Subscription boxes have become highly popular in the past few year. They began with mostly beauty products and now there seems to be a box for everything and everyone. Artsnacks is a subscription box geared towards artists who need a little burst of inspiration each month, given in the form of art supplies.

Artsnacks was founded in 2013 by siblings Lee and Sarah Rubenstein. Their goal was to create a fun and affordable package of high quality, versatile art supplies.

Each month, subscribers receive a curated box of 4-5 high quality, full-sized supplies ranging from markers to pencils to paints. On the website, buyers have option to receive a one-month, three-month, six-month or one-year subscription. Along with the supplies, one also receive a “menu” explaining each product, an artsnacks sticker and a piece of candy in every box, thus putting the “snack” in “artsnacks”.

March was the five-year anniversary of Artsnacks, and to celebrate, a special birthday edition of goodies was sent out. The first thing I saw when I opened the box the bookmark sized “menu.” Below it were the stickers and four drawing utensils wrapped neatly in green tissue paper.

Instead of receiving the standard single sticker of a pretzel shaped pencil, subscribers enjoy a whole art-themed sticker sheet. The other special edition item in this box is the teal pencil pouch. It’s the perfect size to fit just the right amount of drawing utensils on the go and it has two zippers so you can separate supplies.

Also in the box are two Lyra Color Giants, German colored pencils that you might describe as “thiccc” with three C’s. Because of their size, these pencils are great for shading in large areas and backgrounds. They have a good color payoff and are sturdy, which limits breakage and promotes a long pencil life. In my box, I received one red and one light blue, but the color of supplies varies from box to box.

The last two items in the March Artsnacks edition were both copic products. The first was a Copic Ciao double-ended marker (mine in the color blue violet), one of the most popular alcohol based markers among artists. Its different ends allow for covering large areas as well as creating more precise details. As a bonus, the nibs on this marker are replaceable and the ink is refillable. The other Copic product was the copic multiliner, a more precise version of your standard thin black sharpie. This pen has a 0.05 inch nib, allowing the creation of smooth details without smudging or feathering.

In total, the box came out to a value of $26.61. Since I bought the one-month subscription for $24, I only saved $2.61. The subscription didn’t save me a lot of money, but the concept of receiving surprise art supplies each month is exciting, and it gives artists something to look forward to. Overall, the quality of the products was great and Artsnacks definitely lived up to their motto: “We send you cool stuff to draw with.”