Welcome to the third installment in our four part series about different types of bento boxes. We’ve previously discussed single layer and stacking boxes. This week we’ll cover novelty bento boxes:

I define novelty boxes as any bento box in a shape other than a circle, oval or rectangle. As with the other types of boxes, novelty boxes come in an endless variety of shapes. In addition to the cat, car and jelly bean bento boxes pictured above, some of the other shapes I’ve seen include pigs, bears, Hello Kitty and hamburgers.

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I like having these kind of boxes in my collection because they’re fun to play around with and they bring my kids a lot of happiness. My boys are truly excited to eat their lunches when I pack them in these extra cute containers.

The down side of this type box is that they are more difficult to pack. Novelty boxes often come in unusual shapes, and it can feel like a jigsaw puzzle when I am trying to figure out how to get all of the different elements of a lunch to fit inside. The layers of these boxes are often vary in their depth, and that can also make lunch packing more challenging.

Let’s take a look at this police car bento box as an example. I love that this box has a removable divider cup in it because it acts as a separator and it can be removed if I want to heat part of the lunch. I don’t love trying to determine what will fit in the wheel sections or up in the narrower top portion. It also doesn’t hold as much food as I usually pack for my son’s lunch.

Here I’ve packed dumplings, strawberries and a few pieces of bread cut into flower shapes. I would normally add in a veggie, but I didn’t have room in this box.

This kitty box is has two layers so it’s fairly spacious, but I always have trouble figuring out what to put in the ear sections.

My strategy for packing this lunch was to include a lot of small items to fill the odd shape: strawberries, grapes, crackers, cheese, turkey roll-ups and a piece of apple.

What do you think? Would you buy one of these cute, but tricky lunch boxes? Or do you prefer a more uniform shape?

Bento Boxes part 2 of 5

1. Choosing a Bento Box: Lunch Box Systems by Wendy @ Wendolonia
2. Choosing a Bento Box: Novelty Boxes by Wendy @ Wendolonia
3. Choosing a Bento Box: Stacking Boxes by Wendy @ Wendolonia
4. Choosing a Bento Box: Single Layer Boxes by Wendy @ Wendolonia
5. My Favorite Bento Boxes by Mrs. Bee