Happy Valentine's Day - Box 42 Review
Today love is in the air and we get to show the one(s) we love how much we, well, love them! Our deputy Editor, Chloe Johnson, has reviewed Box 42, for a date night with a difference.
[Image description: a black line drawing illustration of a grecian temple and Greek Gods and Goddesses standing around. In the centre is Aphrodite dressed in a red dress. The rest of the scene is coloured a mustard yellow. A night with Aphrodite is written on the temple.]
#AD #Gifted - Aphrodite Date Night Box
I’m a sucker for anything limited edition. It’s a weakness of mine but limited edition flavours, gifts, pop-up shops - I love it all. I am, self-confessed, a marketing dream. Add some exclusiveness, and I just can’t resist you. When Box42 offered me their Aphrodite date night box to try this Valentines in exchange for an honest review, they were already off to a good start. Their Aphrodite box is exclusive to this time of the year. But was it worth the investment? Read on to find out…
Let’s start with setting the scene… 1. Setting the Scene - 7/10
The Aphrodite box was meant to be a guided tour from Aphrodite herself (imagine Aphrodite crashing your date!) to Ancient Greece, and the items did deliver. There was the “Love Olympics”, which included everything from wrestling (consider whether you have a competitive partner before buying) to a tug of war, golden petals to decorate the scene, olive snacks, some golden wreaths to wear (as well as ideas for dress up - I loved this!) and some snazzy fentimans drinks to enjoy, as well as an optional greek food menu to dive into. In my opinion, the menu could have done with a dessert option - but I have a notoriously sweet tooth - and it was definitely more elaborate than a simple dish. This was a thought I appreciated as it’s meant to be a date night - and they were more unusual recipes as opposed to the first thing you’d get when googling “greek food menu” - but you may have to dedicate a bit more time than the two or so hours it suggests to getting everything prepared, especially if you’re neurodivergent or have an energy-limiting health condition.
Overall, however, for setting the scene it was meant to deliver, it was great. There’s an easy QR code to scan to take you through the guide, which was explanatory enough without it getting boring. I also really enjoyed that for every physical, energy-taxing idea (for example, the wrestling or the food menu) there were items which were far more laid back. For example, if you were having a low day, maybe the games could be off the table, but the massage activity could be up for grabs (the box adds a die and a timer to massaging, and throws in some lovely smelling oil, which makes it a bit more fun!) or maybe candle-making. From my own experience, I think I would split this up into a few dates, but I can see how if you’re not chronically ill, have a better attention span than me, or are just really invested in doing everything at once, that the scene was well presented enough for you to feel like you were definitely doing something different.
2. The Items 9/10 There was a lot in the box. And I mean, it was heavy. There’s nothing worse than opening a box you’re excited about and being met with a ton of packaging, but this wasn’t the case. Infact, I just kept discovering more items. I’ve mentioned a few already, but let's go through them:
Petals
Golden Wreaths
Candles (love heart shaped)
Candle wax
Massage oil (and a fair amount of it!)
Drinks
Snacks
Food Menu
The “Love” Olympics game
I was pleasantly surprised by how much there was in the box, and as I said earlier I’d probably split this up into a few different dates, as you could easily spend an afternoon covering this at worst, and a whole day at best. The drinks and snacks were of really good quality, and the massage oil was a generous amount, so these were definitely my favourite of the box, and everything else was to a good standard.
3. Romance-factor - 6/10 I found this on just the right cusp of romance for it to have a broad appeal, though I’d probably look for something that had a bit less energy-taking tasks in. There should be something for most people in here, as there’s a craft activity, cooking, a more physical hands-on activity, and a more sensual one. I definitely had my preferences, but the box makes it very clear to use only what appeals to you at the time, and the items were interesting enough that even the ones that I might not like as much, they could be saved for a rainy day. I definitely think it's a box where you could make it as romantic as you wanted, as it had the ingredients, but it won’t force romance down your throat if you’re more interested in just doing some fun activities or thinking outside of the box.
Overall, I think this was a good value for money date box, which definitely won’t disappoint. I think perhaps I personally would have enjoyed some of the more laid back date nights - as this box had more of a competitive edge, which I enjoyed for setting the scene, but was too taxing for me on a high pain day! - but I could still use the majority of the box and enjoy the activities whilst disregarding the ones that didn’t work for me that day. I definitely enjoyed having a few set activity ideas, which was really satisfying to really cement a “date night”, and I would recommend it, definitely for any couples who are quite busy and haven’t found the time to really connect in a while - or just if you want to do something out of the blue but can’t quite decide.
Chloe Johnson is a freelance writer and editor, with words in The Independent, Stylist Magazine and iPaper. Oh, and she is also deputy editor of Conscious Being; and she's a massive Taylor Swift fan. You can follow Chloe on Twitter - @ladychloestark and on Instagram here - @ladychloestark