When you open the Lumos & Nox Wizarding World crate, the interior box art only heightens the suspense, depicting a wizard clutching a Lumos-illuminating wand. I’m happy to report that the contents of Lumos & Nox do not disappoint these excited expectations. Despite one item running late (the House Ghost Illuminated Charm), the rest of this month’s inclusions were outstanding, not only one of my favorite shirts to date, but an eye-catching pouch for your phone and pencils, a somber notebook sporting the Deathly Hallows perfectly suited for catching your blackest moods, another superb pin, and an unlooked-for item that I doubt anyone could have predicted, or anticipated how satisfying it would be to open.
While the shirt was one of the best wearable items Wizarding World has sent in a while, my favorite item this month was the Dumbledore Dome Paperweight, which encapsules the Hogwarts Headmaster’s adage that “Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” With gold lettering on a black and emerald green backdrop with the Hogwarts crest, this paperweight is not only fascinating to look at, but a perfect heft for your hand to accent the comforting quote.
This was one of those times I was so happy that I selected Gryffindor for my house, for the Gryffindor themed exclusive House t-shirt is awesome in every way, not just the design, but the cut, the fabric, and the colors.
This month’s Magical Creatures pin was an Occamy, a kind of Quetzlcoatl-ish serpentine creature with purple fairy wings. The Wizarding World pins are consistently amazing, and this month’s Occamy is just as amazing as the rest.
Not only highly useful and sturdy but eye catching, the Order of the Phoenix Pouch depicts a repeating pattern of phoenixes in red and white. Note that this is a double-sided pouch, however, so that if Death Eaters and Dark Lords are more your bag, you can turn it inside out, and even the zipper has two pull-tags, so that you can open and close it regardless of whether you use it as intended, or let the phoenixes be swallowed by the snakeskin pattern of the interior, no doubt to bring to mind Nagini.
The Grindelwald Dark Sketchbook is an extremely thoughtful item for all those brooding poets and wizards out there, for not only are its pages pitch black, but it comes with a white ink pen, and to set the mood, there are Deathly Hallows, serpents, and other swarming magical critters drawn on the front and inside covers.
Overall, Lumos & Nox was a fantastic installment of the Wizarding World crate, with plenty of magic not only to wear, but dress up your desk or table, the better to jot down the white light of your thoughts, no matter how black your mood, or how dark the times.
Loot Crate sent the review copy.