Loot Crate - June, 2014 - Transform

HAPPY CANADA DAY! Mike here, and it's July. Yes, it is July. So, why am I writing this blog post about the June Loot Crate in July? It's because I received my Crate yesterday. I am not happy about that. My buddy Ryan got his box over a week ago. Usually, mine shows up either a day before his or 2 to 3 days after. When I checked the USPS and Canada Post web sites, they both originally said my box was to arrive on the 26th. However, on the 26th, the date was changed to a shocking July 2nd! I was extremely close to writing a letter to Loot Crate when my box finally showed up. I may actually still write them, but at this point, I'm just glad to HAVE a Crate. Anyway, I'm sure you guys have already read some other blogs or Tweets about people's unboxings, so if you do take the time to read through my post, thank you! I appreciate your support very much. :)

For those of you who haven't heard of Loot Crate, it is a monthly subscription box that caters towards "nerds" and "geeks". Each month, subscribers get a themed box of 6 to 8 items. What's interesting is that Loot Crate has different subscription programs. Here's a breakdown:

1 Month Plan - $19.37 USD / $29.95 CAD per month

3 Month Plan - $55.11 USD / $84.00 CAD per 3 months 

6 Month Plan - $105.99 USD / $162.00 CAD per 6 months

JUNE 2014 - TRANSFORM

With Michael Bay's fourth "Transformers" movie opening in June, Loot Crate's decision to make the June theme "Transform" was a no-brainer. Plus, with Nerd Block giving its subscribers a set of Transformers KREO figures back in April, it was only a matter of time when my current favourite subscription box responded with some robot love of their own. Here's a list of what I got:

- Loot Crate Mini Magazine ($2.00 CAD)

- Loot Crate Theme Pin ($0.75 CAD)

- Crossover T-Shirt ($15.00 CAD)

- Transformers Vinyl Figure ($10.99 CAD)

- Transformers Hexbug Nano ($7.99 CAD)

- Transformers Sticker ($0.50 CAD)

- MLG Wrist Sweat Band ($4.99 CAD)

- MLG Sticker Sheet ($0.75 CAD)

- MLG Voucher ($5.00 USD Digital Value)

- Lemon Warheads x 3 ($0.75 CAD)

Loot Crate Mini Magazine

Last month, Loot Crate decided to go digital with their mini magazine. I'm guessing people didn't like that because they switched back to a paper edition this month. Personally, I don't mind either way. If it's digital, it saves space. If it's physical, it adds monetary value and is cool, but over time, I don't know what I'd do with it. Still, it's the content that matters, and this little booklet has that in spades.

Loot Crate Theme Pin

One of the reasons I was really excited to get this month's Crate was because of the really cool design of the 1337 bus Transformer that I knew would be on the pin. Unfortunately, as with last month, the printing factory made the design way too dark. I had to Photoshop my photo of my pin in order for you to see more details, and even then, it's not that clear. That's 2 months now that Loot Crate has disappointed me with their pin quality. I honestly hope this doesn't become a trend.

Crossover T-Shirt

This is perhaps my favourite shirt that I have received in a subscription box thus far. It's not black (LOL) and it's a crossover of two of my favourite nerdy fandoms - "Transformers" and "Back to the Future". Awesome. Absolutely awesome.

Transformers Vinyl Figure

I have seen boxes of these Transformers vinyl figures at local stores and have been tempted on many occasions to buy one. Well, now I don't have to. Ha ha! I got Jazz, who is one of my favourite Autobots, so I'm pretty content. My only complaint about the figure has nothing to do with Loot Crate - It was very hard to get the gun into Jazz's hand. In fact, some of the black paint on the inside part of the hand scraped off onto the gun's handle before I could finally get it to pop into place. Not good! I still love the vinyl, though. It's definitely a great inclusion in this month's Crate.

Transformers Hexbug Nano

I knew of Hexbugs before, but I didn't know there were Transformers ones. For those of you who don't know what this is, it's basically a toy that looks kind of like a cockroach. When you turn it on, the little thing vibrates. This vibration allows it to "walk" on flat surfaces. I took a video to help you understand what I mean.

Transformers Sticker

This is a pretty cool sticker made by the same company that made the Transformers vinyl figure. I would have preferred getting the Autobots one instead, but this Deceptacon one is still awesome.

MLG Wrist Sweat Band

Many years ago, I attended a Major League Gaming event at FanExpo Toronto. It was a lot of fun and I even bought a long-sleeved MLG T-shirt. This wrist band would go nicely with it. Unfortunately, I don't wear my shirt nor really care about MLG anymore. LOL For fans of MLG, however, this is definitely a nice item to have.

MLG Sticker Sheet

I honestly have no idea who these MLG teams are, so this sticker sheet is definitely not for me. As with the wrist band, fans of MLG would probably appreciate this much more.

MLG Voucher

This MLG voucher worth $5.00 in site-specific currency gives people one month of GameBattles Premium Access. I don't know anything about the MLG web site, but I'm going to guess that for people who do visit it, this is probably wicked cool, especially with the "Loot Crate exclusive Badge".

Lemon Warheads

"The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Loot Crate, thank you for these delicious Warheads Extreme Extreme Sour Lemon candies. YUM! ^_^

OVERVIEW

This was a very good month for Loot Crate. It had great value and great items for fans of Transformers. I'm still peeved that my box arrives one day before July, but if it's a one-time thing, I'll let it slide. We'll see what happens later this month.

Next month, the Loot Crate theme will be Villains, which sounds very exciting to me. If you're interested in learning more about Loot Crate, please check out their Web Site. If you would like to subscribe, you can get 10% off using the code VILLAINS.

Thank you so much for reading this blog entry. See you again soon!

~ Mike

JULEP - November, 2013

My first monthly subscription box! So exciting! I have been intrigued by this idea since Michael got his Nerd Blocks and, when I went looking for one I could order (as a nerd, I love the idea of the Nerd Block but there is no point in ordering two) , found out there was the same concept out there, but for beauty products! I am what Jenna Marbles would call a Goo Hoarder (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1usT9C04Foc *WARNING* Swearing*) so this whole idea was magical to me. Plus, I am not an expert in makeup, just the basics, so I thought this might be a good way to find new products and therefore new techniques. Anyway - to the box! This box is from Julep.com. When I signed up for their monthly subscription box (Which costs $19.99 US including shipping) I used a code to get an intro box for free! (current code FREEBOX). Already love the company just for offering a great deal right off the bat.

So this is the intro box I received, which took around 6 business days to arrive.

I took their intro quiz and they told me I was "Classic with a Twist". Now, if you don't like the style they give you, you can choose another one if you want to and have the option to change your style every month but I really liked the "Classic with a Twist" box.

I received two polishes - Myrtle  and Zora. I really like both colours. All Julep nail polishes do  "not contain formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, toluene, or DBP" which I'm guessing is a good thing. They are also made in the US which I like. Both polishes are $14 or $11.20 Maven Price, which is the 20% discount they offer to subscribers.

I also received Luxe Repair Skin Serum ($28 / $22.40 Maven Price). I tried it last night and it went on nicely and didn't burn but there was a slight tingle. I can't say for certain after only one use but my skin did seem nice and fresh in the morning.

(Update: Have used this a few times.  No adverse skin reactions, and, maybe it's just my imagination, but I feel like my skin looks tighter [in a good way] after using this at night. I have lines on my forehead and between my eyebrows from frowning/squinting and they seemed a lot less visible after using this)

Julep also offers add-ons at checkout on any order for a discount so I ordered their Freedom Polymer Top Coat ($18 / $14.40 Maven Price) and  Julep Acetone-Free Conditioning Nail Polish Removal ($14 / $11.20 Maven Price). I got both for $4.99, a pretty great deal! 

I liked the remover, it worked well and not a strong scent but I found the dispenser a little finicky.

(Update: Really like the nail polish remover, and the dispenser is actually really practical. Its worked pretty well so far and I even used it to take off glitter polish [it took some work but I did it], so I'm very happy with this)

The top coat is supposed to work like a gel but goes on like a polish and using only natural light. I don't have any experience with top coats except at the Nail salon but I think it works pretty well. My nails really shined after application. They did chip after a few days but  only slightly. I didn't use a base coat and don't have the best application techniques yet so I'm not going to hold against the top coat just yet. I'm going to try a few more times and see.

So, I'm really happy with my first Julep box. I paid $12 and received a box worth  $88 or $70.40 Maven price. Julep also threw in a small reusable shopping bag as a bonus. Not bad! I'm excited to use what I got more and see what I get in my first actual monthly Julep box.

If you would like to sign up for your own Julep box, please consider using my referral link: http://www.julep.com/rewardsref/index/refer/id/442026/ and don't forget to use the code FREEBOX to get your intro box free!