gone into my collection.
  • Metallic bookmark ruler stencil thing that is just a wonderful little gadget to have insire a book for an artist or ruler seeking fiend like me.
  • The theme card with a gorgoeus lilar background I was just happy with (the whole thing is great)
  • Finally, the book. All the Stars and Teeth which I don’t much about but I like the cover and I am intrigued to read it, so we shall see how that goes.

All in all, it had a few new items I haven’t seen in other boxes and that Bento box fully blew me away. It was a stunning box and it is still the favourite overall (some people preferred February’s Fairyloot box over this one in the office, but most thought the Bento was too good).

Books, Subscription Boxes

Rulebreakers Fairyloot Unboxing

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After the Moon & Stars box, I did my best to not keep ym hopes up for this box. The previous one was SO good I wasn’t sure how the follow up box would be. But surprisingly it wasn’t a huge difference. It isn’t as good as Moon & Stars, but it isn’t a sad box or one that made me think “oh noes, not worth it”.

So let’s unbox the contents, starting from the theme card in the middle top and going clockwise:

  • Theme card.
  • A foiled scarf based on Sorcery of Thorns. I was like “oh this is gorgeous” and it still stands. It is stunning.
  • A Serpent and Dove mug. I did not really like the book, but this mug, pure gold(en snake).
  • Tarot collectible cards (not bothered but I can appreciate the art).
  • A We Hunt the Flame print, the artwork is nice and I did recognise it despite still having the book on my TBR.
  • This one made me giggle with the Mordor luggage tag and it is absolutely going on one of our suitcases because it is pretty cool and good pun.
  • On top of the luggage tag is a sticker and there are also some foil booksmarks inspired by Nevernight series and I they fit the series well plus are a good design.
  • A print for the book and the theme bookmark.
  • The book, which is The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller. I don’t think I know much about it except that it had caught my eye and so I am looking forward to reading it.
  • Artwork of the characters from the book (I am not sure yet who they are).
  • There was also a lipbalm that is isnpired by The Wicked Saints and smells very yummy. Good tiing for winter and my husband starting to steal all of my lipbalms!

As you can see, this box had several stunning items and it still feels like a lot of care was going into it to make it so I am glad it didn’t fall flat. Looking forward to the March box!