Doodle Crate, by KiwiCo, is a subscription box targeted to older children aged 9-16 that delivers a monthly art project. They describe themselves as a “studio for hands-on creativity delivered every month.”
KiwiCo offers boxes for different age groups:
- Panda Crate for 0-24-month-olds,
- Koala Crate for 2-4-year-olds,
- Kiwi Crate for 5-8-year-olds,
- Atlas Crate for 6-11-year-olds,
- Doodle Crate and Tinker Crate for 9-16+-year-olds,
- Eureka Crate and Maker Crate for ages 14 and up.
There really is something for every age with this company!
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out our review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Doodle Crate
The Subscription Box: Doodle Crate
The Cost: $19.95 per month. Save with longer subscriptions.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 50% off your first box. No coupon needed - just use this link.
The Products: Instructions and supplies for children aged 9-16 to create one new art project each month.
Ships to: The U.S. for free, Canada for $3.95 per month, worldwide from $4.95-$6.95.
Doodle Crate Stained Glass Suncatcher Review November 2019
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Our project this month is to make our own Stained Glass Suncatcher using a paint marker and glaze. The front of the booklet has a contents list and some information on triptychs and stained glass. As with every box from KiwiCo, this box is well organized and the directions are clear and easy to follow. They break it down into sections with detailed information about each step and I love that they allow for a little bit of creativity within the project while still keeping it structured.
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Our first step was to choose a design for our suncatcher. They provided three different styles and a set of blank circles for us to use in case we wanted to freestyle our suncatcher.
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Once we had chosen a design, we peeled the protective film off of both sides of our acrylic circles.
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Then I taped the first circle over the top of the first design she had chosen.
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Next, we shook up and primed our paint marker by pressing the tip down several times until the paint came out.
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Then she got to work on tracing the image onto her circle. I thought she did a really great job for a five-year-old! I did end up putting another piece of paper under the first because I was afraid the paint would bleed onto our table.
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She then moved on to her second circle which was an octopus.
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Her last circle was this little owl and this time she got a little more creative and added a little texture to the wings and decided not to fill in all of the colored areas with the black paint.
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Next, it was time to add some glaze to our circles since our paint marker lines were dry. They also included this little spatula for us to use to apply the glaze.
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I demonstrated how to scoop and add a drop of paint to the surface and then smooth it out with the bottom of the spatula. Then I let her get to work! This was actually a pretty tedious task and the spatula was a little difficult to work with in combination with the goopy glaze so she did throw in the towel in the middle of her first circle. We did this before bedtime and after all of that tracing and then working with the small spatula, it was understandable! I'm sure an older child would have more stamina for this type of activity and enjoy it.
We did come back the next day to finish glazing our pieces, and I ended up giving her a lot of help because it was just proving to be too much for her. As for me, I didn't really enjoy the glazing process much either. The spatula was really difficult to work with and we weren't able to get a smooth even coating of the glaze and it was also hard to get the glaze to stay in the lines with the spatula. It just wasn't the most efficient way of getting out glaze in place!
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Once our pieces were all dry, we used the set of jump rings and chains they provided to connect all three pieces together. We decided on the order and then connected the jump ring to the top of our smaller circle followed by a chain and then another jump ring went through the end of the chain and the hole in the bottom of our medium circle. We did the same thing to connect the medium and large circles. Then the final piece of chain went into the top of our large circle with a jump ring on either side of the chain.
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The jump ring at the top was just wide enough to slip over our little suction cup hook!
Here it is in the window. While the glaze was a pain to work with, I do think that the end result turned out okay!
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Here's a closeup of each circle.
Verdict: This month's Doodle Crate project was a great concept, but due to the execution, this was probably not our favorite project. The glaze was just really difficult to work with and apply with that tiny spatula. As for the instructions, they were well detailed and easy to follow and the box itself was well organized. I do enjoy that they always provide some standard instructions, but also allow for a little bit of freedom within the design itself so that kids can really make it their own. While the end result was decent and my daughter enjoyed most of the process, this project just didn't really cut it for us this month. I also wish that there had been another set of discs included for us two make two suncatchers, even if it was just one circle to make a smaller one! Usually, we receive enough for two completed projects, which means we get to try out two designs, so this month's box felt a little light in comparison. While this wasn't our favorite box, I think that as an ongoing subscription they consistently give us great value, so I don't mind receiving one project that felt a bit light for the $19.95 cost of this box.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? It is possible you might get this crate, but it is not a guarantee. From KiwiCo:
Crates are assigned each month based on availability and your crate history – not all subscribers receive the same theme each month.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 50% off your first box. No coupon needed - just use this link.
Check out all of our Doodle Crate reviews and the best subscription boxes for tweens and teens!
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What do you think of the Doodle Crate suncatcher?
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