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KIPP Brothers/Toys Product Reviews for Items to Pack in Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes

I have been doing reviews on the Simply Shoeboxes Facebook page of some products I've bought online for my Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.  I hoped to help people know what they're getting before they order, and thought I'd try to start doing blog posts of them, for those who may not be on Facebook.


We had ordered from Kipp Brothers years ago when packing OCC shoeboxes from a VBS offering at our church, and were happy with the items.  Now, like a decade later I looked them up online.  They have free shipping at $250.  I watched their Facebook page for a while, until I saw free shipping deal on $100 (+10% off, which was more manageable for my budget.  It has some items just by a dozen, but many come by 50 or a Gross (a dozen, dozens = 144). 

Note:  Links in this post were up to date at time of publishing. Some items may no longer be available.

Metal Stone Rings from Kipp Brothers review.  Bought for Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.

Metal Stone Rings $16.95 for 36, so $0.47 a piece.  I really enjoyed having a ring or two like this as a child, so when I saw them I decided to send them in my 10-14 girl boxes.  They say
they are “child size”  but even seem a little large for my fingers (which are admittedly small), but they are adjustable, so should still work fine!

Tote bags from Kipp Brothers review.
Tote Bags $4.95 for a  dozen, so $0.41 per bag.  These are 1 foot by 1 foot made out of fused fabric like reusable shopping bags.
Plastic dinosaurs packed in Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.Plastic Dinosaurs $9.95  for 144, so $0.07 per figure.  These are sturdy, colorful little dinosaurs.  Not all may stand up really well, but since they’re to play with and may be used on dirt, were I think they’d stand better than the counter I tried them on.  There are 6 designs and 2 colors (not always evenly mixed).
Plastic train whistles from Kipp Brothers Review

 Train Engine Whistles $12.95 for 144 or $0.09 per whistle.  These are very bright and colorful.  The plastic is a little thin, but I think it will hold up okay, when you blow hard it doesn’t do real well, making a sound, but once you realize/get the hang of doing it not 100% pressure you can really make it sound like a train whistle!!!!   It also has a loop/hole, so it can be strung on a string if desired.  

Plastic Turtles packed in an Operation Christmas Child shoebox.

 Realistic Turtles Assortment $9.95 for 48, so $0.21 per turtle.   These are 2″, and very bright and colorful!  There are 5 designs, all painted with colors/patters.  I’m really happy with these!!  

Plastic jumping frogs from Kipp Brothers review.

 Hoppin Froggy Friends $3.95 for 144, so $0.03 a piece.   After a couple tries I got the hang of these & they do jump well, 6 inches or more.  Their legs may eventually rip, but all in all, decently sturdy.   I thought I could tuck a few in the box randomly for them to play with…or include more, maybe with instructions and target to make a game. 

Colorful whistles for OCC shoeboxes.

Colorful Whistles 2.95 / Dozen so $0.25 each.  These are nice and VERY loud!  I was pleasantly surprised that they had wooden beads in them.  Very colorful!  

Small plastic rulers from Kipp Brothers packed into Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.
Stencil Rulers $9.95 /144 piece(s) so $0.07 a piece.  These were smaller than I pictured (although the size advertised, I just hadn’t thought it through), but they are very sturdy (although stiff, so could be snapped) and seem to be good quality.  They don’t have metric, only inches for measuring.  But for the price, I think it’s a fun little extra, or an affordable way to add them to boxes the budget doesn’t normally allow for it.

Brass reeds harmonica from Kipp Brothers review.Brass Reeds Harmonicas  $16.95 for 6 so $2.83 each.       These were a splurge.  I thought it’d be fun to add to some boxes , almost as a WOW item.  Not sure about their quality, I’m not a harmonica person myself, but they seem nice and have a cute little case.  They’re described as “5″ metal and plastic with 32 brass reeds.

Wooden Yo-yos to pack in OCC shoeboxes.
Wooden Yo-Yos $9.95 for a dozen so $0.83 per Yo-Yo.  The string on these are thick, and about a yard long.  A little shorter than normal it felt to me, but for a child would probably be great.  They seem pretty sturdy, the string is glued in with the dowel rod connecting the side, so it makes it easier to re-wind the string on if you fail to bring it up.
I've reviewed even more shoebox items from Kipp-read the review of those items here.

3 comments:

Lin K said...

I like the short rulers. They're very hard to find and fit nicely in shoe boxes. The 12" size is too long. And the turtles, frogs, whistles are super ideas and will fit into tiny corners and spaces nicely. Free shipping at $100 is steep for me; I don't order that much at any one time.

Sarah said...

Yes, $100 is a pretty big order...I couldn't do it last year, had to save up for it! Maybe you'd like to check out US Toy, they have some similar items and have free shipping at $25. These look like almost the exact same rulers: http://www.ustoy.com/catalog/product/view/id/27782

Lin K said...

Thanks, Sarah, for the link to UStoy.com. I'm going to see what they have.
Today I stopped at Dollar General to check on clearance prices. Their Christmas stock is all 25 cents each. You need to be careful about stuff in the same aisle that isn't specifically Christmas, like rolls of scotch tape. They stock non-clearance stuff right in with the 25 cent clearance stuff.


             
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