Neko Box Subscription for October 2016

Last updated on 27 December 2024

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Neko Box is a monthly subscription box full of premium Japanese lifestyle goods to inspire you every day. Every month you’ll receive 4-6 different items for mind, body and home.

Cast your minds back to earlier in October. You hopefully recall my post about the new subscription box coming out of Japan, called Neko Box*. You can read all about it here, but this past week the very first box arrived on my door step. And friends, it is stunning.

I’ve said before that I really love Japanese culture and how I finally got to go last year with my friends for a week in Tokyo. When Carly and Rob announced they were starting this Japan-themed box it was like all my subscription box dreams came true.

Let’s just jump straight into what was in the box, shall we?

The Box

Pack in a brown box with the Neko Box logo on it (super cute, btw), my first thought was ‘oh man, I hope my posties weren’t too rough with it’. But as soon as I looked inside I was so impressed with simply the way the had packed everything in. It was in bubble-wrap, surrounded by shredded brown paper, wrapped in tissue paper. Those items weren’t going anywhere.

When you first open up the box, you find a sticker on the inside flap which reads “Arigatou” (thank you), and where you can find Neko Box, and the hashtag to use if you’re sharing the box online.

The Items

The items are wrapped, like I said, in tissue paper, and when you open that, you’re greeted with a card explaining the theme of the box (Tokyo Brunch), and what’s in it. There is also an amazing pamphlet, or travel zine, which is designed by Neko Box. This is like a little travel guide for ‘unique treasures and neighbourhoods found all over Tokyo and Japan’. This is really neat, and it was so much fun reading through the little book.

In the box, protected by bubble-wrap (which I have removed for the photos), were a Chrysanthemum pattern bowl and dish, a stripey cup, and a pair of chopsticks.

How handy are bowls this size? We often have people over for dinner, and bowls this size are great for everything from nibbles to dips or sauces. I love the pattern on these, it’s so beautifully simple, but so effective.

The dish is another great size. In my mind, this is perfect for soy sauce. We often have Japanese food at home, whether that be sushi or okonomiyaki, and you don’t have that without soy sauce! This dish is going to be used a lot!

Chopsticks are in abundance in our house. Growing up with Japanese students staying in our home, it was one of the things they always brought over for us. This meant that although I only went to Japan last year, I’ve been using chopsticks since I was able to hold them. That doesn’t mean I’m particularly good at it (don’t even get me started on trying to eat rice with them), but it does mean I love having them in the house.

These chopsticks are so sweet, and I love the stripes at the top.

Ah, this cup. I love this cup so much. I feel like I need to make tea right now and use it. Like the chopsticks, I love the stripes on this one, and the blue and white (like the other items) are beautiful together.

The Details

How Much is Neko Box?

The box ia $34.95 USD per month if you buy month-by-month. Every Neko Box is worth at least USD$70, so you’re definitely getting your money’s worth! It’s only $10 USD for international flat-rate shipping if you’re one of the 100 eligible countries. The other countries’ shipping cost is $15 USD.

The items

In each month’s box you’ll get everything from ‘premium ceramics, sake cups, bamboo chopsticks, small dishes, coasters, notebooks, planners, calligraphy pens, gift cards, art prints, decorations and much more…’. While they were planning on sending Japanese snacks and bath products, due to extremely strict international shopping rules, they’ve have to step back on that part.

The Verdict

Love.this.box. It’s such a neat idea, and the items are stunning and usable. I find that sometimes in subscription boxes I pull out an item and think ‘okay, so this is kind of neat, but what am I going to do with it?’. I didn’t think that at any time with this box.

I was impressed by the time it took to get to New Zealand – only about a week, perhaps less. I was even more impressed by the way they packed it all up – nothing broken at all! – and that can be hard to achieve when working with such breakable items.

So overall? Beautiful box, which was beautifully presented, and stunning items which are going to be used. A lot.

Disclaimer: Neko Box sent me this first box for free in exchange for an honest review.

Update in 2024: It looks as though Neko Box has stopped running.