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Hi everyone! So small update as I get around to replying to all your comments and answering things now that I can see! 😂
I received a great quote for the designs from my manufacturer which means we have plenty of more cuties funded I will add them to the preorder store and a bunch more things featuring the kitties. Currently I’m going through all your suggestions and I’m thinking of creating at least stickers of the designs and some pins and my plan for those is if you suggested it you get the item for free c:
Still figuring out all of backerkits settings, it’s way more involved than kickstarters interface so please bare with me I hope to have smoke screens out soon but figuring out shipping has made my brain hurt a bit, not that the migraine helped haha
Late last week my iPad decided it had enough with life and did it’d best to leave and of course it hadn’t run any file backups so here I am running to save everything at 15% battery, I was expecting to get a new one soon but this expedited the situation and typically after I purchased it’s replacement my iPad has decided to charge again, which is good news as I can move everything and continue with drawing the remaining pins. Plus an allergic reaction that lead me to have super puffy eyelids!
It really has been an insane week so apologies I’m here again with only sketches but what do you guys think? i really like the idea of the gem “honey” drop but I’m worried it could look tacky 🤔
i was looking at the gnawborn pin from the collab and the little mouse is so cute, so i had an idea obviously its like not something I expect anything to come from but. a little mouse cryptid would be so cute to add to the roster at some point! small with big ears, maybe it could be something like a brownie :]
Happy Friday critters! I hope everyone has a restful weekend planned and can take the time to do something just for you 💖
I'm looking forward to taking a little break myself, and with prep on the surveys and preorder store almost finished it looks like that might actually happen this weekend haha. The rest of this week was almost entirely dedicated to getting the preorder store set up, which took A LOT more work than I anticipated! We have over 90 unique SKUs for shirts alone so to say it was tedious is a tremendous understatement.
The good news is the preorder store is now live! And surveys are 95% done, I'm just waiting on the backerkit team to do some last minute finagling on their end to get the bundle add-ons working. This can take up to 5 business days, so I'm tentatively planning for surveys to go out on May 5th.
Please remember if you already backed the project, do not place a preorder through the store.
Your orders will not combine and you'll be charged twice for shipping if you do so. Wait for the add-on section on your survey!
Charmsey is chipping away the last few collab illustrations and should have the final artwork finished before surveys go out. Below is the latest WIP for the sweater-- doesn't it just get cuter and cuter? 🥹
I've also ordered the rest of the samples for the button-ups! The next batch of samples should all have pockets and customized button colors.
And finally I'll be paying for the pin and shaker samples next week, so I should have a pretty steady stream of things to share with you over the next couple months, yay!
Just wanted to update a few things before I forget.
- Paid for the Murphy plush to start production on May 6th (when my factory for plush is back from their holiday break). Plush is the slowest to produce anyways so I wanted to make sure this started while I was away no matter what. Ideally these arrive in July/early August.
- Still waiting on sample updates for the Gelatinous Necroloaf and Fae Spirit Corgi. This manufacturer opens back up May 3rd, so I'll have more information later.
- Waiting for corrections for some pins that are merely addons (I updated the last post with pictures in the backer only content section) and for those to arrive before I place the next order.
- Potions are in production but I haven't gotten any updates (I guess I also didn't ask for any as I did samples)
- Surveys will be sent out soon. I need to make a few corrections now that it has been reviewed. I think I have to do smoke tests and then fix some of the shipping stuff, likely not in that exact order.
- Backing cards were ordered already and should arrive sometime this week. I'll probably share them on discord and FB but since it's just a backing card, doesn't matter a ton.
- I added a local pickup option for MN folks who backed (you can pick up at events or we can meet somewhere). That should save on shipping at least.
I think I will be sampling all designs from this campaign so the pins may just be slower since I'd rather things be correct. I usually do for all larger orders anyways but that may slow us down with the wizard corgis since I haven't started those yet and my manufacturer is currently on break/needing to finish the last order I had with them/send me proofs. Either way, I'll do whatever I can before I head to GA/TN.
Hi there!! I was wondering if there’s any chance spectral beez has any chance of coming back at some point! I really love his design and would love to see him made real! I couldn’t find anywhere that was already asked so I figured I would ask!
First off, I want to thank you for the great discussion and feedback on the earlybird pin design. I've tried hybridizing the two designs for a final version, so let me know what you think!
original bird and note, new stained glass style design
NEW BIRDS
And here are some finalized birds for the last few pins:
Golden Crowned Kinglet & Azaleas
Purple Martin & Tulip Poplar
Eastern Screech Owl & Ash
Indigo Bunting & False Sunflower
American Kestrel & Sassafras
Red Bellied Woodpecker & Elm
At the end of this update, I've included ALL the pins so you can start to think about which you want!
Backerkit Surveys
Surveys will be sent by the end of this week. This is where you choose which pins you want, let me know your mailing address, and have the option to add additional items. Stickers - I am working on putting together sticker sheets for ALL the birds now. It should be a total of 4-5 different sheets that will be available. "All In" Pledge Level - I will be adding a pledge level that you can switch to (and pay the difference) to get one of EVERYTHING if you're interested in the full set!
Other Stuff
Payments - about 30 of you still have failed payments, if these aren't fixed by May 2nd I'm going to have to drop you from the project, sorry! You will be getting Backerkit emails to fix your payment method if you are one of these people. Preorder Store - will also open when surveys are sent! So those who did not back will be able to get items as well, though early backers always get the best deal! Timeline - we are well on schedule, I should have pins ordered about a week after the surveys are sent. The faster you fill out the surveys the faster I can order the pins! So keep an eye out for more updates.
Thanks!!!
PS. here are all the birds!high quality images will be available during the survey so you can take a close look.
hey everyone ! my surveys have been approved which means i'll be sending out smoke tests today !
what are smoke tests?
the smoke test is when a small percent of surveys are sent out in order to test that there are not any issues or confusion regarding the questions, payments or adds-ons that should be addressed. so if you get a smoke test survey please fill it out asap and email me with any issues you may find ! i'd really appreciate it 🖤
i will give backers a few days to fill those out and once a good percentage are complete and any issues found are fixed i will be sending out the rest of them !
the funds have also hit my account so once i get enough surveys complete i can start putting the pins into production !
Hopefully your email inbox is calming down now that the initial rush of Pintopia emails is done. I wanted to wait a bit to send out this email so that surveys would be ready to go (so I don't have to send out a million emails). And here we finally are!
So, thanks to everyone's support, the project funded fully, including ALL stretch goals! This means that your surveys will have all 11 pins available to choose from, and stickers will have a total of 13 designs available. I honestly did not expect to see so much support for my tiny dragons, and I'm very grateful to everyone's support and extremely excited to get started on manufacturing the pins!
What happens next?
In the next couple of days, you'll receive your survey link. Surveys will remain open until May 15th, so that I can have finalized item counts for manufacturing. Don't worry, there will be plenty of reminders, and I'll be happy to assist anyone with any issues you might encounter with your surveys. Shipping will also be charged through the survey.
Your shipping charges and any additional purchases will be charged on May 15th when the surveys close.
If you or someone you know missed the campaign, don't worry: the preorder shop will be open while the surveys are open, so you can still get in on the pins!
Once I have the finalized counts, manufacturing will begin. This process can take anywhere from 3-6 weeks. Pins, backing cards, stickers, and any other items will be manufactured simultaneously.
After manufacturing is done, all the products will ship to me for quality control and inventory. This is going to be a lot of pins, so it may take up to a few weeks to get everything ready for fulfillment.
Fulfillment is expected to begin in early August. You'll be able to edit your address up until the fullfillment date -- I'll give you a notice once I know when that's going to be -- and then you'll receive a tracking code for your stuff.
That's it! Your tiny dragons will arrive in their new homes!
Other Updates
As you may have seen, the winner of the second colorway poll for Tiny Hoard of Support was the purple heart version: You'll be able to choose your freebie pin color through your survey. If you'd like both, you can also add any extras on through the add-ons!
I've also done a slight revision to the Hoard of Trading Cards design. I made this decision for two reasons: first, to have the design better match the amount of negative space on the other designs so the collection looks more harmonious, and secondly to work with manufacturing constraints and reduce the number of B- and C-grade pins in the final batch. This is the new design: It is a very minor change (I added a third deck box behind the dragon), but I did want to point it out just so everyone is on the same page!
And, finally, here are all the finished sticker designs:
Keep an eye out for your surveys! I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone picks! I'll probably send out a couple of email blasts to remind you about the surveys and give updates on which dragons are the most popular (I'm curious, and I thought you might be too!)
As always, thank you for your support! None of this would be possible without your help, and I hope that makes you as excited as it makes me.
It's a terrible, rainy, awful Sunday here. "I'm going to go get daylight pics of the new stickers," says Ken, forgetting he lives in Lake Country NY, and that we had a nice day yesterday and now have to suffer. Hope you felons are faring better.
As of about 5 minutes ago, all surveys have been sent to backers.
please ignore the 5/20 error up there, that's the UK date, i just woke up
Rapidfire info for backers:
All surveys MUST be filled out by May 15th, unless you are in the UK. This has been edited from the email version of this update, because I put the wrong date up there. UK backers get until the 20th.
Orders containing "CUSTOM CRIME" addons should be prioritized by their backers - sketches and final artwork will be done on first-come, first-serve basis. I will start getting sketches down tonight, if you bought one of these, keep your eyes on your email to approve them.
If 80% of surveys are filled out by May 3rd (friday), I will throw a free backer-voted sticker into all orders.
This is your final chance to fix failed credit card charges. Get 'em in.
Additional addons (more pins, mugshots, LITTLE SHITS stickers) can be added at this stage.
Double check your address! If you expect to move between now and August (or as early as june-july, with current timelines), put your NEW ACCOMODATIONS IN.
We are still missing several UK backers. If you haven't gotten the google form survey in your email yet, please double check - this is the ONLY WAY you will be able to get any rewards from BIRD CRIMES.
I updated the HUSTLE (main store) shipping and return policy last night. I am following these guidelines for shipping BIRD CRIMES, from this point forward. I strongly recommend reading this.
Did you miss out on BIRD CRIMES? No problem! Check out the PREORDER STORE! You can pick up (most) campaign items here. They will be shipped with all other pledges. Remember: the seagull and kakapo designs have been unlocked for both pins and 2" mugshot stickers.
This, as well as pledges to the main campaign, are currently the only ways to get LITTLE SHITS stickers from the "BIRDS 2" and "MAMMALS THAT AREN'T DOGS" sets. They will not be stocked in the HUSTLE until summer. If you want some of these guys for the upcoming convention season, give campaign addons or the preorder store a look.
Speaking of stickers, I just got a ton of them in yesterday. Due to multiple, overlapping, insane circumstances, I am overstocked on nearly every design. Out of the goodness of my heart (or, free advertising, same shit, whatever), I'm giving away three packs of them!
Click the image above, make your way to my twitter, and enter for your chance to win some free birds (or dogs, if you're weird.)
That's all for now. Enjoy your weekend, and take it easy!
