Something Japanese Halloween Japanese Candy Box

For over a year now I’ve been ordering Japanese candy boxes from Something Japanese and they’re something I really love. Especially when they bring out exclusive candy boxes for Halloween and Christmas!

I’ve always meant to share with you guys the candy boxes I pick up from Something Japanese, but me and Dane always end up eating the contents before I can even take photos FOR a post. Alas, that hasn’t happened this time, we’ve held off snacking on any of the Halloween goodies until next week and the weekend of Halloween. So, I really hope you enjoy this post today and look at snagging one of the Halloween Candy Boxes for yourselves.

This year Something Japanese have added more to their Halloween Candy Box than ever before, with over 35 Halloween themed treats inside. The box costs £34.99, but I snagged mine for cheaper due to a discount code. From memory due to being signed up to the newsletter, I have a feeling this is why I received a discount code. So many sure to sign up for the newsletter if you’d like to order any of the candy boxes in the future.

Before I share all the goodies we got inside out Halloween Candy Box, I want to share the monthly Japanese candy box that Something Japanese do! It’s call AmaiBox, which I’ve tried before and is by far one of the best monthly boxes I’ve tried to date. The AmaiBox comes in two sizes, Giga (from £28 per month) and Mini (from £20 per month) and you can choose to order the one month or three month subscription. Depending which box you pick up you’ll receive Japanese candy such as:

Candy bags, which could include Puccho (which I LOVE).

Popular snacks such as Japanese Kit Kat’s, Pocky, as well as Nintendo characters.

Dagashi, which means cheap/small candy in Japanese.

Japanese drink (only in Giga), which could range from ramune soda, canned coffee, or maybe even Japanese flavours of Coca Cola or Pepsi.

So if you are interested in that, make sure to check out the link I shared previously!

To add here by the way, Something Japanese don’t just create and sell Japanese candy boxes, they do also sell Japanese products range from food and snacks, anime/pop culture figures and merchandise, as well as traditional Japanese gifts. I discovered them at Hyper Japan back in 2015 and have been shopping with them ever since! So, do make sure to go and check them out if you fancy picking up some yummy Japanese snacks.

Now I’ve gone through the AmaiBox, let’s show off the goodies we got in our Halloween Candy Box!

Last year Something Japanese brought it with their box design and this year is no different. The box has a cardboard sleeve around it which is orange and black, with the name of the candy box, as well as the company name on the front and back of the sleeve. I was so excited when I opened the parcel it came in. On the bottom of the sleeve it does give you some ingredients as well as warnings, which I’ve shown above.

One thing I love about the Japanese snack boxes from Something Japanese is although the box is simple, you open it up and the goodies are displayed nice and neat and ready to eat! Oooft, I love that. 😛

On the lid of the box when you open it there is a postcard, which has a spooky trick or treat logo designed and a pumpkin, which asks you to turn over the card. I won’t show what is on the other side as there is an exclusive discount code for the Christmas Candy Box! I’ll definitely be ordering the Christmas box when it’s released, as I did last year and really loved it. If you guys would like to see me share the Christmas box after reading this post, please let me know in the comments! 🙂

Anyhoo, it’s time to get into the goodies we’re all ready for! If any of these items are available on the Something Japanese website, I’ll make sure to link them.

The box itself is FULL of Halloween pumpkin confetti which is so damn cute! I want to keep hold them to use in some crafts, but I probably won’t. 😦 There’s also an enamel pin in here of the United Kingdom flag and Japanese flags together, as well as a special little thank you card.

Tohato Pokemon Chocolate Flavoured Corn Puffs – These are available all year around in a standard packaging, but I love that they’re out in a limited Halloween bag too! So cute!

Pocky, Pretz and Kit Kat – You always get some of these snacks in these boxes, which I always love and enjoy! This year it looks like we have strawberry Pocky and tomato Pretz… Not sure how I’m feeling about the latter! We also have cinnamon and apple Kit Kat which you can buy on Something Japanese’s website here and here.

Umaibo Puffed Corn Stick Halloween – I feel every box that Something Japanese send out, they always have the puffed corn sticks in! Sometimes we love them and sometimes we hate them. This Halloween edition is corn potage and pumpkin Umaino. These are available to buy individually on the website but unfortunately are sold out.

Lotte – We have various snacks here including some chocolates, koala cookies (which you can buy all year around), as well as a chocolate pie, which I’m REALLY excited to have!

Fujiya – Again, various types of candies here with their character Peko featuring on all the snack packets. It feels like the packets contain chocolates and wafers, which will be really yummy! The bigger packets also have games on them, which are clearly meant for children to do after enjoying the snack.

Morinaga – It feels and looks like we have another chocolate pie, AHH! Which means me and Dane can have one each! The other packs appear/do contain chewy sweets, with the one coming from a Hi-Chew candy mix bag that Something Japanese sell on the website. I’m not a massive Hi-Chew fan and much prefer Puccho, so Dane will probably have this sweet.

Meiji – My favourite Japanese chocolate! I wish I’d tried this prior to going to Japan, otherwise I would have brought shit loads back with me. You get a couple of little bars of chocolate, ranging from black (dark) and milk chocolate. Alongside that there are some tangerine chewy sweets and by the looks of the packet, some strawberry chocolate. I’m really excited to try all of these!

Bourbon – All the Bourbon goods look AMAZING! All chocolate based and yummy, can’t wait to try these, especially the triangle, which looks like it might be cake.

Miscellaneous – Here we have loads of random candy that I lumped into one photo! These range from chewy sweets in the shape of spiders, marshmallows, lollipops, chocolate wafers, chocolate, hard sweets, etc. These will be very much shared and enjoyed whilst watching a scary movie over Halloween.

Overall I am incredibly impressed with the Halloween Candy Box that Something Japanese sent out this year! Whilst I was writing this post Dane kept asking me when we could eat the goodies… Now this post is written and photos taken NOW IS THE TIME!

What do you guys think of the Halloween Candy Box? They’re still in stock, so will you snag one before Halloween next week? Do you already have one? Let me know in the comments.

Sorry to dash, but I’m off to enjoy my Halloween Candy Box!

Until next time though guys take care and have a lovely weekend.

HUGE Shop Small UK Guide – Christmas 2020

Can you believe there is only 18 days until Christmas? Have you finished your Christmas shopping yet? I’m awful this year and I’m not done. I usually have all my gifts bought by now, but alas I still have my parents to buy for.

This year I wanted to do a gift guide, but not my usual one aimed at the geeks, otaku and kawaii fans, beauty, fashion etc etc. I wanted to instead focus on small companies/independent artists/businesses who need our support more than ever due to COVID and it’s affects from lockdowns here in the UK.

First of all, I’m only speaking about the UK as with a Twitter poll a couple of weeks ago, it’s what you as the readers voted for. However at the end of the post I will mention who you can shop small with all over the world too.

I’m going to add all sorts of categories here, not just geek, kawaii, otaku related. I’ll be talking about beauty, home, geek, Japan related, food and more! I want to try and talk about as much as I can, so when you need ideas for Christmas gifts you have lots of choice. I will also mention the last date to order for Christmas too if you’re in the UK. Please bear in mind with the COVID situation and Christmas on the horizon, Royal Main is struggling a little, so if you want to order, order as soon as possible!

Let’s get started! I really hope you guys enjoy this post. 🙂

Image taken from GIPHY

Geeky/Kawaii

Image taken from Jennifairy Illustration

Jennifairy Illustration – Creating cuties to make you smile. Enamel pins, stickers and keychains, all inspired by cute animals, video game characters and more.

Last date to order for Christmas – 14th December. However, if order after this date it could still get there but that can’t be promised. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

Jennifairy Illustration is an independent artist/store I have spoken about on my blog since 2017 and I knew they were one of the first places I wanted to speak about today! Jennifairy has a range of products – enamel pins, stickers and keychains. Her style is incredibly cute and kawaii and the designs make me smile whenever I see them, both on her store and in my home. If you know someone who loves cute animals and certain characters from popular video games, then they will love to open a cute design from Jennifairy. Christmas wise you can pick up some gingerbread friends or even a Christmas Pikachu, with a Santa’s hat and a cup of coffee. There are loads of different designs to choose from, there is something for everyone.

Image taken from Littlest Spook Shop

Littlest Spook Shop – We put the Oo in spooky! Cute spooky ghost prints, mugs and other items to choose from!

Last date to order for Christmas – Currently Littlest Spook Shop is looking to close 9th December.

Halloween isn’t just once a year with Littlest Spook Shop. I discovered them around Halloween this year and I love their spooky ghost designs. They’re so damn cute and spoopy and I’m down for that. I regret not ordering some of their Christmas cards this year to be honest, but there’s always next year. If you know someone who celebrates Halloween all year around then a print (or two!) from Littlest Spook Shop may just be for them! Not only do they sell prints but they also sell mugs, tote bags, enamel pins and patches so that spooky friend or family member can show off their love of ghosts and all things spooky all year around! The Always Cosy Club spooky print shouts out to me so much. During the colder months I’m like that little ghosty.

Image taken from FoxLeap

FoxLeap – Kawaii designs inspired by Disney and Japanese characters from films and video games.

Last date to order for Christmas – Not known at time of writing post.

FoxLeap is an independent artist/store I love buying enamel pins from. They’re adorable and there is always something in the store I want to pick up, including the Jiji enamel pin which I may need to order myself as a treat for writing this post. 😛 There is something for everyone when it comes down to FoxLeap including designs inspired by Disney (especially The Lion King series!), Pokemon, Studio Ghibli, Wolf’s Rain, Okami and more. Anyone who loves enamel pins will really love to receive a FoxLeap design and honestly they probably already know of FoxLeap’s existence. Not only do they make and sell enamel pins but they also sell prints, t-shirts, stickers, enamel pin flags, tote bags and more so there is plenty to choose from!

Image taken from NaomiLordArt

NaomiLordArt – A freelance artist who creates adorable prints inspired by animals, magical creatures, witches, Goddesses, Critical Role and more!

Last date to order for Christmas – Orders will be shipped until the shop closes for Christmas on 20th December. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

Guys you know me I love kawaii animals, especially foxes and that is something NaomiLordArt does so bloody well! I mean, look at them cute seasonal fox designs! I feel anyone of any age will love a little stocking filler that involves one of the many designs that NaomiLordArt has on offer. Plus if you and your friends are fans of Critical Role, she’s drawn all of the gang and put it onto a print, which you can find here. I feel NaomiLordArt would be perfect as items to gift children, teenagers and anyone who loves prints and stickers. I’ve gifted my best friend goodies from there before that were surrounding Star Wars and Harry Potter. There are also RPG class animal stickers and prints too, so if you play in a D&D group and are taking part in a D&D themed Secret Santa, these would make perfect gifts alongside some dice.

Image taken from GIPHY

Japanese Snacks

Image taken from Something Japanese

Something Japanese – UK based online shop that sells the best things from Japan! Chocolate, Candy, Collectables, Otaku Goodies and much much more.

Last date to order for Christmas – December 21st. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

Something Japanese is a store I have bought from for about five years now and they are really good! I especially love to pick up the Japanese snack boxes from them as they’re always an amazing price for how many Japanese sweets and treats you get. I ordered the Halloween one and it was amazing and I’ve ordered the Christmas Japanese Candy Box too. This might make for an amazing gift to someone who loves Japanese sweets and treats and who may also miss Japan or want to visit Japan. COVID has prevented travelling to Japan for a lot of people and I know a lot of my friends who missed out on their trips this year. This would make for a nice treat to open Christmas Day. Something Japanese does sell other items too and separate sweet treats so make sure to check that out too.

Image taken from Tofu Cute

Tofu Cute – A UK kawaii shop that sells all sorts of cute and unique Japanese snacks, plushies, accessories, stationery and other goodies.

Last date to order for Christmas – Not known at time of writing post.

Tofu Cute is a store me and my boyfriend often order our Japanese sweets from as they’re great prices and they always seem to have the goods that Japan get at the same time. Not only do they stock sweets but also drinks as well! We’ve bought many bottles of ramune and Pokemon fizzy drinks from Tofu Cute and they’ve all been enjoyed! Think my favourite thing I’ve ever bought from Tofu Cute are the Melty Kiss chocolates. They’re to die for and would make an amazing gift for someone’s stocking this Christmas. 🙂

Image taken from GIPHY

Home

Image taken from Cushty Co Twitter page

Cushty Co – Handmade home fragrance. Scented soy wax melts beautifully crafted with sprinkles of glitter and careful colouring. Vegan friendly.

Last date to order for Christmas – Monday 14th December – Store will close at 5pm. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

Cushty Co are my go to for wax melts and I’ve ended up buying so many this year! Their autumn/Halloween collection being my favourite to date. If you know someone who loves burning candles and wax tarts like me, Cushty Co are a great place to check out. They do LOADS of different scent varieties and three different sizes of wax so the choices are huge. They currently have their Christmas/winter scents in stock and I have all of them! They’re absolutely amazing and if you know someone who loves Christmas and wishes it could be everyday, then some of the Christmas/winter scents will be right up their street. Not only do Cushty Co sell wax tarts, but they also sell room sprays too, which I’m yet to try. If you know someone who loves Lush then they’ll love Unicorn Dreams which smells exactly like Snow Fairy and Nightfall which smells exactly like Twlight.

Image taken from Bubble Baskets UK/Books Baths and Beauty

Bubble Baskets UK/Books Baths and Beauty – Lovingly Custom made 3D printed Bubble Baskets.

Last date to order for Christmas – 17th December if ordering a pink, black or ombré bubble basket. 14th December if ordering a custom colour. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

I recently decided to buy myself a bubble basket from Books Baths and Beauty as I’ve wanted one for over a year now and as my bathroom was redone in the summer, I’ve finally been indulging in bath products and having bath cocktails more. It arrived over the weekend I’ve used it a few times since. It’s really good and if you’re like me and use bubble bars, shower gels and more to create bubbles, then this is for you! They’re made with a 3D printer and are sturdy and amazing! 😀 If you know someone who loves taking baths and using the same products as I do, this will be perfect for helping them create lots of bubbles! Teenagers will love this, as well as mermaids.

Image taken from GIPHY

Beauty

Image taken from The Bath Bae

The Bath Bae  –  Handmade bath treats to make you glow inside and out. Vegan and cruelty free!

Last date to order for Christmas – Monday 21 December at 3pm Royal Mail Tracked 48 or Tuesday 22 December at 3pm Royal Mail Tracked 24. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

I recently made my first order with The Bath Bae and honestly – I have zero regrets. They focus on bath bomb products in various different varieties and scents so there is plenty to choose from! So far I’ve only tried the bath cubes and they are amazing, perfect for anyone of any age. You can pick up bath sparkle, sparkle rocks, bath cubes and bath soak. These would make great stocking fillers for teenagers and anyone who loves a good soak in the bath. My favourite scent from them so far is Oh So Slushie, which reminds me of Tango Ice Blast slushies from the cinema.

Image taken from Happy Melon

Happy Melon – Handmade beauty products made in small batches and packed with cuteness, colour and yummy fragrance. Cruelty free!

Last date to order for Christmas – Restock this Sunday (13/12/2020) and as items sell out quickly, there isn’t really a last date to order for Christmas.

Happy Melon is a brand I discovered this year and bought from during their last restock. If you know someone who loves their beauty and bath products and for them to be as colourful as possible, Happy Melon is a good indie brand for this! They have a wide variety of products including bubble bath, lip sugar, perfume oil, bath soak (snuggle soak), sugar scrub and more! One of the bubble baths I own is a Lush Snow Fairy dupe (Sabrina bubble bath) and it’s one of my favourite products to use after a long day. Plus a little goes a long way and this stuff lasts AGES! One of the products I am excited to try soon is the Pop Kei Snuggle Soak, which smells just like Tango Ice Blast slushies! It would work so well with the slushie bath cubes from The Bath Bae. Again this is a great brand for teenagers due to how colourful everything is and maybe even children too due to how colourful and sparkly the bubble baths are.

Image taken from Hex Bomb

Hex Bomb – Divine handmade gothic beauty products for dark sweets hearts. Creator of the first black bath bomb! Cruelty free and vegan!

Last date to order for Christmas – 21st December. If you want to guarantee item(s) to arrive for Christmas order as soon as possible.

Hex Bomb is a brand I have always wanted to try since the Black As Your Soul bath bomb came out. I’m yet to try it still and plan to buy it in the near future! I’ve mentioned some colourful and kawaii beauty indie brands so far, so I wanted to through a gothic, dark brand in there for good measure. I love me a dark bath, it reflects who I am inside and this brand would be perfect for any goth friend or relative out there! Not only do they make bath bombs but Hex Bomb also sell shower gel, soap, scrub, lip balm, perfume oil AND even wax melts for your home. If you aren’t sure what to buy that gothic beauty in your life (because Hex Bomb have a lot of variety!) you could always pick up one of their gift boxes which contains a variety of products. If you want to see a review (or two) of Hex Bomb make sure to go and check out my great blogger friend Raiin Monkey’s blog posts here.

Image taken from GIPHY

Honourable Mentions

Geek/Kawaii – Quirkory – Due to being based in Italy, they didn’t qualify for this shop small post. However, I couldn’t not mention them! They sell enamel pins, stickers and prints inspired by Japanese video games and cute animals.

Geek/Kawaii – Claire Likes To Doodle – The reason I didn’t mention my friend Claire and her store is because she got a post allllll to herself recently! Which I am going to link here. 🙂

Geek/Kawaii – 1 In 100/One In Hundred – A local Brummy like myself, Alex over at 1 In 100 has some amazing designs on her store and you can buy items from clothing, badges, keyrings, stickers, prints, stationary and more. I keep meaning to pick up some of her Japan inspired prints. Check them out here and here.

Geek/Kawaii – Chibi Shibby – May have bought a Christmas present from one of my favourite artists… 😉 Shibby recently reopened her store and has filled it was gorgeous kawaii goodies! There’s also some Christmas related goods in there too.

Geek/Kawaii – Lunaticgumis – Due to being based in Gran Canaria, they didn’t quality for this shop small post. However, I am planning to write about them on my blog very very soon! 😀 They sell stickers as well as amigurumis (Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small, stuffed yarn creatures). They stock Bee and Puppycat designs WHICH I LOVE!

Geek/Kawaii – Taiyakiblue – This store is joint owned by tattooists senseoftheterrific and tubbybeartattoo. They stock clothing, prints and even some keyrings and pins made out of resin. They’re both inspired by geeky/kawaii themes such as D&D, Studio Ghibli, Dragonball Z, Moomins, Adventure Time and more. I’ve purchased a Christmas present from them and plan to buy prints in the future! I love their style so much.

Bath – Bath Bake Love – No restock until after Christmas where there will be lots of enchanted teasers for the New Year Wonderland and plenty of goodies in January!

AND THERE WE HAVE IT! My HUGE shop small Christmas shopping guide for the UK!

What do you guys think? I wanted to try and cover as much as I could and I like to think I’ve done that quite well. In the future I may pop up with some of these after Christmas, just as good shopping guides throughout the year for birthday’s and more!

Honestly guys, I hope you enjoyed this post today as much as I enjoyed writing it. I’m off work for the week and the first thing I knew I wanted to do was to write this post.

Are there any small shops in the UK that you feel I should know about? Make sure to let me know and I’ll take a look for next time!

Until next time, take care all and I hope you had a lovely weekend. 🙂

30th Birthday Wish List

It is officially my birthday in 2 days time and I will be turning the the big three-O… Which semi depresses me and it sort of doesn’t at the same time. Ageing is going to happen and that’s just something I need to deal with now, as well as in the future.

I thought it would be worth sharing with you guys (as I always do) what I have on my wish list this month, which happens to include what I would like for my birthday… But if I don’t – I would probably just buy it myself. 🙂

• Pandora Blue Sparkling Crown Solitaire Ring (link)

A few Christmas/birthday’s ago my mom bought me a gorgeous Pandora ring – the one with the red heart (you can see it here) and I still love it to this day! I wear it pretty much all the time and it makes me think of my mom all the time. I have since spied a few other Pandora rings I like the look of, but never enough to take the plunge to ask for them as gifts or buy them myself… Until now! I saw this ring before Halloween whilst out shopping with a friends and I fell in love! It’s a gorgeous blue stone and it really stands out. I’m hoping to get to wear alongside my red heart ring, either above or below, whichever way looks best! I have a feeling Dane has bought me this… But we shall see! 😛

• Nintendo Tokyo Animal Crossing Smart Phone Ring (no link)

When I first bought my iPhone XR I bought a PopSocket to use when holding the phone. For the short time that I used it, it really did benefit me but at the same time it taught me that I should be holding my phone better. Since then I have missed having something on the back of my phone to hold onto, especially if I’m out and about and have my hands full. I saw these kawaii smart phone rings for sale in the Nintendo Tokyo store and I just have to have them! I plan to pick up both when I visit the store in Japan (as well as so much more Animal Crossing merch!) so that I can use them both on different cases. I find the backing doesn’t stick very well with things like this, so I may need to get the superglue out…

• Hell Bunny Ricci Dress in Black or Red (link)

I actually saw these dresses in EMP’s catalogue that I was given by Dane’s parents on Boxing Day to take home with me… They’ve clearly bought me something from EMP for my birthday… ANYWAY! I love dresses of this style as they shout out to me so much and I especially love to wear them with a thick warm coat in the winter and my Dr Martens boots. In the summer, with a cardigan and my flats. I think I love the red one most as it’s one of my favourite colours to wear. I would have loved to pick this up for my birthday, but I think at this point (my birthday is in 2 days) it’s a little too late now, unless I find it in store somewhere before then.

• Smoko Pearl Boba Tea Light (link)

Dane bought me the Little Bao Dumpling Light from Firebox/Smoko for Christmas and I LOVE it so much! For a battery operated light, it’s really bright and turns itself off after a certain amount of time. I love the Boba Tea Light as I’m a massive bubble tea drinker so would love to add this one to my collection as well. The thing I love about this the most is the fact when you move the light around, the boba in the bottom of the light move around. How cool is that? 😀

• Nintendo Tokyo Animal Crossing Pencil Case (link)

I love Animal Crossing so damn much and when I saw this for sale on the Something Japanese website, I really wanted to order it! That being said, I know I can just wait until my trip to Japan to pick this up myself if I still want it. I don’t NEED a new pencil case as I still have the one I owned back when I was at school and it’s still doing it’s job today of keeping my pens safe.

So (as boring as they were…) that is my 30th birthday wish list post! Wow it’s crazy to think that in 2 days time I’ll be turning 30… I’ll now have to say I’m in my early thirties when talking to people and tick the 30-35 box when signing up for things. 😛 If I still get ID’d though, I’ll be very happy!

Next week I plan to share with you guys what I received for my 30th birthday! I know I didn’t do this for Christmas 2019 but this was due to personal reasons. 🙂

What do you guys have on your wish lists for this month? Make sure to let me know down in the comments!

Until next time, take care all and I hope you’re having a lovely weekend.