Whimseybox believes that anyone can make something beautiful. Yes; every YOU, and they should know; they’ve been lovingly enabling crafters by sending them all the things they need to make something homemade for quite some time now.

A couple of years ago I read about Whimseybox - a monthly subscription service for crafters. The idea is simple; each month, subscribers receive all the tools they need to make something crafty. That something might be a calendar for the new year, or a decorated candle, or lip balm, or a felt purse.

My excitement at the prospect of a monthly craft project was very short lived as I tried to sign up and found it was a service for USA only. You’d think as an Antipodian I’d be used to that by now but I never will be (Geolocation-lock grrr).

I contacted the nice people at Whimseybox but they could only hope that, one day, they might be able to offer the service outside the US but for now, it was not possible. It made sense as Whimseybox was a group of passionate people, hand crafting these boxes and trying to keep the costs as low as possible. So I waited; occasionally checking back to their site, but for the longest time, the US-only rule remained. And I was disappointed but okay with that because, you know, making things with love takes time to scale.

Then something changed - not with Whimseybox, they were still in the States hand-packing gorgeous craft projects - but New Zealand Post got suddenly progressive. They began offering a redirect service called YouShop. This new service supplied an address in the USA we kiwis could have mail sent to and would then reroute that mail back home here to New Zealand. I couldn’t sign up fast enough!

After a few conversations with Whimseybox (who had confusion around my NZ VISA number vs my YouShop Portland, Oregon mail address) I was ready to start receiving my monthly craft box and oh my goodness, it was so worth waiting for. Each month, I’d get pinged from YouShop to say I had a parcel at their warehouse. I’d pay the postage (approximately NZ$22) to have it shipped to New Zealand, then after a week or so, a lovely Whimseybox (US$15) would arrive on my doorstep.

Each Whimseybox arrived all blue and branded, and opening the lid I’m greeted with a gorgeous tissue and ribbon wrapped box of craft supplies and instructions on how to make this month’s project. Also, each actual Whimseybox is the same type and size so they’re stackable, storable, and reusable.

I figure each box is costing me about NZ$45 - I love this indulgence so much, plus, it’s really adding to my craft supplies! A new stamp pad one month, a hole punch the next. Recently I was on a scavenger hunt for stencils here in Auckland when I opened one of my previously unopened Whimseyboxes from last year* I found it had the very stencils I was needing for my signs**!

If you feel like having craft weedle its way into your busy life and want to remove all excuses as to why you’re not making anything, check out Whimseybox or check your local listings to see if there is anything similar in your own country. There’s some more links below for more Antipodean services that might help you get through those long days when your kids reckon there’s nothing to do.

Associated links:

• Whimseybox (crafts for grownups and kids)
• YouShop (NZ Post)
• Dabble-do (Kiwi kids)
• Kiwi Crate (American kids)
• Peeky Me (Aussie kids)
• Subscription Boxes (User Reviews)

* work got busy for a couple of months and a few of my Whimseyboxes went unopened until last week
** that’s another story!