Special Edition Box Review: Shoujo Sweetie Mark Mail by Creative Chaotics

Good morning kitkats! I know it’s been over a week, and it’s not techinically Monday but oh well. Today is another Merch “Monday” all about a Mark & Wine Glass Mail special by one of my favorite Bookmark makers, CreativeChaotics.

~*~*~*~ Overview ~*~*~*~

Creative Chaotics is a Bookmark and custom wineglass shop on Etsy run by Heather. CC has well made, laminated paper bookmarks, hand-painted wine glasses and magnetic bookmarks. All three range in all sorts of themes from animes to disney to our beloved books. The bookmarks are well made and ship quickly. The wine glasses come in options of with or without stems, an option of glitter, as well as other customizations. She also has a range of ship wine glasses.

~*~*~*~ Shoujo Sweeties ~*~*~*~

On December 7th, Heather of CreativeChaotics announced the theme for the February Mark Mail on Instagram in celebration of her birthday. Preorders opened up on Christmas Day until a few days before they shipped in early February. Bookmarks were themed around Shoujo animes like Ouran High Host Club, Fruits Baskets, Sailor Moon, Ancient Magus Bride, Wotakoi , Vampire Knight. CC’s Mark mail also comes with an option of including a hand-painted glass of a custom of your choice.

~*~*~*~ Unboxing ~*~*~*~

The Shoujo Sweeties Box included:

• An Ouran High School Host Club bookmark by BookmarkingbyVal
• A Custom hand-painted wine glass by Creative Chaotics (I chose Tohru from Fruits Basket)
• A Currently Living in Shoujo Manga art print by Creative Chaotics
• 2 Magnetic Bookmarks (not seen) about Ouran High School Host Club and Fruits Basket
• 11 laminated Shoujo bookmarks by Creative Chaotics including but not limited to:
  • Tuxedo Mask Anibae bookmark
  • Kyoru Ship Bookmark
  • 3 Quote bookmarks for various animes

~*~*~*~ The Verdict ~*~*~*~

This mark mail was absolutely amazing! The wine glass is well made and arrived well protected for shipping. All of the bookmarks are perfect and fit in well with the rest of my hoard of Creative Chaotics bookmarks (if you want an idea of how many I have, just look at the Otaku Thursday header picture, and that’s just the anime themed bookmarks).

~*~*~*~ Future Boxes ~*~*~*~

Creative Chaotics currently has the next two Themes announced and available for pre-order in her Etsy. You can use the code KINGS10 for 10% off any order.

March Mail – Diabolically Disney Just Marks / With Wine Glass (Closes Feb 28th)

April Mail – A Pirate’s Life for Me Just Marks / With Wine Glass

Special Edition Box Review: King of Scars Box by FireNation Creation

It’s the start of another week and with that brings a new Merch Monday post. Today we are featuring a candle company I have been a fan of and their latest Special Edition Candle box.

This Special Edition is all about the Pirate Prince, Nikolai Lanstov and his new story, King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo. It was available for pre-order on November 10th and the first round of boxes shipped the first week of February.

~*~*~*~Overview~*~*~*

Firenation Creations an Etsy Candle shop that opened last March with a small selection for the various Shadowhunter series, some Avatar: The Last Airbender options, and some Percy Jackson Options. Over the past year, FNC has expanded to include wax melts and start seasonal Special Edition boxes.

~*~*~*~King of Scars Box~*~*~*~

On November 10th, the announcement of the next special edition box went live on the FNC Instagram along with the pre-orders. The box was said to include 1 8 oz. Jar Candle, 2 4 oz. Jar Candles and 3+ bookish goodies. And Whimsical Illustrations was announced as an artist vendor for multiple products in the King of Scars Box.

The box was priced at $40 before shipping which was then calculated by Etsy. The customer was ofcourse informed multiple times that this was a pre-order and would not ship until after King of Scars had been published in late January.

~*~*~*~ Unboxing ~*~*~*~

The King of Scars Candle box featured:

• King of Scars 8 oz Candle with art by Whimsical Illustration
• The Little Palace 4 oz Candle
• The Hummingbird 4 oz Candle
• Too Clever Fox Enamel pin by Laserbrainpatchco
• Two-sided Bookmark by Whimsical Illustrations
• Nikolai Lanstov silhouette by Mage of Page
• Sturmhound Tea by Booksnleaf Tea

~*~*~*~ The Verdict ~*~*~*~

Overall, this was a great candle box. The bonus merch was fun, well planned, and perfectly paired with the theme of the box. The candles all smell great and it was well worth of the price of the box. The King himself would love it all.

~*~*~*~ Future Boxes ~*~*~*~

Currently available in the Etsy shop is extras of the King of Scars box found here.

The next candle box is themed around the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, This is Berk, and is set to ship around the end of February.

Subscription Box Review: January Owlcrate

Good Morning and Happy Monday, Kitkats! Welcome back to Merch Monday and today we are unboxing the January Owlcrate: Magical Artifacts!

~*~*~*~ Overview~*~*~*~

Every month we’ll send you a magical box tailored to a super fun theme!

Every single box will include a brand new young adult novel, 3-5 high quality bookish items, as well as exclusive goodies from the author! Every box has a creative theme that ties everything together. And the books we send will keep you up all night!

Owlcrate is available for month to month, 3 Month prepay, or 6 month prepay subscriptions. I personally subscribe for the month to month option so i am able to skip if the theme does not strike my interest and it costs me 29.99 before shipping, which is quite affordable.

~*~*~*~ January: Magical Artifacts ~*~*~*~

The January 2019 Theme was announced on December 14th and was given the synopsis below.

✨ Let’s kick off 2019 with an awesome box of wonder! The January box is inspired by some of our favorite magical items from stories!
✨ Our book pick is an intricate and mysterious tale about a group of misfits seeking a very important artifact. Join them as they lurk around the city streets of historical Paris – what dark secrets will they encounter?
✨ The book will be a beautiful exclusive OwlCrate edition, which will be signed by the author!
✨ Items in the box will be inspired by enchanted objects from beloved books such as Harry Potter, Shadow and Bone, The Lord of the Rings, The Golden Compass, and A Darker Shade of Magic!

It was announced that starting with the January box, there was giong to be a collectible enamel pin in each box to replace the monthly button pin. This month’s pin was designed by @alchemyandink and was inspired by this month’s book!

~*~*~*~ Unboxing ~*~*~*~

Let’s see what Magical items were included in the Magical Artifacts Box!

Full Unboxing Jan 2019 Magical Artifacts

• An Antler bracelet made by Team Owlcrate
• A wooden letter opener designed around Sting, Bilbo & Frodo’s sword from Lord of the Rings by Juniper & Ivy Designs.
• Deathly Hallows Socks by Team Owlcrate & Michelle Gray
• A Zipper Pouch inspired by Schwab’s A Darker Shade of Magic by Stella Bookish Art
• A Small Wall Tapestry, created with The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman in mind designed by Holly Dunn Design.
• A signed, Owlcrate Exclusive copy of The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi.
• Included with the book was a letter from the author and an exclusive luggage tag.
• The Monthly Enamel pin was inspired by The Gilded Wolves and created by Alchemy and Ink.

Close up of Zipper Pouch, Antler Bracelet, and Wooden Letter Opener

~*~*~*~ The Verdict ~*~*~*~

Overall, this box was absolutely phenomenal. While I am beginning to grow quite the collection of zipper pouches, this A Darker Shade of Magic one is absolutely gorgeous and I hope to put it into good use. The bracelet is gorgeous and easily applied to many fandoms. I have already inhaled the story and as you know, if you’ve read my review of The Gilded Wolves, know that this story is an absolute favorite. Once again, Owlcrate has come through with a great box and I will continue to subscribe for quite a long time.

~*~*~*~ Future Crates ~*~*~*~

The February Crate is Whimsical Beasts and is currently on Waiting List for new subscribers. Find out more about the Feb Box here.

Subscription Box Review: Queen of Air and Darkness Hangover Recovery Kit Crate by FaeCrate

Happy Monday Morning, Kitkats. I know that’s a bit of a oxymoron, happy and Monday. But today I am bringing something new to the blog, reviews of Subscription Boxes both regular subscriptions and special editions crate.

Today is an Exclusive Special Edition from the magical ladies of Faecrate. Faecrate is developing a specialty line of Hangover Recovery Kits that started with A Court of Frost and Starlight in May 2018, closely followed by A Reaper at the Gates in June 2018, and Kingdom of Ash in September 2018.

I will be reviewing the Queen of Air and Darkness Hangover Recovery Kit that shipped mid December 2018 and came with a Box only, a Book only option, and a Book & Box option.

Overview

Fae Crate is a magically tailored book box that features Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction themes.

Each box will include a hardback new release, and a minimum of 4-6 bookish goodies all focused on the theme for the month. And don’t forget the t-shirt!

We’re based in the USA but we ship World Wide!

Hangover Recovery Kit

Faecrate announced their Fourth Hangover Recovery Kit on August 20th, 2018 with the following announcement post.

A week later, they held a Poll tournament to decide on the character who would be Plushie included in the crate. After eliminating 31 other characters, Will Herondale was the overall champion. There were a few other spoilers over the next couple months and then the boxes shipped out. It was also announec that a portion of the profits from the Queen of Air and Darkness Kits was going to be donated to the Best Day Foundation.

Let’s get to the unboxing.

Unboxing

The Hangover Crate included a plethora of items for a base price of $39.99 including:

• A Will Herondale Plushie
• A Stele USB by IcanDrawThingz
• An Umbrella with a quote by Isabella Lightwood from the Mortal Instruments series by Blanca Design
• A Pillow inspired by Jemma from the Dark Artifices series by Drawnielle
• A leather clutch with various symbols over it as well as the angelic rune inspired by the various Shadowhunters series IcanDrawThingz
• A color-changing Angelic Rune nightlight.
• The Wild Hunt candle by SayAnythingStudio
• Prints of the London, New York City, and Los Angeles Institute Shadowhunters by roitssomething
• 3 Illustrated Quote Stickers from IcanDrawThingz
• Shadowhunter Academy Pennant Flag by VergeofWisteria
• A Rock Solid Panda Concert Ticket Bookmark by VergeofWisteria

There was also the option of ordering a Box + Book or Book Only option which came with a First Edition of Queen of Air and Darkness and a signed book plate.

Wild Hunt Candle, Stele USB, Rock Solid Panda Concert Ticket

LA Institute, London Institute, New York City Institue Prints

The Verdict

The amount of well-made merch that Meagan and Brittany curated for this Kit is absolutely stunning. They packed the kit to the absolute brim that it practically sprang open when the tape was cut to unbox it. It was an absolute dream to have alongside me when i read through Queen of Air and Darkness.

Faecrate was competely transparent and communicative during the few shipping issues that popped up due to December and the excess of packages being shipped for Christmas. They even worked hard to make sure that everyone had tracking information even after switching shipping companies half way through and had to manually add the tracking numbers to each order.

Future Crates

Faecrate currently has one Hangover Recovery Kit for Sale and one on the horizon.

Bloodwitch Hangover Recovery Kit Post Click to Buy

Defy Me Hangover Recovery Kit Post – Going on Sale Mid-Late January