A Tale of Three Subscriptions: Part 3

My final review of a "stationery subscription service" is of Rad & Hungry. Rad & Hungry does packages of office supplies from around the world. You can order older sets from Spain, or Brazil or wherever, or you can sign up for a mystery mailing from another country. When I went to do my review, there weren't any unrevealed country sets available so I opted for a "Rad Bag", a mad lib mixture of supplies from all over. I wanted that unknown quantity to better compare the experience with that of Quarterly Co. and Olive Box.

The Rad & Hungry set has a really great aesthetic, packaging wise. It's all kraft and plain paper paired with pops of florescent orange. I was undone by the cleverness of the bag closure. Two holes, a paper clip and a rubber band = GENIUS.

My Rad Bag contained a notebook from Spain, wood push pins from the US, a "European Version" Bic Pen from France, an eraser from Brazil, a pencil from Columbia, and a pencil cap from Japan.

I have long derided the Rad & Hungry sets to myself. Every one seemed to me to be another slim folio notebook, another ho-hum pen. BUT, while that's essentially what I got in my "Rad Bag", the little note card about where things were from and the obvious care with which the supplies were selected really came through. It managed to make the ordinary really special. My favorite was the business card with the various paper clips on it which isn't even a part of the "Rad Bag"; it's the Rad & Hungry business card. Again, GENIUS.

At a $20.00 price tag, with shipping, it was a little more expensive than I'd like, but I didn't feel cheated. It was a fun time. 

Would you like this Rad Bag? It's rad! You can win it here. The giveaway is for MEMBERS ONLY. If you win, you'll need to supply your Letter Writers Alliance member number to redeem your prize. We'll cover the shipping domestically, but International friends will be asked to reimburse us any shipping costs. The rules are simple. Leave a comment with something rad you think we should know about. A winner will be picked at random next Friday! ***Contest is now closed. Thanks everyone!***

 

 

Comments

[Jen]

ok Here's a "rad" snapple fact - flamingos can only eat with their heads upside down. Hope that's rad enough! Thanks for the great offer.

[Victoria]

If I had to put something in a rad kit like that, I would definitely include penguin paperclips (you can see some here: http://www.jetpens.com/Midori-D-Clip-Paper-Clips-Original-Series-Penguin-Box-of-30/pd/5199)! They have all sorts of animal shapes you can buy, but penguins are definitely my favorite :)

[Sarah]

You've probably already seen it, but ..http://thingsorganizedneatly.tumblr.com A great tumblr that makes my nerdy design/need to be organized heart all a-flutter. My favorite are, of course, the ones featuring office and writing supplies. I can literally waste hours looking at these. =)

[Kimmie David]

The League of Extraordinary Penpals is quite rad: http://www.extraordinarypenpals.com/

[rachel]

I emailed you about this last night, but I'm still kind of obsessed with it: http://www.sheknows.com/living/articles/965787/diy-cake-postcard-tutorial

Definitely RAD!

[Karenzapaperie.blogspot.com]

We think our July competition to win some note cards is pretty rad and it would be SUPER rad if one of you won! http://karenzapaperie.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/our-sensationally-pretty-july-giveaway.html

[David Solomon]

This is a RAD movie...check it... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2209418/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

[Joan Clarke]

I'd love to win any RAD gift. Put my name in the hat, Please.

Love the ingenious bag closure. How clever some people are! Very RAD.

Joan in NV

[Rita]

I love writing with dip pens and colored ink. I slows my writing down and I have time to contemplate...since I am usually going a mile a minute, I think slowing down is RAD...especially for letter writing.

[Estela]

thanks for the RAD giveaway, I really think its rad to write with calligraphy pens even if you don't know calligraphy it just looks fun!

[Donovan Beeson]

Psst: Hey Kimmie! You won the giveaway for Quarterly! Contact us with your member number and mailing address to claim your prize. Email us at [email protected]

[Karen J.S.]

I think fluorescent silkworms are pretty rad: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/06/colorful-fluorescent-silk/

[Linda]

Well, you already know this...but, I think your latest R.S.V.P.#12 Air Mail program is really RAD !! :>

[Janna White]

Something rad you should know about: Badlands National Park in South Dakota. It is amazing and, blissfully, without reception, so that you get to tune in and drop out!!

[jackie]

i just finished my first AIDS/LifeCycle (a 545 mile bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise money to fight and awareness around HIV/AIDS) and i sent a jillion postcards from the road to friends, family and donors. the ride, the mail, the unplugging, and all the reflection was super, super RAD!

[jean]

This is one fantastic blog. I find thses notebooks COOL.

[Amanda]

Totally random, but I think the Zooborns blog is rad. Baby animals to delight me every day!

Thanks for ANOTHER awesome giveaway!

[Nicole]

I'm a BRAND NEW member - just joined two days ago. Hope I can participate here. We just had a RAD 4th of July Party with a bunch of games. The "Minute to Win It" style ones were super fun and you can find a whole host of them on their website.

[amanda]

the new-for-me typewriter is about to be pretty rad once I get some new ribbon

[Shanti]

Sewing my new LWA patch on to some sweaters and it's not even fall yet is pretty RAD!!

[Alice]

I think the Goulet Pen Company Ink Drop club is RAD! Not only is it great that they sell 2 ml ink samples for under $2 (for most of them), but they also have a club you can join. For $10 a month, Ink Drop members get a monthly shipment of a "mystery" set of inks - different colors and brands usually based on a theme for that month. They have an archive on their website so you can see what previous months colors/brands have been AND you can order those previous months if you desire. We ordered our son the July 2011 ink drop package that had highlighter inks, including an invisible ink with a black light ring to put on your finger for writing and decoding letters. He uses this sometimes when writing to his pen pals. Now the ring is sold separatesly from the ink drop package, but it is still available on their website. LOVE the ink drop club concept!!! http://www.gouletpens.com/Ink_Drop_Membership_p/inkdrop.htm

[Jane B.]

Thanks for the great 3 Part post on subscriptions. I would love to win this RAD giveaway. Fingers crossed.... Jane

[Laura Roberts]

I know it's not necessarily letter oriented, but have you heard of Papirmasse? It's an art subscription by mail, and they're based in Canada: http://papirmasse.com/art/