OwlCrate Review April 2017 Box

          Every box from OwlCrate we get the theme of the coming box, so I knew from last month that this month's theme would be Head Over Heels. The box arrived a little late for me thanks to Aramex and Kuwait customs but that is okay. Let's get into the box.

          I love this postcard. It is really pretty and has all the elements of what is OwlCrate and what it means, plus there are a few hints in this of what is in the box. The back of the card has all the stuff that is in the box.

          This is the first thing that popped out of the box after the squiggly worms. It is a loose leaf tea called "Anna and the French Kiss" from The Tea Spot. I'm not big on tea but I gave this tea a try because it smelled like chocolates. I liked it and I'm going to enjoy the four more cups that the packet will give me. I might even go check out the other kinds of teas they have.

          The second thing that caught my eye was the candle. I learned that there were three different candles inspired by three different couples from books and the one I got smelled divine because it smelled like coffee. The candle is from Novelly Yours. It is supposed to be coffee, pumpkin and chocolate but honestly, it is mostly yummy coffee.

          The next item in the box was a Pride and Prejudice inspired fabric headband, which was created exclusively by Storiarts. My hair is too short for this and I'm not much for headbands BUT I do know someone who will kill for something like this so it is going to her.

          I love the trinkets that are usually in the OwlCrate box. This is no exception. It is an adorable keychain that has a quote from the book Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda and on the back, it looks like an oreo. It comes from Bookworm Boutique.

          This booklet is a sneak peak at the book Umberland by Wendy Spinale. There isn't really anything on it in the information card but on the inside of the booklet, the author explains how she loved that her previous book was featured a few months back on OwlCrate so she is sharing a sneak peek of the second book in the series previously shared.

          This print was designed by Evie Bookish, and it is a quote from the A Court of Thorns and Roses Series...I've never read the series.

          And now we come to the reason for the box. THE BOOK. I'm happy with this. I don't know the author, and I've never heard of the book. I'm hoping that I will love it as much as I loved the book from last month's box.

          As usual, the book comes with a letter from the author, which was really sweet and the collage on the letter was cute and fun. It also came with a bookplate and a funny sticker.

         

         

          No OwlCrate box is complete without the obligatory button and a sneak peak at the theme of next month. I can't wait for next month's box!

Cuttlebugs and Xyrons, OH MY!!!

          I wasn't sure if I was going to write about cardmaking. Do people really want to know about this stuff? In the end, I decided...oh well, might as well do it I already wrote about bookbinding.

          I've always loved writing snail mail and part of that was making my own stationary and cards. For the most part, I used markers, stamps and stencils.  After a while, I got bored. I needed to shake things up and so off to YouTube I went. I found the world of embossing and adding dimension to cards by having raised parts. I did my research on the machines that do that and finally settled on two machines: the Cricut Cuttlebug and the Xyron Create a Sticker. The Cuttlebug embosses and cuts shapes while the Xyron makes stickers out of anything. I'm going to tell you a bit about each and then show you what I did with them so far.

1. Cricut Cuttlebug: (From Amazon.com) "The Circuit Cuttlebug die Cutting and embossing machine offers a versatile and portable option for Cutting and embossing a wide variety of materials. The only machine that can emboss, the Cuttlebug gives professional-looking results with clean, crisp cuts and deep, even embosses. It works with the entire line of Cuttlebug embossing folders and Cutting dies. It's also compatible with most leading folders and dies. Go beyond paper and cut and emboss materials including tissue paper, foils, acetate ribbon, thin leather, and more."

2. Xyron Create a Sticker Max: (From the manufacturer) "Making your own stickers is as easy as turning the knob. The Xyron XRN500 Create-a-Sticker applies an even layer of adhesive to the back of any flat item up to 5 inches wide. Use it instead of glue dots, household glue, glue sticks or other adhesives."

          So the Cricut Cuttlebug comes with an embossing folder and a die cut that says Thank You. I decided to use what came with the machine before I went all out and bought different dies and embossing folders. I wanted to see how easy it was to use and whether or not it really is as useful as it seemed on the internet. Well...I tried it out, then I used the Xyron to make parts of the card into stickers to stick on the base card (I like to build cards in layers).

          Without further ado here is what I came up with, the white part of the card I did with the embossing folder and I coloured the Thank You using some alcohol markers. The Thank You and the white part I ran through the Xyron machine and then stuck them on some black cardstock that I had in my stash.

          I'm very happy with how these simple cards came out and I've ordered some new dies and embossing folders. We'll see how that turns out. As to the Xyron, that has seen a lot of action in my Omni journal where I'll turn elements that I want to stick into my journal into stickers and add them. I love both these machines!

Robert Loves Box (Final)

          I haz a sad. 😢 After almost 25 years in the business, Robert Mason Co. is closing... they just could not recover from a fire that happened in 2014. I wish I had discovered them a while back. As it is, their site is selling out pretty fast and they have 30% off of things so go get your unique products from them. I wish they would have continued their subscription box at least, people would so subscribe to them because they have quality products at good prices.

          Anyroad, this is the last box from the Robert Loves subscription and it is amazing as usual. The theme of the box is Bullet Journaling which I am a big fan of and do religiously.

          Robert Loves is featuring one of the bullet journalers that I follow and she has some good tips for you so if you don't follow her you need to check her out at Tiny Ray Of Sunshine. Also if you are new to bullet journaling go to the source of it all Ryder Carroll's website Bullet Journal. So without any further delay let us get into the box.

          This box has 8 amazing products chosen with care by the Robert Mason team and they are items that most bullet journalers would use but heck, anyone can use them. I'm going to use the information page they sent to talk about the items.

1. Sharpie 24K Colour Burst Limited Edition (Ultra fine point) and these are a set that I have been eyeing for a while now. They are a thing of beauty. I can't wait to try them out in my journal.

2. Blackwing Volume 205 - The Jade Pencil Limited edition. This product is already sold out in their stores, this is how awesome these pencils are and how much they are wanted. 

3. To go along with the Blackwing pencils, Robert Loves Team also sent out the Blackwing Long Point Sharpener. This is a two-step sharpener, where you first sharpen the wood and then precision sharpen the graphite core to a long, fine point. It also comes with two replacement blades and a brake to stop the pencil from sharpening too much. It also lets you only sharpen the graphite core so that your pencils last for a long time. 

4 and 5. The next two items I'm combining together because they are similar to each other. One is a Post-It set of 5 multicolour page markers and one is a super sticker 3x3 notes multicoloured pack. I can always use more post-its, they work for everything.

6. C-Line Slide-Open Tray Pencil Case with snap closure. I love pencil cases and this one is pretty! They also have leather ones that are similar to this one in their online store.

7 and 8. I left the last two items to the end because while all the other items were amazing these two are considered the holy grail in most Bullet Journaling communities. I've never used one and have been thinking of getting one...but something always stopped me. Now I have one!

LEUCHTTURM1917 and a matching pen loop. Yes, they included a Leuchtturm1917. The colour is purple because Robert Mason supports causes like Anti-Bullying and this box is dedicated to The Trevor Project. The proceeds from this box will go to that organisation. To learn more about them check out The Trevor Project. 

          I'm really sad to see this box subscription go. I'm really sad to see a quality business with good products and great prices go, such is life. Robert Mason, thank you for giving me happiness for the past two months. If you ever decide to just curate boxes with the Robert Mason products I will be the first to resubscribe. 

Indie Book Connect (April 2017)

          This is a subscription that I came across on Instagram but then later found on Cratejoy. On Cratejoy it says: "Indie Book Connect is a subscription box for the reader who walks into Barnes and Noble and feels like they have read it all. Allow us to introduce you to the wonderful world of independent authors and all of the books that you have been missing out on. Every month you can expect to receive two new fiction books from two separate authors." I was really looking forward to this because everyone talks about the well-known authors but no one talks about the independent ones.

          The first thing I noticed about this subscription is that it is not a fancy one...and that is totally okay. Fancy is nice but in a bookish subscription, it is not necessary. So the package was just sturdy enough to protect the books and that was about it.

          I opened it and pulled out all the books and stuff inside. I looked at all the papers included in the box first before looking at the books.

           So the first thing that caught my eye was that the curators of this subscription have a group on Goodreads to discuss the books that they have included in their subscriptions. I like that. It helps one find reading buddies and someone to chat with about your feelings on the books. The second thing was the beautiful card with a quote and where to find Indie Book Connect online. And finally, a gorgeous bookmark with a link to the shop that it came from so you bet I'm going to check them out whenever I need new bookmarks.

          Now let us look at the books included. The subscription gives you two. The first one that I looked at was Dreamer by M. J. Neal. It is the first book in the series Raphim Rising. It is a fantasy novel, which is a genre that I love to read but have not done so in quite a while. I love the cover and I also love that I've never heard of the author or the book. This is going to be an adventure for me. I also love that they included the first book in the series. Nothing worse than getting the second or third book in a series you've never read or heard of...I usually give those away. The first book in the series though makes me want to try the series out to see if I like it and the writing style of its writer. Good job Indie Book Connect! There was also a card that had the author's information on it and where we can find her. I like that too.

          The second book in the subscription was Last Chance Baby by Ashley Gallegos. This one is a romance novel. This is a genre I used to be interested in but have not been reading a lot of (at least in the m/f category), so again I'm going to go back to my roots in reading. I started out my book dragon status (I refuse to be called a bookworm 😛) reading Mills and Boon books (don't judge!). I love that the book was signed by the author and that they included a Do Not Disturb sign to hang on the door with the book.

          This subscription is a keeper so far. It is a no fuss no muss subscription centred on books and only books, and I love that I am going to get books by authors I've never heard of and books that might not be well known. Widening my horizons is a good thing.

Inspire-ME Crate (April 2017)

          The description on Cratejoy says, "Inspire your inner artist with quality art supplies and creativity sparking lesson plans." I...wasn't inspired...at all.

          The box that arrived was really cute, it had their logo on it and it looked really nice. I'm giving them points for that.

    

          The first thing you see when you open the box is one long wrapped package and one that is as big as the box. 

          The long package contained the "art supplies": one brush pen (brown), one colored pencil (green), one micro-line pen (brown), one pencil (it is an eco friendly pencil in that it is supposed to have a casual with seeds at the end of the pencil for planting, the capsule was broken and the seeds gone) and finally one oil pastel (yellow). I know that individually they are good supplies I just wasn't sure what to do with them. Had I gotten a set of lead pencils or a set of pens or even some cheap sets of pastels I would have been happier. 

I so wanted this box to be redeemed by the other larger package in the box but...

          This was the booklet that is supposed to give you some warm up exercises. It was okay but it is not a WOW...

          I'm not sure what this booklet was supposed to be. It had a sort of story to read then you were supposed to create characters based on questions you are asked. I was just confused.

          Finally, there was a small booklet with blank sketching paper. The size was too small for me, I can't use this for sketching anything really.

          I don't think that this box is for me. It might be something that others might enjoy. I like my boxes to be a little more substantial. I would not have minded a few online videos with a single good sketch box, or even just one box of oil pastels (even cheap ones). I canceled my subscription.

V. Paperie April 2017 Box

          This is the second box I got from V. Paperie and for the second time, I am not disappointed. April is Letter Writing Month and the people at V. Paperie have put together a box to reflect that. But I'm getting ahead of myself. My holding box service has been very erratic in bringing me my boxes of late and I was worried that my V. Paperie box would not arrive, but it did.

Of course, Kuwait customs had to take a peak. I'm starting to think that they like taking a look at my boxes. 😏 But what really caught my eye was the poem that the curators of the box included to tell me (well, the recipient of the box anyway) what the theme of the box for this month is.

I do find the second line of the poem a bit ironic since I've been waiting on letters from International Correspondence Writing Month...that was in February. But that has nothing to do with the box. ONWARDS!

I laughed so hard when I saw these stickie notes. They so sound like me when I am not in the mood for anything. Who knew? Stickie notes with character 😆

Paper Mate Flair (M) in blue this time. I say this time because in a previous box (the Robert Mason Box) I'd gotten the yellow one. I'm enjoying that, I might just end up with the whole collection and save myself the trouble of ordering them 😜

I always look forward to the cards that come in this box. They are usually very pretty and varied enough to be useful and these were no exception. I especially liked the one with the typewriter. I seem to have an obsession with them.

Look at that beauty! The journal is sturdy and has a beautiful cover. I love the feel of the paper and that it is lined. It looks very elegant.

Another amazing box from V. Paperie. You can find them on cratejoy.com.