This was the very first box I got. It's the December 2018 box and I cast on the first sock using one of the yarns immediately after opening it on Christmas morning. (That's why the lighting is very bad... Sorry about that! I didn't think to take another one in daylight.)
I have the most wonderful husband who gave me a year long Opal sock yarn subscription for the third year in a row for Christmas. He is just so wonderfully supportive of my various creative persuits and indulges so many of my whims. (He also gave me a Sizzix Big Shot Plus because I was starting to get frustrated with the limited width of my old one and we bought a small lathe for wood turning which is something we both would like to learn...)
March 2019 box. The started sock you can see didn't make it much further than this I'm afraid - I frogged it because I just didn't feel the looove...
I don't remember if it was upon the arrival of the subscription box last May or September but I know I said to my husband that I felt guilty about him spending the money on it when I can't even knit and he said "well, yarn doesn't spoil"! I mean, how awesome is that!
May 2019 box.
Before I continue I would like to state that this is not a sponsored post. I don't get paid or any free products for writing this - it is about my personal experience with and enjoyment of the company's products.
September 2019 box. This one came with a little free publication full of patterns and ideas which was a lovely surprise.
Maybe I should explain how this subscription works for those who don't know: The boxes are shipped out in March, May, September and December but you can order (or cancel) it any time. They tell you on their website when the next box will ship out and if it is still available. For shipping within Germany (which is where the Opal factory is located) there are no extra shipping costs, for orders from other countries there are additional costs. When you order a subscription you basically sign a contract that allows Opal to withdraw the cost for the box before it's shipped out and they'll ask you ahead of each withdrawal if you want to continue with the subscription. Does that make sense?
(I just noticed that the webshop page on the Opal website can't be translated to English, but if you have any questions about ordering, shipping and payment options you can email their customer service and I'm sure they'll be most happy to help.)
December 2019 box. It came with this beautiful skein in shades of blue:
I just saw that they also do designerboxes containing eight 100g balls curated for you by an Opal employee. This way you get a surprise box of colourful yarns but without the commitment of a subscription. (Also, you can't beat the price point for the 8-ball box: it divides down to just under 6,50€ per ball which would usually cost 8-9€.)
March 2020 box.
Each box contains six 100g balls of lovely Opal 4-ply sock yarn, with a hand dyed skein added as a Christmas present in the December box. All the yarns are self patterning with some being exclusive colourways specially designed for the subscription boxes and some being designs that will be part of an upcoming collection, a sort of preview of what's to come - they don't say on the ball band what collection a design might be part of though.
May 2020 box. The pink and green ball on the top left was the last I cast on before I had to admit defeat and quit knitting altogether for a few months. (They are finished now, I'll show them to you soon.)
The boxes themselves are just plain cardboard boxes without any printing or company logo on them which makes them fabulous surprises when they arrive (because I usually forget that a box is due)! The only giveaway is how light weight the box is and the sender's info on the address label but that's printed very small and I always have to look closely to find it ;)
September 2020 box. I had totally forgotten to take a picture of this box when it arrived. I only did that a few days ago (which is why you can see a sock in progress).
December 2020 box. The Christmas skein is a 3-ply this time which I haven't tried yet. It has the most beautiful vibrant colours and I can't wait to see how it knits up.
During the last year I had to re-arrange (and shrink down) my craft space quite a bit. It's now mostly a fold-down desk integrated into our Ivar units from Ikea. (This one.) Anyway, the space above the desk turned out to be the perfect place to store and display all my beautiful yarns:
I know, it looks a bit messy as I've just squeezed in the boxes as shelf dividers to make sure the balls of yarn don't get lost in the back of the shelf - I'm thinking of what else to use to make it look a bit tidier but it works great for now and makes me really happy every time I look at it. It's just such a nice splash of colour and a different texture between all the books. Also, it's great to see that it's there and it makes browsing for the next pair of socks a real pleasure.
This and this sock post feature many socks made from subscription box yarns and also mention which collection a specific colourway belongs to, as far as I was able to identify them. I hope it's in some way useful and not just frustrating...
Lots of love! xxx