First of all, I was reminded that I forgot to post the speaking dogs design, so here it is:

The background includes a diagram from the more thorough study I referenced combined with symbols from the original study with more narrow parameters. I ordered these stickers from a different manufacturer to test their quality, but I did not read their lead time for production was over a month. (They are a very small team in the US.) Here are the diagrams referenced: 

Thank you for your patience, this is my largest campaign ever so some of the artwork definitely got away from me for this one.

The shakers came with one insect per design, which unfortunately was not communicated from my manufacturer. These keychains are limited and only made for this campaign so they will not be remade. I'm still happy with the way they came out, the butterfly shaped glitter in them is so pretty!

The preorder store for my Super League of Science campaign, Cosmic Alchemy 2.0 is open now!

The store closes November 21, when the Backerkit discounts will end. 

The 2026 Vipi Ink Holiday Market! 🎄 With a gift guide, Backerkit exclusive bundles, and mystery bags!

The poll results were close across this campaign and Famous Animals & Insects of Science 3.0, but ultimately I went with Revived Asterisms for the theme of my 2027 Pintopia campaign. I'm talking to some of my maker friends to make some very cool variants of some indigenous star lines in this series and I'm so excited about them! There is a live poll for subjects in this campaign, if you'd like to vote here.  This campaign will have multiple rewards, including rewards for following the pre-launch page, as well as rewards for backers who have supported my previous projects.

In my last bit of news, it's the end of October, which means my Bi-Annual sale begins this Sunday, November 1st! If you're interested in discounts on in-stock items from my website instead of bundles or blind bags, you can find them here! The sale officially goes live next week, but you can use code EARLIESTBIRD to take 25% off right now! (Please note: this discount does NOT apply to preorder items)

Thank you again for all your support! We're in the home stretch now, hopefully customs won't cause any holiday delays again this year... 🤞

These timelines are subject to change pending manufacturing delays, material shortages, shipping, etc. At this point, I've truly seen it all and any number of things can happen, so I do try to add some padding for delays. Based on the status of production and other factors, I will make sure that the most recent projected timeline is as close to accurate as I can estimate. If you want to check on the status as production progresses, check the timeline in the latest update first! 

 ✅ final proofing of not yet approved complex pins (Cheetahs, Wolves, Tigers)

 ✅ Preorder store CLOSED (Closes October 1st!) 

 ✅ Preorders open on my website (only preorder 10-15% discount) 

 ❌ Patches in hand

 ⚠ Final proofing complete, full production process for all pins

 ❌ Zines in hand

 ⚠ Sticker sheets in hand

 ❌ Jet Tags in hand

November:
⚠ Black Friday Bi-Annual Sale! 

Order details/addresses LOCK

Stickers, jet tags, zines, and patches in hand

Pins shipped to me

December:
Pins graded

Rewards Ship! (Includes project delay bonus, thank you for your patience!)

Pins in hand & graded

Rewards shipped

Revived Asterisms campaign launches

 ✅Complete ⚠In progress ❌Delayed 

Some housekeeping first, here is the updated timeline based on how proofing is going with the pins still in production:
NOW (October 1-15) 

Approximately October 15-31

Approximately November 1-15

Approximately November 15-30

If you compare this timeline to the last, things have pushed into November for rewards fulfillment. As is the case with all my projects I do not, as I cannot, ever guarantee holiday delivery times. Especially as shipping rates go up in the US due to the everything with the US right now and holiday shipping delays, I can't make any advance delivery estimates. 

I personally get sad when my timeline gets thrown off, so I'm going to throw in a BONUS STICKER with every physical reward! I've attached a poll to this update to get an idea of what my next project should be. This is to gauge interest and help me plan my campaign lineup next year, but the winner may not necessarily be my 2027 Pintopia campaign. 

So many shiny stickers, aaaaand...

Thank you all again for your support! I'll be back with another update soon!
Vipi

Hello! Thank you all for your patience as I work with my manufacturer to get the colors of these pins just right. There were, as predicted, some production delays due to proofing edits. The Cheetahs and Wolves were the most complex and as such required the most edits, I am still waiting on final photos for these designs. Stickers are on their way to me and I should have the rest of them in hand soon, though they were sent to another address as I suspected. So here is the updated timeline, as of now:
NOW (September 5-15) 

Approximately September 15-30 

Approximately October 1-15

Approximately October 15-31

This pushes back the rewards ship date by one month from my estimated timeline. As a thank you, all backers will be receiving a bonus in their rewards. I'm currently designing a couple of things for this, but there will be a poll later once I have them rounded out!

And now, some tasty pin photos! (Yes they are naked, these are pre-print proofs, final pins will include print)

These are all the approved complex or combination pins (enamel with transparent/'stained glass' effects) other pin designs are still in the proofing phase. Once the final complex proofs are approved I'll post another update with those here! I'll be out of state again for Rose City Comic Con next week (if you're in the Portland area, come say hi!) but I'll be back by the 16th.

One last thing, I decided last minute to join the Super League of Science 2026! If you'd like to follow my campaign, the prelaunch page is here:

Returning Backers (people who have supported my past backerkit campaigns), Early Bird Backers (those who pledge within the first 24 hours), and Prelaunch Followers (anyone who follows the campaign before launch and pledges) all get a different special bonus sticker! 

Thank you all again for your support, I'll be back with another update later this month,
Starr Vipi

Hello,
I had intended for an update to be posted last month, but unfortunately I had to fly out to Washington for a few weeks to assist with a friend's funeral. It took a lot out of me and honestly the time melted away while I was there. Last week my mom had heart surgery, so I've been assisting her too. Of course, now I'm back and I'm in the middle of moving both my household and my mom in to one house! Off-kilter is how I would describe the last couple of months. This summer really hit me in a series of strange, unprecedented ways.

Nonetheless, (wow that's actually how you spell that, I never realized) I have some unfortunate news about the sticker sheets, as they are delayed in their production due to the foil effect bleeding the words and details together. I'm not sure why the cheetahs are especially washed out in their print as the tigers are fully saturated, but they have offered to make corrections so the sticker sheets will be improved in the final run.

So currently I am waiting for my stickers manufacturer to get back to me with new sheet proofs. The rest of the stickers and the shakers are finished, but they did not send photos before they shipped them, so I hope they are correctly saturated upon arrival. 

Speaking of shipping~: Due to the timing of my move and my August convention schedule, it is likely the pins will be sent to my previous address sometime next month. I won't be returning until September 5th, at which point I'll just have to coordinate pickup from my sister. All the rewards will likely be arriving around this time to my previous address, so I will have to grade them in early September, which pushes my fulfillment into late September/early October. 

August is going to be chaotic for me, but I can promise to have updated photos as I get them from manufacturers. Anything that gets shipped to me of course I won't have quality confirmation on until they are in hand, but I will certainly have one giant update to fill in the visual gaps once I do. Originally I had wanted to run two Backerkit projects this year, but sometimes life has other plans. 

Thank you all for your patience as all this is happening, it's been a time. 
Starr Vipi