For the final Halloween marathon post, I will be reviewing the Autumn 2020 Creative Kawaii Box by Creative Kawaii Crafts on Etsy. This isn't technically a Halloween-themed box, but it's spooky/thematically-appropriate enough to be included. This is also the first non-crochet related kit I am reviewing on this blog. Yay!
So, confession time. This is not my first Creative Kawaii Crafts box; I actually purchased and have completed the Summer 2020 box, but I...haven't posted it (I will soon, though!). HOWEVER. I loved that first kit so much that, not only did I purchase the next box (it's quarterly, so there's one per season, with three seasonally-themed crafts per box), but I have purchased a year's worth of boxes, starting with the December 2020 box. These boxes/kits are amazing! The included projects are super cute, the materials are high quality, and everything is so professionally packaged and put together; it's really an amazing box for a crafter/artist!
Along with these boxes, Creative Kawaii Crafts has individual craft kits available in their Etsy store. I purchased my Autumn 2020 Creative Kawaii Box (I'm going to call it the CKB from now on for brevity's sake) as a pre-order, so I didn't know what crafts would be included, but I got to buy it at a discount. The box itself cost $25.66, and shipping and taxes were $9.15, for a total cost of $34.81, or about $12 per craft. This box ships from the U.K., which is why the shipping was a bit higher for me (I live in the U.S.).
Along with materials for each of the three kits, the Autumn 2020 CKB included stuffing for two of the projects, taped between cardboard squares to save space, some pins to use for the same two projects, a small rectangle of sandpaper for the remaining craft, and a bookmark and stickers. I love cute extras!
The first project in the box (or at least the first one I completed) is the Pumpkin Plush. Each craft comes with these high quality, full color, detailed instruction books. These books are amazing, and include a ton of photos; they must take so much work...I'm really in awe of the quality and variety of projects that Creative Kawaii Crafts is able to put together!
You also get a template for the pieces for the plush, which even include information on how they should be placed on the fabric in regards to the pile of the plush and stretch.
The box included plenty of materials to make the pumpkin, though I did run out of the included sewing thread and had to supplement my own. I also ended up using my own stuffing as one of the included bags wasn't enough, and I wasn't sure how much the other plush-like project in the box would need. After finishing the other project, though, I'm confident that there would have been enough stuffing for both as it took very little.
The next craft in the box (and the second one I completed) is the Too-Wit Too-Woo, or a cute owl on a branch! I haven't heard the phrase 'Too-Wit Too-Woo' before, so I'm not sure if it's something more common in the U.K. All the included instruction booklets are of the same high quality, with lots of detailed instructions and photos.
Similar to the Pumpkin Plush, along with the stuffing and pins from above, the box included a branch, twine, embroidery thread, a sewing needle (this is the same needle and thread from the plush), and pre-cut felt pieces for the owl. Since the crafts in the box do use shared items, the instruction books actually note what items will be used in other projects, so you know to be more careful with them/not throw them away when you're done with one, which is incredibly helpful!
In the Summer 2020 kit, there was another felt project (each CKB includes at least one sewing project, and most of the projects and patterns in the Creative Kawaii Crafts Etsy are sewing-related) where we needed to cut the pieces out ourselves. As you can see in picture with the thank you card, Creative Kawaii Crafts asked for feedback on whether we preferred cutting the pieces out ourselves, or if the pre-cut pieces were better. I'm pretty neutral as both options have their benefits, but it was nice to be able to get right to sewing with the pre-cut out shapes, and I did struggle a bit cutting out the pieces for the Summer 2020 project, since there were some very precise cuts.
Even though the pieces are already cut out, you still get a template for all the parts, so you can make the project again using your own materials. Very handy!
I also love how this project turned out! I can't pick which is my favorite, the Pumpkin Plush or the Too-Wit Too-Woo hanger, since they're both so cute and turned out so well! I love the real (I think it's real, otherwise it's a very good replica!) branch and the mixture of textures. Each craft in these boxes are so well-thought out; I know I keep saying it, but I'm so impressed that the owner of Creative Kawaii Crafts is so good at so many different types of crafts/art!
The last project in this box, and the last I completed as I kept putting it off, is the acorn dish. This is another super cute craft and well-put together kit, but...pottery/sculpture/ceramics is just not my thing. It's probably one of the craft/art types that I am the worst at.
Included in the kit are two paintbrushes (a flat brush and a detail brush), a plastic piece of tubing to use as a rolling pin, paint and varnish, a piece of grease-proof paper (I'm pretty sure this is parchment paper), and a brick of air dry clay. The clay is much better quality than Crayola Model Magic, so I think it's an artist/professional grade clay. It was easy to work with, and my final piece did not crack or break while drying. The sandpaper from before goes with this project as you can use it to smooth out any rough edges after the drying process.
You also get a template of the acorn which you use to cut the shape out of the clay after rolling it flat. To get the acorn to curve slightly so it can be used as a dish, you let it dry in a bowl. The instructions suggest a cereal bowl, so I'm assuming the included clay is non-toxic, but I wanted to play it safe and used plastic wrap to protect the bowl I used as there isn't any information included about the clay or what it's made out of.
So. Here it is. I am actually happy with how it turned out, considering how bad I am at ceramics, but it's nowhere near as good as the sample. I also wasn't too precise with my paint and varnish application as this project is the most time consuming just due to drying time (the clay itself takes a few days, then you need to do at least two layers of paint and two layers of varnish, allowing each layer to dry in-between); I wanted to get this project done in time to post it before/for Halloween, so my brush strokes are very visible.
I tried to smooth the plastic wrap I used to line my bowl as much as possible, but I still ended up with some wrinkles. These are easily avoided by not using plastic wrap (which, again, was a choice I made and not part of the instructions). I did have enough clay left over to make some additional small items, but I didn't like how any of them turned out so...I threw them away. Again, these are all personal failings and have nothing to do with this kit.
And that's the Autumn 2020 Creative Kawaii Box by Creative Kawaii Crafts! I've said it a lot in this review, but these boxes, and any of the kits available, are 100% worth it. At approximately $12 per craft, you get high quality materials, a highly detailed, full color instruction book of each project, and a strong sense that a lot of love and care went into these kits/boxes. It feels like the opposite of 'cutting corners', that Creative Kawaii Crafts went out of their way to make sure that your projects will turn out as perfect as possible.
You can still purchase this box, along with the Summer 2020 box, the pre-order of the Winter 2020 box, or a year's worth of boxes starting with the Winter 2020 box by checking out the Creative Kawaii Crafts store on Etsy. If you are at all interested in these projects, or if you are looking for a great gift for an artist/crafter, I highly, HIGHLY recommend taking a look at this box, or any of the other boxes/kits available from Creative Kawaii Crafts.
<3 Thank you for reading!
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