Hi lovelies! It's been absolutely ages now since I posted some kawaii content... like is this even my blog!? I know lot's of you guys come here for your dose of cuteness overload so I'm sorry for not having any posts like this for a while (silly life problems)! Anyhow, a month or so ago I created polls over on my Instagram and Twitter asking whether I should still share all about a super cute subscription box, despite the fact that I received it back in November; and literally all of you voted yes... so here we are :) I'm so happy to be sharing this kawaii goodness with everyone FINALLY! I have wanted to show off the contents of the 'childhood memories' So Kawaii Box ever since I opened it, and now I can!! :') You're going to love it ♥
Not to be confused with Blippo's Kawaii Box (check out my archives for more info on that here), the So Kawaii Box is another monthly subscription service filled with top quality items from Japan (the company is even based in Japan, so I didn't get charged any customs tax either!). Their focus is very much quality over quantity from what I've seen via all the unboxing videos I have watched on Youtube, but each So Kawaii Box still contains 6-8 items which is great. It's all down to personal preference, however after the amount of 'filler' products (cute albeit annoying) I've been sent in boxes in the past, I know I would rather get fewer items if it meant that they were better quality and had a more practical use. Who agrees?
As with most subscription boxes, there's a specific theme each time, with items related to that theme to be found inside every box. One of the problems I've found with previous subscription boxes is that only a couple of the items will perfectly fit in with the theme, and the others will kind of, although often at a stretch, tie in. Then there's usually lots of random bits thrown in, probably in an attempt to overload the recipients with cuteness, hoping they'll ignore the randomness of the products! This worked on me for a long time but it eventually gets borings paying for what is essentially junk, even if it is the most adorable trash ever (am I describing myself there? XD).
Before I get even more rambley, this didn't happen when it came to the So Kawaii Box. I've only ordered one, but from what I've seen around online, I think it's safe to say that this company gives you value for your money :) So, without further ado... what did I get inside the November 2019 Box?
I was sent seven items, all themed around nostalgia and the 'characters we grew up with and who are still a big part of our life!'. The items include: a Sumikko Gurashi Macaron Cushion, a Hamtaro Plushie, a Mini Rilakkuma Key Lock, a Kirby Meringue Dessert Spoon, a Mini Kirby Notepad, a Sanrio Lipstick Eraser and a Pikachu Pouch from the 'Girly Collection'.
I literally signed up for this box as soon as I saw over on Instagram that November's 'issue' would contain a plush from Hamtaro, and figured everything else I received would just be a lovely bonus :) This adorable anime series was one of my absolute favourites when I was around 10-12 years old. I would rush home from school to plonk myself in front of the TV to watch an episode of Hamtaro: Little Hamsters, Big Adventures, on Fox Kids, as soon as I got through the door. I was pretty obsessed with it to be honest :D So this item alone evoked all the happy childhood memories I needed! Did anyone else watch this cartoon?
What's better than receiving a new plushie in a subscription box?
Receiving two plushies, of course!! Even though this is a 'cushion', it's pretty much still a plushie. It's the right size and is softer and more squishy than any cushion I've ever seen! It feels so amazing, guys! If only you could reach through the screen and touch it... it's going to be so comfy to rest my head on whilst I'm watching a movie or whatever in bed. I love Sumikko Gurashi and even though my favourite character is Tokage, the dinosaur/lizard, I am always happy with anything from this San-X franchise. As with many subscription boxes, there's a chance for subscribers to get one of several variations of an item, and in this case, there were three cushions you could get. Each a different character, and varying in size too, with the largest being the Sumikko Gurashi character 'Neko'. I would have preferred to get Neko just because I love cats and he's my next best after Tokage, but I'm glad I got the cushion that's the next size down VS the smallest one available.
My cushion is of Tonkatsu, who's actually a character based on a deep-fried pork snack, which makes me smile whenever I remember. Japan sure loves their cute food! I think this macaron design is wonderful, and I love that my Tonkatsu version has a yellow filling because it makes me think of custard cream biscuits, and those are one of my favourite biscuits! (I'm craving some now, haha). I'm very happy with the item because despite plushies not really being useful, I adore them and you can never have too many plushies... I'll keep telling myself that until my house is taken over by them :D It's excellent quality, too.
Awww I love everything about this photo! SO MUCH CUTE!! Which is your favourite item of the two? The Kirby dessert spoon or the Pikachu purse? Even though I LOVE Kirby, I like the purse more as I am more likely to use it. I love that it's a decent size so I can use it for not only money, but for other bits and bobs that I might need in my bag on a day out. I've wanted something from the Pikachu Girly Collection for a while because the chibified style is super adorable! I love that in this particular design, Pikachu is holding his hands over his mouth, like he's expressing 'oops!'. It's very relatable for an anxious mess like me!
I saw a lot of people in unboxing videos comment on the size of this spoon and how they didn't know what to use it for, which puzzled me because it's a dessert spoon used for serving. For example, dishing out trifle. You could even use it for savoury dishes, to spoon out stew or meatballs, etc. It's not something that you're likely to use a lot, but it's still going to look super cute displayed in your kitchen. I like that it's something that's not just going to look pretty, I'm going to get use out of it, too. There were four designs of Kirby dessert spoons available, and the one I got is lovely! I love the starry sky surrounding Kirby. The packaging is also great. That's something I really love about products from Japan, so much of their packaging is colourful and adorable, even for regular, mundane household items.
This item fits in so perfectly with the 'childhood memories' theme. I hadn't seen one of these lipstick erasers for years and years before I received it, and it was such a flash from the past! I had a few of these when I was in primary school, but none as cute as this Sanrio one! I remember hoarding them for a while because I couldn't bring myself to use them for their intended purpose and spoil them. However, one day I was searching for ages for one of my regular erasers and couldn't find one, so I relented and broke into my stash of lipstick ones. From that day forward, I used them like any other eraser. Shame though, because I wish I still had them! But then again, I collect too many things so it's probably a good thing I'm not cluttering up my bedroom with more random things :D
There were several variations available for this item as well, and I got My Melody. Yay! She's a brilliant character. Rabbits are one of my favourite animals and I'm a rabbit mom, so I can't not love My Melody :) One of my favourite things about lipstick erasers is that they are usually scented, all of mine were as a kid and so is this one. It smells of strawberries! Again, I love the packaging, and that all the text is in Japanese! Did you have any of these when you were young?
I was so happy to see a little gachapon egg in my November So Kawaii Box! Gachapon is the Japanese name for the little toys you win inside those toy machines that you put a £1 into and twist to get a prize. They are very popular in Japan and there are even whole stores filled with the machines. I have been a big fan of gachapon figurines and such for as long as I can remember, but I really got into them when I was around nine or ten. The first collection that kickstarted my love for them was the Winnie the Pooh animal collection... do any of you remember it? Tiny pooh bears in an animal costume. There were loads of series and therefore lots of species of animals to collect; I had SO MANY... it was ridiculous XD I got my first two as a treat for being brave whilst having some teeth taken out at the dentist. I won a sheep and an elephant Pooh bear :) But my favourite from my collection were the red panda and the crocodile. I still have quite a few of them packed away in my house somewhere... I need to find them!
Anyhow, back to this rilakkuma gachapon. Look how cute it is!! It would have been awesome if I'd have gotten the Korilakkuma one because she's my favourite, but I got Mr Rilakkuma himself so I can't complain. These mini padlocks and keys make me think of having secret diaries as a kid, the type that came with a tiny lock and key just like this one, although not as adorable. I have a hello kitty one that I use on my suitcase whenever I go abroad, and now I've got another to secure the small zip pouch on the front of my suitcase. What would you use this cute little lock for?
Please excuse the quality of this photo, my camera was refusing to focus! Apparently, the print is so adorable, my camera couldn't cope :D How precious are all these Kirby's!? My favourite is the one with its mouth wide open, I'm not sure why :D I also love the little wands and lollipops dotted around. What's not to love about this notepad? I know it's small, but in my opinion, it's the perfect size to just pop into your bag and take out whenever you need to jot down a note. I like to use tiny memo papers like these whenever I'm sending my friend's gifts in the post, just to add a cute note :)
As you can see above, there are two styles of memo sheets in this notepad, a landscape and a portrait design. My favourite if I had to choose would be the landscape one, with the purple stripes. They are both so pretty! Some people might not like getting two items featuring the same character in one box, but I love Kirby so I'm delighted. Even though the character wasn't one that I personally remember from my childhood, Kirby makes me reminisce about the good times I had with my friends in high school, including playing Kirby on the computers in ICT when I should have been doing my classwork... oops. So this smol pink boy will always hold a place in my otaku heart :D Are you a fellow Kirby lover? Oh, and there were two different Kirby notepads that you could be sent.
I've saved the best until last :) Oh my goodness, he's incredibly cute and I am so over the moon to have a Hamtaro plushie to add to my ever-growing plushie army!! He might be small but it's so tough to come across official Hamtaro merch nowadays. I used to have two plushies that were sold by Argos all those years ago, but I have no idea if they are still somewhere in my house. I hope so! And there were even Hamtaro McDonald's toys made!
I got the main character, Hamtaro himself or as he's known in Japan, Hamutaro. You could get any one of eight characters, and I would have been happy receiving any of them. Sandy and Panda were always my favourites, but those two weren't available anyhow. Just like Kirby, Hamtaro will forever be special to me, even more so. When I say I was obsessed with this cartoon, I mean it! I had figurines, toy sets, every plushie I could find. I would tape the episodes and then when I was watching them back, I'd spend hours pausing it and drawing the characters. I even had a pet hamster that I named Hamtaro! And he was actually the most friendly ham-ham I had growing up. So yeah, it's safe to say that buying the whole box was worth it for me just because of the Hamtaro item, and even if the rest of the items wouldn't have been to my liking, I would have had no regrets. The plushie is so much softer than I was expecting it to be! I love it so much!
I couldn't finish this post without showing you all just how fabulous the overall packaging design of the So Kawaii Box is. Just look at the level of detail and thought that has gone into the decoration of the box. I've had subscriptions with very cute external designs but none that put as much effort into the inside, too. I'm going to have to keep the box now! The sakura (cherry blossoms) and all of their petals scattered about are gorgeous. My items were covered with a piece of pink tissue paper, which was a nice touch.
All in all, I was impressed with my first ever So Kawaii Box. The quality of the items is fantastic, and there's not one thing that I received that I don't like. I got all of these official products for $30 (about £23) and that's including shipping. So Kawaii Box actually offers free shipping worldwide and as I mentioned earlier, I didn't have to pay any customs fees either because it came from Japan. The box is usually $35, however a lot of unboxing videos for this subscription box on Youtube are gifted and the channel usually provides a discount code, which is what I used to get $5 off my first box :) I would definitely get another box in the future, especially if I spotted another upcoming item on the company's Instagram account that I loved. I recommend trying out this box for yourself if you're a fan of all things kawaii, like me! I hope you all enjoyed reading, and apologies guys for going M.I.A on my blog for so long! I promise I'll be back to posting more regularly in March. So, before I finish up this post, which is your favourite item from the November 2019 edition of the So Kawaii Box?
Thankyou for reading!
♥
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