April Brimbles Box Reveal

**If you haven't received your box this month yet, you might want to not read!!**

It's time to reveal what was in the Brimbles Box this month, the month of April! if you haven't received yours yet you might want to stop reading! UK boxes should be with you by 3rd / 4th April and International after that.

If you would like to watch videos of unboxings from genuine customers as well as honest reviews from bloggers you can watch the YouTube Brimbles Box playlist As I say they are all very honest so you can get a better feel for what was inside. 

So what was in the box this month? Of course there is always a postcard from me which tells you more about the theme of the box:

All boxes follow the same theme but what you receive in your box may not be the same as what someone else received. You will have received a total RRP of £22.00 worth of products

All boxes received the following items that were available for box inclusion were:

• 1 x sheet of planner nerd stickers
• 1 x sheet of emoji stickers
• 1 x pack of ephemera / die cuts & journal cards
• 1 x roll of washi tape
• 1 x pack of sticky notes and tabs*
• 1 x planner nerd paper clip

* Designs and colours may vary from box to box

Those that ordered a planner box will have received an art (painted by me) dashboard as well as a planner charm*. You will have received either a Personal or A5 size depending on which box size you signed up for. 

And if you signed up for the Stationery box, instead of the planner charm and dashboard you will have received a pack of highlighter pens. The 'Big Box' subscribers got this uber cool desk tidy*!

As for the Happy Mail box this month:

• 1 x Roll of Washi Tapr
• 1 x Sheet of emoji stickers
• Pack of envelopes*
• 1 x sheet of Alpha Stickers
• Writing set which contains 10 x papers, 10 x envelopes and a sticker sheet
• Set of wooden alphabet stamps
• Ink pad

*Colour and design may vary

Total RRP value of contents: £20.50

I hope you like it, it was a lot of hard work sourcing a collection and putting it all together! At the time of writing I have some excess boxes available to purchase as a whole as well as some individual items so check out my online shop for those. 

See you next month for May’s box. Remember if you would like to order a subscription or a one off box and you would like that box to be the May one you can order up to and on 30th April from: www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/shop (whilst stocks last!!). Due to the bank holiday, May boxes will be shipping on: 3rd May 2016.

Oh and in case you missed the announcement on Facebook, by popular demand I have now introduced a monthly sticker subscription for those of you who would just like stickers and stickers only. So go and check it out and see what you think: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/brimbles-sticker-club/

What to get the Planner Addict / Stationery Lover - Mr B's Christmas Gift Giving Guide!

If you have a planner addict, journal junkie or stationery lover in your life and you have no idea what to get them for Christmas, don't panic! Mr B (aka Jonathan / Jon) is here to help!

I gave him free run of the stock room and asked him to choose what he thought, from his perspective would make good presents. This video is entirely his thoughts / his words. I had no imput into this at all, he even filmed and edited it on his own. I have to say that Mr B is actually a really good shopper and gift giver and as one of those aforementioned persons, I would be pretty chuffed with his choices!
So no more unwanted presnts, just get your significant other to watch this video and you are sorted!





Products mentioned

Stocking Fillers:
Washi Tape: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/washi-tape/
Stickers: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/stickers/
Project Life Cards / kits: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/p/

Carpe Diem range: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-tag/carpe-diem/

High End Stationery
Emma Bridgwater Sticky Notes: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/emma-bridgewater-rose-bee-sticky-notes/
Rifle Paper Co List Pad: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/rifle-paper-co/
Kate Spade Pen: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/?s=kate+spade+pen
Ban.do Stickers: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/ban-do-sticker-booklet-700-stickers/
Ban.do Sticky Note Set: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/ban-do-sticky-note-set-thumbs-up/

Planners
All the planners mentioned: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product-category/planners/

A Brimbles Box either a one off: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/august-big-brimbles-box-single-box-stationery-only/ or a rolling subscription: http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/brimbles-box-stationery/

And if you are really stuck we can put together a collection for you, just let us know how much you would like to spend and we will do the rest! http://www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/product/gift-box-you-choose-the-value/

Kate Spade is in the house!!

Kate Spade is in the house!! Whoooop Whoooop! Well not Kate Spade personally you understand BUT instead, her gorgeous range of stationery is. As you know I let the cat out of the bag the other week about the 'big brand' that I was going to be working with / stocking when I showed you the planners and now the rest of the stationery range is here too which is just so exciting. I love it all, it is all just so beautiful and scrumptious.

If you would like to review the range to oggle and drool just click here.

If there is anything you would like that you know Kate Spade do but you don't find it on the web, please get in touch with me as it might just be that it has sold out but I can re-stock or it isn't a line I stocked but possibly could.

oh shop Ban.do stationery will be coming this Autumn so watch out for that!

Let me share with you a couple of my favourites from the range, this isn't everything just my top favourites of favourites lol...

So tell me, what are your favs?

July Brimbles Box Reveal

**If you haven't received your box this month yet, you might want to not read!!**

It's time to reveal what was in the Brimbles Box this month, the month of July! if you haven't received yours yet you might want to stop reading! UK boxes should be with you by 3rd / 4th June and International after that.

If you would like to watch videos of unboxings from genuine customers as well as honest reviews from bloggers you can watch the YouTube Brimbles Box playlist As I say they are all very honest so you can get a better feel for what was inside. Here is my unboxing and video talk through of this months box:



So what was in the box this month? This months box is all about Summer...

Of course there is always a postcard from me letting you know all about the theme:

Of course there is always a postcard from me which tells you more about the theme of the box:

Ah Summer, how we have longed for you! Those glorious long warm evenings, walking barefoot over grass or sand, ice cream in hand. Bliss!

As I always say Summer is a state of mind and not a season so you don’t need a reason to don those flip flops and get outside and have some fun. In England we are lucky if we get a week or two of nice weather but still us Brits don’t let that deter us from getting to the beach even if we do end up eating our fish and chips in a layby with the heating turned up in the car. Happy memories though. I do love a good British Seaside although I do like more tropical climes too. For me they are different in their own way and I love them for it. I love lazy walks along the Norfolk shore, relaxed and chilled but I also love heading down to Cornwall for the surf although sadly in later years we haven’t been able to do that so much. Candy floss on the pier, 2p sliding slot machines… Whatever Summer means to you, wherever you are in the World, enjoy it where you can!

All boxes follow the same theme and this month all boxes were identical. You will have received 8 items with a total RRP of £22.75

Items that were in the box:


All boxes will have received:

• Ice cream sticky notes*
• List Pad
• Paper Clips
• Box of Stickers
• Washi Tape
• Note Book
  

Those that ordered a planner box will have received an art (painted by me) dashboard* as well as a planner charm*. One of the following dashboards will have been received (randomly chosen by me) as either Personal or A5 size depending on which box size you signed up for.

If you ordered a stationery box you will have received in replacement of the planner charm and dashboard:

• Pack of Die Cuts
• 2 x Notecards

*Designs received may vary from what is photographed.
Products in the photographs shown together are not to scale.

Please do watch the above video as you can see all the products much more clearly and appreciate them better and of course you can learn more about the products and what to do with them.

I hope you like it, it was a lot of hard work sourcing a collection and putting it all together! At the time of writing I have some excess boxes available to purchase as a whole as well as some individual items so check out my online shop for those. I also have some of the dashoards and planner charms available to purchase in my Etsy Shop.

See you next month for August’s box. Remember if you would like to order a subscription or a one off box and you would like that box to be the August one you can order up to and on 31st July from: www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/shop

The Letter Bee Box - Stationery, PenPals & Journals - June Unboxing

The Letter Bee box is a monthly box curated by Patty from Furthermore Press. The box is aimed at everyone who loves letter writing, stationery and journals. Each box is themed and all the goodies inside the box relate to that theme in some way. love it!

I filmed my unboxing so that you can get a better sense of the products or do please keep on reading for photos of what I received.

About the box:

Boxes can be ordered through Patty's Etsy shop - Furthermore Press

Letter Bee box: $35US inc shipping in US   $30US + $22.50US shipping for UK which in totaly equates to £36. Patty also offers a Petite Letter Box: $22US + $5.95US shipping, outside of the US you need to get in touch with Patty so she can give you a quote.

As many of the items are unique and hand made there are a limited number of boxes each monthso get in quick if you want one!

This months theme was 'Write Away"...A celebration of handwriting and hand drawn lettering. As usual there is a card detailing all of the items inside as well as a sweet treat and some lovely tea.

On to the items then. Please note that there were lots of other bits but I have stuck to just showing some of the bigger items / my favourites so for a better look at the box contents you are best to watch the video!

Set of monogram letter cards, my initial of course!

A journal and a book to practice your lettering techniques with lots of different types of papers so you can see how ink handles on them.

A variety of different 'tools' for creating your lettering.

I think this has to be one of my favourites of the favourites as I have recently rediscovered my love for using wax seals on my letters. This one was handmade by Patty herself! And there was a cute little tray too!

As usual a lovely selection of note cards and postcards.

And a lovely selection of stickers.

Yet another wonderful box full of goodies. I loved the theme again this month and Patty's artwork is simply wonderful. Not everything is photographed so do check out the unboxing video to get a proper sense of what exactly is in the box. Definitely value for money in my opinion!

All in all another wonderful box full of goodies. I loved the theme again this month and Patty's artwork is simply wonderful. Not everything is photographed so do check out the unboxing video to get a proper sense of what exactly is in the box. Definitely value for money in my opinion!

PLEASE NOTE: I was given this / these product(s) in exchange for my honest review and opinion, the fact that I was given these does not alter my opinion in anyway. This review is my own personal opionion on the product / company, given in good faith and has not be sponsored or endorsed. None of the links are affiliate links

May Brimbles Box Reveal!

It's time to reveal what was in the Brimbles Box this month, the month of May!

If you would like to watch videos of unboxings from genuine customers as well as honest reviews from bloggers you can watch the YouTube Brimbles Box playlist As I say they are all very honest so you can get a better feel for what was inside.


So what was in the box this month? In April I said "without April showers we would have no May flowers", well no one realised that there was a little clue there for the next box he he! We haven't actually had many showers here this April so I hope we do get those May flowers! This months box has a delightful garden theme.

Of course there is always a postcard from me setting the theme behind the box:

So of course as always we start with a postcard from me:

"Do you remember in April I said that we need those April showers because without them there would be no May flowers…well we haven’t really had the wet April that we usually have instead we have had warm sunny days, days that you can spend just pottering and mooching about in the garden. We have had an abundance of Spring flowers not only in my garden but also in my village which has been a very welcome sight.

I love to be outdoors, especially in the garden, I can while away many an hour sitting in the garden, sipping tea, reading a book and listening to the birds sing.  I like to tinker around planting seeds and watching things grow and my favourite is growing herbs and then picking them for tea. Oh yeah did I mention I like me tea! Well you guys already know that as I mention it so often. I very often paint, plan and journal in the garden as I find that I am more inspired when surrounded by nature.

This month I thought I would bring a beautiful garden to you. A delicious mix of flowers and veggies to get you in the mood for those long Summer days that are waiting for us here in the Northern Hemisphere (hopefully), and for you Southies something for you to remember your Summer days as you slip into Autumn!"

This month was quite hard because there were somany wonderful products, I just couldn't narrow it down so instead I bought everything and then just gave each box a random selection of products. So each box received 6-8 of the following products and the total RRP of the box was £21 so whatever you received it was all worth the same. 

 Those that ordered a planner box will have received an art (painted by me) dashboard as well as a planner charm. One of the following dashboards will have been received (randomly chosen by me) as either Personal or A5 size depending on which box size you signed up for

Please do watch the above video as you can see all the products much more clearly and appreciate them better and of course you can learn more about the products and what to do with them.

I hope you like it, it was a lot of hard work sourcing a collection and putting it all together! At the time of writing I have some excess boxes available to purchase as a whole as well as some individual items so check out my online shop for those. I also have some of the dashoards and planner charms available to purchase in my Etsy Shop.

See you next month for June’s box. Remember if you would like to order a subscription or a one off box and you would like that box to be the June one you can order up to and on 30th May from: www.mrsbrimbles.co.uk/shop

London Stationery Show Roundup / What is the future of stationery?

As many of you know from my postings around social media, I visited the London Stationery Show in errr, London yesterday. Some of you asked if I could take photos and / or vlog my trip yesterday. There were two reasons why this was not possible. Firstly I have only just ordered my new vlogging camera (the old one broke!) and that should be here today. Secondly it was a trade show with companies showcasing up and coming products so photography was not allowed. Such a shame I know because so many of you wanted a virtual trip. As I mentioned it was a trade show so not open to the general public, reatailers, designers and manufacturers of stationery only. There was nothing to buy at the show but I did walk a way with an armful of brochures!

I went to a trade fair earlier on in the year where I had already met many of the suppliers that were there but it was nice to go back and chat with them to re-confirm that I love their products and also to re-confirm the inclusion of the products in future Brimbles Boxes. With the boxes I do so much behind the scenes work, researching and sourcing products, coming up with themes etc. It is hard work but I do love it else I wouldn't be doing it!

Many suppliers don't actually let you or like you selling on platforms such as Etsy so I have an online shop on my direct website now with many scrumptious new things coming that I am just so excited about. I have an order on its way from a BIG US brand. Huuuuuuuge but I don't want to tell you about it just yet, I want to make sure that the stuff actually gets here first and is OK before I do. All I am saying is that it is a well known, high end fashion brand who also has a stationery line and it is hard to get hold of here in the UK. Some of you may have guessed so if you have just keep it under your hat for a while so as not to ruin the surprise for others. I know I am being a little bit secret with many things. Believe me I really do want to tell you but sometimes these things take a while to put in place with lots of talks with companies so until it is all finalised it is pointless getting your hopes up incase it all falls through! I don't think it will but you never know. I also like to keep things secret with the box so as not to spoil the surprise for you because I know how you love to be suprised when it gets to you.

We sat in on a talk about design trends forecasting over the next months and even up to two years away. It was really interesting to hear from a design forecasting agency that specialise in this aaaaaaand I have to say that I am bang on trend lol! How do I know this? Well the Brimbles Box is actually planned out months in advance. At the beginning of the year I plotted out the themes for each month. I don't have all the art work for the dashboards completed yet but I did just send off the artwork for the July box to the printers on Tuesday and am working on the art work for August and guess what...BANG. ON. TREND. Whoooooop Whooooop! I was really excited about that and had to restrain myself from fist pumping in the air lol!

So what can we expect design trend wise emerging in the stationery World? According to the forecasting agency we can expect to see...

1. Olympics / Brazil inspired with lots of bold colours and patterns which intentionally clash. They really are so clashing that they kinda just, well, work you know!

2. A sporty influence, again keeping in mind the future Olympics things.
3. Nomadic living, the idea of travel and being free to move around.
4. Summer, pastels and all things floaty.
5. Surrealism with lots of juxtapositioning, all inspired from the release of the 'Alice through the looking glass' movie in 2016.

6. Play. Play is big, lots of interactive things, more adult colouring books.
7. Nature particularly with an urban feel.

8. Oh and technology. Lots more technology interface. It is out now but I really like the idea of the Livescribe where you can write with a smart pen and it automatically sends it to you device. Nice.

Some interesting concepts there, some of which I have mixed feelings about and others I am really excited for. I think you stationery addicts will agree that there are some exciting times ahead of us especially with more and more fashion houses extending their ranges into stationery lines.

What I can say is that all in all it was a really good show. There were not as many traders there as I thought there was going to be and there were a lot more 'corporate' type items there which isn't really us. I mean they have their place but the style of stationery I like and I know many of you do is the more cute / quirky / kawaii or fashion led type which there was less of but luckily I had already found those people at a previous show so that was all good!

Watch this space, as I say some lovely new products will be coming to my shop TODAY and also over the coming weeks and months. I will still have my Etsy shop as that is my first love but not all companies will work with me if I have that and there are some companies out there that just have products to die for so I have to have my direct shop because I cannot pass those goodies up!

Mr B took the day off work to come for a jolly. I like to bounce ideas off of him and he is not one to pass up on a trip to London. We are only 45 minutes away on the train but we don't go all that often. We were only at the show for a couple of hours as it wasn't that big so I decided to treat him to a cake at Choccywoccydoodah. We love it there and always go when we are in London. It is when I say that I am only 75% vegan because I do love my choclate I am afriad. I am good 75% of the time and 25% of the time I cave to chocolate and cheese. If you have never been and you ever find yourself if London  you just have to try it and it is also a great excuse to look at the fab shops in Carnaby street. I could drool over the Irregular Choice shoe shop for hours!

We had a little mooch around Oxford Street, went to our favourite vegan restaurant (to counter balance the chocolate!) and then made our way over to Victoria where I convinced Mr B to let me go in to Hema. He hates the place, he likes shopping but isn't keen on Hema.

I must say I don't love Hema stationery, even though I know a lot of people do but I am not massively keen (don't shoot me!). I did make a purchase though and this is my little Hema haul...

I told you it was little. We then went to see Wicked the musical. We first saw Wicked for our first wedding anniversary 7 1/2 years ago now but we were poorly and coughed and spluttered our way through it. We always said we would like to see it again and on Tuesday night we were planning our trip and decided that whilst we were in London we should perhaps take in a show. Wicked popped up on our research so we decided to book last minute tickets. It was an icredible performance and didn't disappoint and I would so go and see it again!

All in all we had a fab day!

The Letter Bee Box - Stationery, PenPals & Journals - April Unboxing

It's Letter Bee time again! 

The Letter Bee box is a monthly box curated by Patty from Furthermore Press. The box is aimed at everyone who loves letter writing, stationery and journals. Each box is themed and all the goodies inside the box relate to that theme in some way. This is my second Letter Bee box and I can tell you I love it!

About the box:

Boxes can be ordered through Patty's Etsy shop - Furthermore Press

Letter Bee box: $35US inc shipping in US   $30US + $22.50US shipping for UK which in totaly equates to £36. Patty also offers a Petite Letter Box: $22US + $5.95US shipping, outside of the US you need to get in touch with Patty so she can give you a quote.

As many of the items are unique and hand made there are a limited number of boxes each monthso get in quick if you want one!

I filmed my unboxing so that you can get a better sense of the products or do please keep on reading for photos of what I received.


So the theme of this month was 'eco' and recycling which I love (I used to write a blog on Eco stuff called Our Little Eco Journey). My heart started missing a few beats when I saw how much Kraft stuff was in their as I do love my Kraft paper he he!

The massive eco element of this months box is that rather than contain it all in a cardboard box, Patty sent a reusable plastic box which I think would be great for housing supplies and taking them out in the garden with you.

As usual there is a card detailing all of the items inside as well as a sweet treat and some lovely tea.

On to the items then. Please note that there were also some itty bitty bits including but I have stuck to just showing some of the bigger items.

Firstly were reusable page flags, Clips, sticky notes and note cards

As always there is a good selection of note cards, postcards and greetings cards, all centred around this months theme (not all are shown here).

There was a selection of die cuts which is perfect for adding to your journal and if you don't have one don't worry because a handmade one was also included!

A lovely selection of stickers and pens.

And last but by no means least is this gorgeous art work from Patty herself. I love it and it will sit with my one from last month just above my desk where I can see it!

Another super fun box and a delight to receive, use and spread the love when I write to pen pals. Next months theme looks fab too so if you don't want to miss out make sure you head on over to Furthermore Press on Etsy to buy yours!

PLEASE NOTE: I was given this / these product(s) in exchange for my honest review and opinion, the fact that I was given these does not alter my opinion in anyway. This review is my own personal opionion on the product / company, given in good faith and has not be sponsored or endorsed. The photography unless otherwise stated / credited is also my own. None of the links are affiliate links