ZenPop Japanese Stationery Pack Review – September 2018

ZenPop Japanese Stationery Pack is a subscription box brought to you by ZenMarket filled with unique Japanese stationery and studying goods handpicked by their staff in Japan.

This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

About ZenPop Stationery Pack

The Subscription Box: ZenPop Stationery Pack

The Cost: $29.50 a month with free international shipping. Save with longer commitments.

The Products: 12 or more cute and useful stationery items like pens, notebooks, stickers, and more.

Ships to: Worldwide

Good to know: Past boxes are sometimes still available via their marketplace.

ZenPop Stationery Pack September 2018 "Back To School" Review

The box includes a thank you note with a coupon code to use on their site.

I find ZenPop’s info sheet to be really helpful since a lot of the packaging isn’t in English. It gives you a rundown of each item and this month’s theme is “Back to School.”

Hako Fusen Sticky Notes – Estimated Value $3.52 (similar item found here)

These sticky notes are perfect to mark pages in a book or binder and are neatly enclosed in a small case, so they won’t stick to anything else in your bookbag! I love the happy, fun, and colorful design.

Shitajiki

In Japan, it is common to place a plastic board under the paper that you are writing on to ensure a smooth surface, and to avoid marking the other sheets below. This board features a playful design full of animals. The board measures 5" x 7", making it easily transportable in whatever bookbag you're using. I have horrible handwriting, so this item isn’t really of value to me. I’ll probably let my son decorate it with stickers.

Zebra Mildliners (5 pack) – Retail Value $10.00 (on sale for $5.82)

Highlighters are a back to school staple, and these “mildliners” boast that they are milder on your eyes due to their mild colors. Gosh, what they won’t think of next – and here I was still using neon yellow.

And here they are swatched. The colors still seem fairly vibrant to me, but since I never had a complaint about standard neon highlighters I will certainly add these to my supply for additional variety.

Big Mouth Sticky Notes

I received the piggy (out of 4 choices, including a panda, frog, or cat). The pig’s mouth is wide open, and a thought bubble floats above his head to contain your thoughts. You can use these notes separately or as a funny little set, and I plan to use my around the house with some one-liners to make my hubby chuckle when he stumbles upon one.

Word Cards

So, I admit – I'm a *cough* few years removed from academia and I didn't know what these were when I opened the box. After some googling, I realized these are the new "flashcards." Back in my day, we used index cards – but this is a great idea! This little bound stack of blank cards lends itself well to that use, providing you have tiny/neat handwriting.

Science Boy Stickers

These adorable stickers are sure to make a teen girl swoon. For me though, I love that the stickers are on a clear background and they have shadow outlines on the blue paper. I am going to let my son use these as a matching game, he is really into matching sticker shapes to outlines right now and this will give me a few minutes of sanity while he entertains himself!

Video Game Washi Tape

I love washi tape and use it for a variety of purposes – from gift wrapping to crafts to scrapbooking I am starting to build quite a supply! It's useful, adorable, and adds some whimsy to whatever you're designing. I love the video game theme – it makes me want to run and collect gold coins!

Animal Memo Pad

I love this versatile kitty notepad and plan to use it when I must leave notes to my cat-loving mother in law while she babysits my son! These notes are about 6” x 3” but are perforated across the middle so you can decide to use a whole or half based on your communication needs.

Pentel – Energize Pencil (0.5mm) – Retail Value $4.92

I’ve always been a big fan of mechanical pencils. This one is awesome – featuring a rubber grip (making it comfortable to hold) as well as a “slide and sleep” style, meaning that it’s retractable for when you’re not using it. It really has a great hand feel.

Smart Scissors

This was the standout item for me! I love these scissors. They unfold easily and take very little space. I crochet a lot, and these are perfect to throw in my craft bag. They take very little space and are far less bulky than traditional scissors. I found them to be sharp enough to cut through paper and thread easily, although that's probably about the extent. I doubt they'd cut through tougher material easily.

Bonus Item: Pentel - Petit Correction Tape

This one is for subscribers only, so if you buy the pack as a one-time purchase, you won’t get this item. This correction tape is in a cute little tube, but I had difficulty making it tear neatly as you can see in the photo. It ended up looking messy and wasn’t my favorite product.

Verdict: This month's ZenPop Stationery Pack had a great variety of back to school items. The standout for me was the smart scissors, I also really liked the mildliners, piggy post-it, and washi tape. There were a few misses for me – mainly the plastic board and the flashcards – but that’s the hand you’re sometimes dealt with subscriptions. Overall I was pleased and felt like the box itself was a good value, although I couldn’t find many of the items online to truly quantify the retail value of the merchandise I received.

To Wrap Up:

Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No, November will be your first box.

Value Breakdown: This box costs $29.50 + free shipping, which means that each of the 11 items in the box has an average cost of $2.68.

Check out all of our ZenPop Stationery Pack reviews and more stationery reviews in the Paper and Stationery Subscription Box Directory!

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What do you think of ZenPop Stationery Pack?