“Love at First Bite”
The theme for Fairyloot’s October box (which also happened to be my first ever Fairyloot) was “Love At First Bite” and celebrated all things Vampire. I will say, this would have been such an awesome box to get in October, but with shipping dates (and the inevitable Canadian shipping delays) I didn’t get this box until November 6th. Being one of those people that rids my life of all things Halloween Oct. 31st at 8:00pm … it was kind of a bummer getting this spooky filled box in, (what I lovingly refer to as), Twinkle Time.
Does this have anything to do with the actual quality of the box or its contents? Heck, no. But I felt the need to whine.
As always I start with my favourite item in the box, which is this super comfy beanie/toque with the cheeky “Bite Me” stitching on the front, designed by KDP Letters. This beanie is warm enough to wear outside but I’ve been loving wearing it indoors, it’s so soft and comfy! I particularly love to wear it while writing my reviews, in which I suspect I’ll get “your opinion is wrong” kind of statements. Moving on …
This super padded, super long (read: will fit hardcover books), zip close book sleeve was designed by Noverantale, featuring a quote from Dracula. This is the nicest book sleeve I have ever gotten in a book box and will definitely be using it when I travel (which is hardly ever, but nice to have the option) — it has a water proof lining! I just wish it was more of … a year round print? I will love using this in September, October. But that’s just me.
The gothic vampire theme continues with these awesome coasters designed by Blanca Design. Not inspired by any particular fandom, they feature a spooky knife dripping with some blood (maybe it’s jam?), a lovely blood-red rose, a bat, and a goblet. Again, so very nice and so very perfect for Halloween decorating … but it’s Twinkle Time November 🙂
A candle! I love getting candles in book boxes and would happily receive one every single month! This candle was created by The Melting Library (a UK based candle shop – super cool for a lowly Canadian like myself). This blood orange, rosebud and cashmere musk scented candle was inspired by Interview With A Vampire, featuring a quote from the book.
An adorable itty bitty bat enamel pin designed by Tara Spruit, compliments this Vampire box perfectly. I look forward to pinning this to my jean jacket … again next October. But for now it is resting comfortably on my pin flag.
Two paper items: A Twilight sticker designed by Catarina Book Designs and a vampire art print by monolimeart. Stickers and art prints tend to be very hit and miss with me … usually just a miss. I have a hard time considering stickers and art prints “items”, but there you have it. If vampires are your thing, or if Twilight is your thing, these would’ve been right up your alley.
The Fairyloot October book pick (and the whole reason I wanted this box!) was The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh. This gorgeous book came with red/coral sprayed edges, signed, and reversible dust jacket art by merwildandco. The author letter features stunning art by one of my favourite artists Kat Adara. Being one of my most anticipated reads of the year, I am really excited to have this signed exclusive edition!
Overall Rating: A
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Beanie: 3/3
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Book Sleeve: 3/3 (Amazing quality)!
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Gothic Vampire Coaster Set: 3/3
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Last Sunrise Candle: 3/3
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Bat enamel pin: 3/3 (so adorable).
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Sticker: 2/3 (I like the design and quality, just not a fandom I’m a part of).
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Art Print: 1/3 (Didn’t care for this print and the paper quality was low).
I am overall impressed by the quality and number of the items included. I love that every item employed an artist and wasn’t simply a Shutterstock (or just uncredited) image as I’ve noticed with numerous other boxes. (This might not be true for all their boxes of course, but I have noticed this seems to be their norm). I so wish I could’ve received this in October, but such a minor complaint. It was a fun box!
For a Canadian customer this box (with shipping and conversion of Usd to Cdn dollars) is about $73. A verrrrry hefty price. For that reason alone, I don’t think I’ll be getting anymore in the future. But I can’t fault the quality of items, I do feel this box delivers a good value for money.
Note on Rating: I rate each item out of 3 possible points: 1 for quality, 1 for usefulness, and 1 for if I personally liked the item/fandom. I then assign an overall letter rating for the whole box.
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