ONE.NINE.EIGHT.SIX Crates is an Australian-based subscription box that sends you 4 – 5 themed collectibles relating to various tv shows, movies, video games and other pop culture genres. You receive a range of items matching that month’s theme and it may include toys & figurines, accessories, gadgets and more. This is a mystery box service with a difference, being a non-profit organization whose profits are donated to charity to promote mental health awareness.

ONE.NINE.EIGHT.SIX Crates
Cost: $40 AUD per month.
Shipping Costs: Free shipping within Australia.
Payment Method: Credit Card or Paypal.
Mailed Out: the 15th of each month or next business day.
**Note: this subscription auto-renews on the same day as your sign-up & billing is the 1st of each month**

This month’s box was shipped late – I received an email notification and tracking number when it was dispatched on Friday 20th May, and it arrived Thursday 26th May.

The outside of the box is quite unassuming, lacking the design and detail some other boxes incorporate. But I don’t mind, personally I’d rather the money and effort go towards the items inside! 😉

The first look inside doesn’t reveal much…

May’s theme is SPACE. The info card lists each of the items that subscribers have received.

Once the brown paper packaging has been pulled aside, the contents look pretty exciting, I’m loving the first couple items I can see!

OVERVIEW OF CONTENTS

Firefly – Kaylee Frye Pop! Vinyl Figure ($18.99 AUD): I love this Kaylee pop with her cute mechanic’s outfit and little wrench!

Subscribers could’ve received one of five Firefly Pops, with the others being Jayne Cobb, Malcolm Reynolds, Zoe Washbourne or ‘Hoban’ Washbourne. I’m glad I received Kaylee! Out of all the Firefly characters, River Tam is my favorite, but since she doesn’t have her own pop (what an outrage!), Kaylee is the best. 😀

You may have noticed that the bottom of the box was already open from the first peek inside – I’m not sure if that happened during shipping or when the postman fumbled and dropped the box right in front of me! I’m happy to take pops out of their box, so it doesn’t bother me, but they could definitely use some extra packing material to make sure all the items are safely secured.

Guardians of the Galaxy – Potted Groot Scaler ($9.99 AUD): Yay, I finally have a scaler! I’ve seen this in other pop culture boxes before and have been patiently waiting for it to turn up in one of my orders, eeeeexcellent. Mini-Groot is my favorite, he’s so adorable! I shall clip him to the cord of the lamp sitting at my desk. 🙂

Star Wars – Millenium Falcon Pencil Case ($7.00 AUD): I haven’t used a pencil case in years, but they didn’t make them like this in my high school days, wow! I’ve totally missed out on geeky pencil cases – the closest I came was when I used the cut-out letters provided to spell out ‘Scully’ on the front of my pencil case instead of my own name, lol.

What it looks like on the inside.

The case is rather stiff, so it’s not going to expand very much if you want to pack heaps of stationery, etc. inside, but it will definitely hold the basic school supplies. I don’t have much use for this myself, as I don’t need to cart around pens and such, but I shall pass this on to one of my younger school-age cousins. 🙂 I like that even though this isn’t something I’d use, it’s easily regifted since Star Wars is a popular franchise.

Stargate SG-1 Portal Glow-in-the-Dark Pocket Watch ($9.25 USD or approximately $13 AUD): I am absolutely IN LOVE with this necklace! Stargate was a formative part of my youth, I was obsessed with the show for several years, and even now I still have a great fondness for the franchise. Unfortunately there isn’t a lot of merchandise out there that I’ve come across, so receiving this gorgeous piece of jewelry is simply amazing. It looks fantastic AND it’s functional as a time-piece, I love geeky items that are useful! ❤

The detail on this is incredible, it really looks like the event horizon is shimmering and lit up! 😀 You can see the chevrons around the edge of the gate just like in the show as well. The edge of the pocket watch has a pretty silvery design etched into it, which I don’t think is Stargate-related, but makes the pocket watch look pretty cool instead of just being plain silver around the gate. This gives it a more interesting alien-tech feel!

Verdict

Curation: I think they did a great job with the curation – by including ever-popular Pop figure and nifty little scaler collectible, a handy pencil case and pretty pocket watch necklace, there’s something to appeal to everyone here! You have something to display, something to wear and something to use, so they’ve covered their bases well. There may be fewer items than in your average geek subscription box, but there’s also no filler, which I appreciate.

Worth It? The value I’ve calculated for all these items is approximately $49 AUD. I paid a total of $40 AUD, so the box more than covers the cost of purchase, plus I love 3 items and can regift the last. All in all, I’m quite pleased with my first box from ONE.NINE.EIGHT.SIX Crates! It helps that I’m a fan of all the franchises represented! 😀

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 kitties approve this box!