January 2018 J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World by LootCrate subscription box review

Trouble, Harry Potter's got trouble,

Right here in Lootcrate City!

With a capital "T"

That rhymes with "P"

And that stands for . . .

Yeah . . .

This is the January, 2018, J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World by LootCrate, which is a month late due to an item that got delayed at the factory, or so forth.  The November box was a month late as well.

 This box features 5-7 exclusive and officially licensed items.

I underlined that last bit on purpose, because they state it on the website. 

Price for this box, plus shipping, is $44.99, a price increase of $2.  The price increase, which was added to the March box (which will hopefully ship in March), was added for shipping.  What's interesting is how small the January box is.  I put it next to the November box, which is ironically smaller than its previous months.

The info card shows the size of the box.

Along with being late this box only came with 4 items, instead of the advertised 5-7.

Everywhere I've been reading on the net people are not happy.

I'll detail my thoughts after going through the items.

 (Box Theme)

 Hogwarts House Tie

 This is a nice tie.  It's 100% polyester.  I'd value it about $15-20, from what I was seeing online.  Hot Topic has a 100% polyester skinny tie for $12.90.  The Universal Studios Harry Potter online shop has silk ties for $31.95.  I like the lion, makes it more unique, but as my Dad pointed out it's a little off center.  But it is still a nice tie as I don't have one. 

 Black Family Tree Tapestry Shawl/Scarf

This is a nice long scarf. Really nice unique item that I'd value between $20-$25.  I love genealogy, and it's fun to see Sirius Black's complete family tree.  The scarf looks nice rolled up.  All the faces blacked out our family members who have been disowned, aka turned good.  Love the medieval tree feel.

 Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem Pin

This pin is really nice, my favorite pin thus far.  Love the little stone and jewel details.  Value $10-13.

The Wand Collection Book

This is a smaller paperback version of the book that came out last November.  I looked through one around Christmas at a Barnes and Nobles.  The Hardback is so much nicer.  I can see some people not happy with this item simply because they may already own the nicer version.  The pictures are very nice, and I've always found the different wands in the Harry Potter universe to be interesting.  What would have been nice, and this is a critique of the book overall, is if full descriptions of each wand was included: Length, wood type, and core material.  That would have been so nice. Value $13-18.

So the box . . .

I do like the quality of a few items.  Like the tie, scarf, and pin.  The book is nice to have, and I'm glad I didn't already have one.  But there are only 4 items when a minimum 5 was promised, late a month, with a price increase.  If this box is going to continue Lootcrate needs to get it together.  Find a way to get on track with the shipping, and be more transparent with their costumers.  I'm getting this box through May, as May is my B-day month.  May cancel after that.  The next box has already been charged, so I'm getting that regardless.  Guess we'll see how March goes.

Overall personal value for box is low end $58. 

(This blog post wins an award for the overuse of the word "nice".  Oops.)