Tag: Unboxing

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: From Beyond Death Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: From Beyond Death, October 2022

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing an Illumicrate subscription, you can do it on their website.

Illumicrate is a book subscription box, it usually features fantasy and sci-fi but not exclusively young adult, sometimes it features adult too. It usually contains a new release, a pin and several bookish goodies.

In this blog, you are never too late, you’re just travelling through time because I am totally not behind in my unboxings and my blog wasn’t offline for a while due to server issues outside of my control. Instead, you get you to enjoy what was inside this box and not feel like they are spoilers!

Starting from the leaflet at the bottom and going clockwise:

  • Leaflet with contents and makers.
  • The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrew, with very pretty edges as usual.
  • Underneath, slightly bunched up but soft as anything and very pretty, Moth Amongst Dreamers blanket.
  • The next teacup and saucer set, this time for the Underworld.
  • There was also a papercraft design that did not come withe the box and was sent afterwards.
  • Cable ties, which are cool designs and not just cute.

Overall, I have a love of blankets, particularly in blue so this was one gorgeous and I am happy with it. The cable ties are handy, and I do like teacups and saucers even if I don’t have enough space for them which is a shame. I still live in hope of more dessert dishes like they sent last time because those I could use everyday or some cereal bowls, soup bowls, something like that. I admit that I have fear of ruining pretty things and haven’t tackled the papercraft yet, but I am slowly making my way through my hobbies pile and hopefully will get to it at some point.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Dark Academia Owlcrate

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Subscription box: Owlcrate

Theme/Month: Dark Academia, August 2021

Ownership: One-off purchase since the shipping and tax have made Owlcrate too expensive.

When they announced the theme of Dark Academia and the hints for the book alongside the fandoms I had to order it even if it was a bit expensive. And I do not regret my choices. So let’s unbox it and see what was inside, starting from the top left and going clockwise:

  • A stationery set that looks like a school journal kinda thing and it has page tabs, sticky notes, a pen and a notepad in it. All very cute.
  • Raven Boys Book Sleeve.
  • From the Library Of stamp which is a nice design and you just need an ink pad in your favourite colour to mark all your books so no one steals them when they borrow them.
  • Riddle’s Tea Shoppe blend based on Truly Devious series.
  • Book tin from V.E. Schwab’s Darker Shade of Magic series, White London in this case. Sadly I don’t have the rest but this one is gorgeous.
  • Monthly Pin with a typewriter
  • A very delicate moon bookmark based on The Secret History.
  • The main book was A Lesson in Vengeance in a very soft and not dark academia type of cover which was a surprise for me.

Overall it had the right vibe with all the items in it and it felt delicate and yet dark, even if the exclusive cover was a bit of a surprise, but I liked the items and felt it was worth getting however it was still a bit steep for a regular box. Probably worth it if you are in the US and shipping isn’t prohibitive.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: The Stranger The Better Tales by Mail

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Subscription box: Tales by Mail

Theme/Month: The Stranger the Better, for August 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Tales by Mail subscription, you can do it on their website.

Tales by Mail is a bi-monthly middle-grade book box that comes with two books, some activity pages you can collect, or copy or use in various ways, a pin and one or two items.

With a very interesting theme, let’s see what was in the box, starting on the top left corner and going clockwise:

  • A Raven Heir promotional bookmark.
  • Crowfall by Vashti Hardy, which looks very intriguing to me.
  • The activity pages for the month which go into the collectible ring binder.
  • The most adorable keyring, which is the mascot for the box and I was so taken by it.
  • The Tentacle Boy which wasn’t in my radar but looks intriguing and creepy weird.
  • Promotional bookmark for The Tentacle Boy and Pizazz
  • The collectible pin

It was a very cute choice and maybe not my favourite box of the year but my absolute favourite was that keyring which I thought was super sweet and honestly, it won my heart.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Just Imagine Book Box Club

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Subscription box: Book Box Club

Theme/Month: Just Imagine, June 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 12 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Book Box Club subscription, you can do it on their website.

Book Box Club is a young adult subscription box, the unique thing is the Clubhouse where you can chat to the author a month (or so) after the box was shipped and ask questions and just chat around. It also includes several goodies and usually the choice of book is one that is unique and not in other book boxes so very few chances of duplicate books and a lot of new reads discovery power.

June’s box was all about the power of imagination and therefore full of fandoms that had to do with imaginary worlds or similar things, so let’s see what was inside starting with the theme card and going clockwise:

  • Just Imagine theme card, there was also a clubhouse invite.
  • Joe Cool Alice in Wonderland socks, which makes me happy because they are so comfy and nice. Love it when I get socks
  • Somewhere Over the Rainbow bookmark which is adorable.
  • A quote print about imagination and reality, a bit too pink for my taste but still cute.
  • Coraline keychain
  • The main book, Strange Creatures which was definitely not what I imagined, see what I did there?.
  • And finally, a tin of hard boiled sweets, very old style, with a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory motif.

Overall very dreamy, very much appealing to memories and imagination, cute. The book was an interesting surprise and very much for me not my book as it was a bit too intense and just not my kind but I could see why it was chosen and it had an interesting concept.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Out of the Woods Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: Out of the Woods, June 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing an Illumicrate subscription, you can do it on their website.

Illumicrate is a book subscription box, it usually features fantasy and sci-fi but not exclusively young adult, sometimes it features adult too. It usually contains a new release, a pin and several bookish goodies.

Despite last month’s box being my most anticipated read and a great box, I think this is one of my favourite boxes of the year from them, so let’s see why I think so, starting from the leaflet in the middle of the lower row:

  • Out of the Woodes leaflet with the photo challenge and contents detailed.
  • A wordmark with a quote about it, but I love the sleepy fox and yes I won’t use it as a bookmark but the design wins me over.
  • The main book which was stunning, The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid.
  • A creepy kinda print which goes well with some others and I just like the artwork.
  • The Lord of the Rings puzzle in a “book” case, my puzzle-loving heart is extra happy since it is from LOTR.
  • A beautiful and delicate glass bottle with birch trees and a quote woven around, the design of it looks amazing when you fill the bottle.
  • The monthly pin, which as per usual is a nice pin.
  • A woodpin for We Hunt the Flame
  • Probably my least favourite item, a print that hangs in a fancy hanging way for Holly Black, I think?

Overall, the theme and items completely matched and the vibe was spot on with it, the designs were delicate and forest and had a tinge of the creepy and the beautiful. I felt like the whole box was a good one and I am very happy.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Hokkaido Summer SakuraCo

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Hokkaido Summer SakuraCo

Subscription box: SakuraCo

Theme/Month: Hokkaido Summer, July 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 3 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Sakura Co subscription, you can do it on their website.

SakuraCo is a new box that focuses on Japanese tea, sweets and snacks from local makers for you to enjoy. And the idea is that you take a unique snack journey around Japan with the contents of the box. I’ve been subscribed since the first box and so far enjoyed the journey.

As per usual, the box is crammed full of snacks and delicious treats, so let’s start unboxing from the top left and skipping the repeated snacks that ended away from their twin:

  • Melon Soft Sand, crispy crunchy wafer with a very thin layer of melon cream, but still very flavourful.
  • Butter Mochi Senbei, crunchy and slightly honey sweet mochi
  • Hokkaido Grilled Corn Senbei, sweet and full of corn flavour but not the way you expect.
  • Yubari Melon Jelly, a fresh summer melon, sweet and extremely pleasant, almost like biting the real thing.
  • Okina Dorayaki, just a nice fluffy dorayaki.
  • Hearty Age mochi, savoury mochi with a sea like taste.
  • Yubari Melon Cream Sandwich Cookies, the cookie kept confusing me but the cream was delicious.
  • Postcard
  • Yawaraka Rum Raisin, boozy and delicious, a contrast to the rest of the box for sure but a good one.
  • Hokkaido Milk Cheesecake, I prefer this type of cheesecake so much more. Absolutely delicious.
  • Milk Mochi, sticky and chewy and delicious.
  • Melon Mochi, I love these bags of mochi, absolute pleasure and last long enough even if I have to stop myself from eating them all at once.
  • Peach Matcha Tea
  • Kibi Dango, another mochi with chewy and sweet flavour.
  • Hangetsu side plate. It matches a tray in a previous box and fits nicely to present food.
  • The monthly leaflet with details fo each snack, ingredients, allergens and a bit of history of some of the choices or why focusing on melon and the region.

This box definitely gave me a summer vibe feel to it and I have enjoyed my way through it. It also had some familiar types of snacks but other new ones that surprised me, and I am slowly still figuring out what type of things I like the most. That cheesecake felt risky to eat at first but each bite made it just a favourite more and more.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: WhoDunnIt? Book Box Club

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Subscription box: Book Box Club

Theme/Month: WHODUNNIT, May 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 12 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Book Box Club subscription, you can do it on their website.

Book Box Club is a young adult subscription box, the unique thing is the Clubhouse where you can chat to the author a month (or so) after the box was shipped and ask questions and just chat around. It also includes several goodies and usually the choice of book is one that is unique and not in other book boxes so very few chances of duplicate books and a lot of new reads discovery power.

This box was all about solving the mystery and our favourite cases or detectives, so let’s see what was inside, starting from the bottom right corner and going clockwise:

  • Clubhouse invite, still personalised.
  • A Moustache you a question? bath bomb which I thought was in part kudos to detectives and also it is a fun word game.
  • A set of Detective Notes
  • Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder, an interesting little murder mystery book.
  • Professor Plum candle, which is absolutely glorious
  • Theme card
  • A “labyrinth” type of pen with a quote which I always forget which it is but it is a fun pen.
  • An a little enamel pin

Overall I totally felt all the points to detectives and solving the mystery, plus the adding a Professor Plum and clue reference was cute and the colours fo the items kinda kept in theme of an old era vibe, really nice box.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Dearly Departed Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: Dearly Departed, April 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing an Illumicrate subscription, you can do it on their website.

Illumicrate is a book subscription box, it usually features fantasy and sci-fi but not exclusively young adult, sometimes it features adult too. It usually contains a new release, a pin and several bookish goodies.

Apparently, I have a backlog of boxes to show and share, and since the bookplate for the book came in the July box, might as well go through this one, starting on the top right corner with the theme card:

  • Dearly Departed theme leaflet.
  • Nevernight inspired book bag, not entirely sure what the right name for it is, but basically, you can turn it into some kind of self-standing basket, and honestly, I love it. Because you can also turn it into a floppy bag that you can carry upstairs, so I have it downstairs to hold items I need to move upstairs, and then it gets emptied and comes back. It looks amazing instead of just a lot of clutter to be sorted, but I can see other uses for it, and obviously, I like it since I rarely ever write so much about an item.
  • Monthly collectable pin, a skull made of flowers, which is a good concept.
  • Woodmarks, which I was less interested in even if they are Mucha style.
  • Gideon and Harrow the Ninth magnets.
  • In the Ravenous Dark as the main book.
  • And a mason jar for drinking out of it. I am not really crazy about them since it is difficult to drink out of the rim and without a lid, you cant easily transport the liquids in it, so they rarely ever get used at home.

Can you guess what my favourite item was? In case you had any doubts, it was the Nevernight basket bag. It was a cohesive in theme box and not bad though I do wish there was more death oriented items without being too fandom exclusive.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Against the Dark Book Box Club

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Subscription box: Book Box Club

Theme/Month: Against the Dark, March 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 12 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Book Box Club subscription, you can do it on their website.

Book Box Club is a young adult subscription box, the unique thing is the Clubhouse where you can chat to the author a month (or so) after the box was shipped and ask questions and just chat around. It also includes several goodies and usually the choice of book is one that is unique and not in other book boxes so very few chances of duplicate books and a lot of new reads discovery power.

I am just here noticing that I am posting unboxings two months behind, it’s all fine. Mostly because I try to avoid spoiling people but then sometimes to fit it around my schedule, I end up waiting longer. Oh well, March was still a “dark” theme for Book Box Club, so let us see what was inside, starting at the top right corner and going clockwise:

  • Dark Stars promo card, which I think had a code or something since the first book was one from a previous box.
  • Clubhouse invite, love the personalised touch.
  • Theme card.
  • A Oh Panda Eyes very cute and dainty necklace.
  • Print with a botanical vibe I like.
  • A notebook inspired by Stranger Things
  • A bookend in wood with a gorgeous painting on it, reminding me of the times I have stayed up very late wanting to keep on reading.
  • The Shadow War, an intriguing historical book.
  • A tiny lipbalm that accidentally blends in too well with the puzzle underneath.
  • And to go with the bookend and reject darkness, a book flashlight so you can read and attach it to the book.

Overall, a lovely box, very in theme with useful lovely items and I was super pleased with the fun approach of having a flashlight/booklight to go against the dark, so I do like it a lot and intrigued by the book whcih sounds right up my street.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Fighting Spirit Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: Fighting Spirit, March 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing an Illumicrate subscription, you can do it on their website.

Illumicrate is a book subscription box, it usually features fantasy and sci-fi but not exclusively young adult, sometimes it features adult too. It usually contains a new release, a pin and several bookish goodies.

Sorry for the random background changes to come since I have no puzzle due to moving house and will get to it when I can unpack and have the time for them, in the meantime let’s enjoy this unboxing, starting with the book and going clockwise:

  • The Unbroken with gorgeous sprayed edges.
  • A Winter Night tote bage with utterly stunning artwork.
  • Take What You Will pin embroidery hoop art, not entirely sure which of the many options it actually is but there it is.
  • Dark Artifices mug, I admit I love the mug but I am not a fan of the fandom so let a friend have it instead.
  • A heartglass necklace, which made me squeal a little when I saw it as I immediately knew what it was and which fandom!
  • The monthly pin, which is an intriguing design.
  • A wordmark, which is cool but I am not huge on any wooden bookmark overall as they tend to be just not right for using as an actual bookmark.

Overall the box had an interesting mix of fandoms and some interesting items, I was really pleased with the design of the tote and the Bone Witch item but I was also a bit meh about the pin embroidery hoop and wordmark, so a mixed opinion on it… Hopefully the next month and forward are better.