subscription box

October 2018 Cryptid Crate & Halloween Swap Box!

| marandarussell

I wanted to share a few fun things I got in the mail yesterday. First, is the October Cryptid Crate Lite subscription box. This is actually the last month I will be getting this box because I had to choose only 2 at a time and there are two others that I have been enjoying even more. I still love Cryptid Crate though and wish I could subscribe to all the boxes I want! Here is what I got this month:

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I was happy to get a Bigfoot t-shirt! I was hoping to get one from the subscription box! This Bigfoot Xing shirt is a special edition only available from Cryptid Crate. They also sent a Sasquatch Field Guide which helps you identify signs of Sasquatch activity in the wild, a little bottle of Big Foot Hair (supposedly from real live Bigfoots lol), and some handmade, pumpkin spice scented Bigfoot soap.

I also received another package yesterday, which was a Halloween swap box I have been doing for years with my friends and fun, creepy YouTubers, JekyllHydeClub. We share a passion for all things dark and creepy and especially for Halloween! Here is what they sent:

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I love everything they sent, but some of my favorites are the little spiderweb pet costume, the black bird skeleton, the socks, and all the jewelry. I know the jewelry is a little hard to see in the photo above, so here is a little bit of a closer view:

KODAK Digital Still Camera

I think my favorites of the jewelry are the unique pink ring that looks almost like a crystal ball with liquid in it, the black cat ring, the cat/witch’s broom necklace, and the red bracelet with the black crow and skull. The little charms will be fun to make my own unique jewelry with too!

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May 2018 My First Reading Club Subscription Box Review!

| marandarussell

This month I did the May 2018 My First Reading Club unboxing and review on my YouTube channel (Maranda’s Toys & Books), so I figured I would post the video here in case anyone wanted to see which children’s books I got this month for only $9.99 plus S&H! This box is always SUCH a great deal! Definitely recommended for families!

 

March 2018 My First Reading Club Subscription Box Review!

| marandarussell

I told you all that soon I would have a new subscription box to share and review and it is here! This subscription box is called “My First Reading Club” and they have a wide variety of ages you can pick from to receive at least 3 or 4 brand new children’s books each month. The best part is it only costs $9.99 (plus shipping)! Often, you recoup the entire price in just ONE book!

For this first month I picked the “Just Starting Out” age group, which is 2 and under I believe. However, I have upped the age group for my next box because I would like to receive some regular picture books and not just board books. Anyhow, here is what I received this month:

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  • A Disney Frozen “Ice Box” set that includes four board books, each featuring different characters (Anna, Elsa, Kristoff & Sven, and Olaf), Retail $10.99
  • A Sparkly Nickelodeon Team Umizoomi Board Book entitled “Follow That Egg!”, Retail $6.99
  • A Disney Sheriff Callie’s Wild West Lift-the-Flap Book entitled “Callie Saves the Day”, Retail $8.99
  • A gift for Moms – AMBR Green Tea Spa Lotion, unknown value

Here are the four Disney Frozen books inside the “Ice Box” set (my favorite of which is definitely the Olaf book):

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Here is a peek inside the other two books we got this month:

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I like all the books we got this month, although I will admit I was a little disappointed to only get one Easter themed book (the Umizoomi one). In other My First Book Club box reviews I have seen, it looked like they often sent themed packages out with almost all books relating to any holidays that month, so I was definitely expecting more of an Easter theme.

Like I said above, although I do like children’s board books, I want a more well-rounded box to build up my collection, so I did up the age group for my next box. It is nice that they always send a little gift for Mom too. Of the books they sent this month, my favorite is definitely the Umizoomi book. Partly because it is Easter-themed, and partly because it is really sparkly and I do love sparkly things!

 

ArtSnacks March 2018 Subscription Box Review

| marandarussell

First off, I want to let everyone know this will actually be the last ArtSnacks subscription box I will review. Honestly, I just didn’t feel like I was getting enough use out of it for the cost. I feel like I’m better off just shopping the discount art supplies at local shops. I did subscribe to a different fun subscription box that I will be reviewing from now on, but it isn’t an artist one (you’ll have to stay tuned to see what it is)!

Anyhow, here is what I got in this month’s ArtSnacks box:

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  • A custom ArtSnacks Pencil Case
  • ArtSnacks Sticker Sheet
  • Orange Copic Ciao Double Ended Marker
  • Copic Multiliner
  • 2 Lyra Color Giants Color Pencils (red and purple)
  • Warheads Candy

Even though I stopped subscribing to this box, this still might be my favorite box so far. I do really like the custom ArtSnacks pencil case and am sure I’ll get some use from that. The pencil case seems to be made of good quality materials and is double-zippered with two separate compartments. It isn’t big enough to hold a lot at a time, but it is still handy.

I was also thrilled to get a couple Copic products. I’ve always wanted to have the money to invest in some Copic markers, but haven’t done so yet because they are so pricey. Of course, I’m not sure how much I’ll get done with just one orange marker lol.

The Lyra Color Giants color pencils are really cool as well. They are from Germany and seem to be well made. Their huge size kind of reminds me of the big, thick colored pencils that are sometimes made for really little kids. I’m not sure how much I’ll actually use them, but they are pretty neat.

Overall, this was a cool box, but not enough to make me sorry I unsubscribed.

February 2018 ArtSnacks Artist Subscription Box

| marandarussell

A few days ago I received the February 2018 ArtSnacks subscription box! I love getting these every month because it gives me a chance to try new art supplies I might not give a chance otherwise, and also challenges me to use the new supplies to create new, original artworks.

Here is what we got this month:

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  • 2 Sennelier French Artists’ Watercolor Tubes
  • Raphael Mini Precision Paint Brush
  • Faber-Castell Goldfaber Sketching Pencil, 2H
  • Sakura Pigma Micron PN Pen
  • Sweethearts Candy Hearts
  • A bonus sheet of Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Paper (shown below)

Of all the items included, my favorites are definitely the french watercolor tubes. Together, these two small tubes of paint retail for $23.50…so they had better be good! I am not a huge fan of the sketching pencil because it is very light and I prefer a darker lead when sketching. The paintbrush is very nice, but it is so short, it kind of annoys me when painting with it. The Micron pen is fine, but nothing thrilling to me.

Every month, ArtSnacks encourages recipients to try to create new artworks using only the materials in that month’s box, which I did, so here are a couple I came up with. The first uses the bonus sheet of watercolor paper that came in the box, which was bookmark shaped:

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I also made an expressionistic ACEO art trading card using the supplies:

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As always, these artworks will be listed for sale on my Ebay store, along with my other art currently for sale!

I Got My First ArtSnacks Subscription Box!

| marandarussell

So recently I decided that I really wanted to do an artist subscription box, both to inspire me to try new art mediums and tools and just for the sheer fun of getting a surprise in the mail each month! I received my first ArtSnacks box yesterday and here is what I got and a couple little ACEO artworks I made with the materials!

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What was included this month:

A Uni-Posca Brush Tip Paint Marker
2 Marabu Graphix Aqua Watercolor Pens
A Tombow Fudenosuke Soft Tip Brush Pen
A Sakura SumoGrip Mechanical Pencil
A Cherry Lifesaver (I do love the candy!)

My favorites are the watercolor pens, the soft tip brush pen, and the SumoGrip pencil! The Uni-Posca marker is the most expensive item in the box, but I don’t find it works as well as I had hoped.

Here are a couple little ACEO art trading cards I made with the materials from the box:

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