(NOTE: SketchBox has in no way endorsed this post. All thoughts are my own honest opinions.)

Ever heard of Birchbox? BarkBox? BroBox? Monthly box subscription services are a popular way to have samples of products delivered right to your door. One of those services is SketchBox, which offers a variety of art supplies.

I had been considering a SketchBox subscription for a while, but it seemed geared towards fine art and I didn't think I could use all of the materials for my lettering.

Luckily, I was able to try it for free. The company ran an Instagram contest encouraging people to creatively letter their logo. Inspired by the box idea, I went with a vintage packaging design...and won a free box!

So I finally got the chance to try out SketchBox. Here's what I got in the free box they sent me. (It was an older box, from June.)

• PanPastels 5-color pack
• Sofft pointed knife and cover set
• Sofft art sponges
• Faber-Castell Pitt brush pen
• Faber-Castell Pitt charcoal pencil

Hmm...pastels. I knew this would be challenging because I usually stick to pens, pencils and pixels for my lettering. I watched a few tutorial videos to see what I'd be working with.

Hearing that I needed to treat the pastels like paint, Jeff Rogers immediately came to mind. His painted lettering pieces appear simple, but look closely and you'll see layers of paint. He really thinks about where he applies specific colors and that's what creates dimension in his art.

After some practice and a little frustration, I created a drop cap with this new medium.

My thoughts about the contents:

• I love that the pastels are erasable! Darker colors slightly stain the paper, but I still have the chance to edit.
• The pointed knife sponges started to come apart after minimal use. Though it could be user error on my part since this was my first time using them.
• You need to use the charcoal pencil very lightly. Sometimes I could still see pencil lines even after I blended.

I think the price of each box is a little high (currently $25 for a basic box and $35 for premium, plus $5 shipping). By my rough math, I think you only get a slight discount than if you had bought everything yourself. However it is a curated box so all of the supplies work together. I might not have bought these specific things as a group if it was just me in a craft store.

I had fun playing with these new (to me) products...which is the whole point of these subscription boxes: to experiment! But in the end, I don't think I'd use the products to their full potential. It would be nice to know what the theme is for each month. If I knew it would be pens or paper, I'd be more likely to buy that single month's box. Not sure if that's an option to consider for the future, but give it some thought SketchBox!