Surveys are out!
5 months ago
– Fri, May 10, 2024 at 07:28:30 AM
Hi everyone,
Check your inboxes...surveys have been sent! Please let me know if you experience any glitch or hiccup.
The preorder store is also open, if you want to forward this news on to your friends who missed the campaign :) You can also use this link to access your survey if you can't find it.
I'll leave the preorder store open and surveys unlocked until we are poised to fulfill the orders. Then you'll be charged for shipping and the survey locked to ready for shipment!
Thank you again for all your support and excitement. I'll be sending out additional updates as there is interesting or exciting news to report!
Have a wonderful weekend xoxo
-Xia
Quick Update - Surveys going out this week!
5 months ago
– Tue, May 07, 2024 at 03:22:23 PM
Hi everyone,
I feel likes it has been such a long time since I've reached out...but I finally have some actual news to share! The excitement of the campaign has grinded down to the hard work of fulfilling my promises! But do not worry, things are really coming along!
Good news. Kickstarter sent my funds yesterday...BackerKit is doing its final review...and we should start getting surveys out to you this week!
Couple things to note.
- You will have the option to select "least expensive" shipping or "USPS shipping". I've tried to create very accurate shipping profiles by region, but if you see something odd, please let me know. If I did not set up a shipping profile for your country, you may see a very high price. Please let me know so I can investigate!
- You will have the ability to add items to your pledge if you like, up through the time that I lock shipping. So, if you are on the fence or don't have the funds at the moment, you can come back and manage your survey accordingly. I expect it will be at least 2 months before I can begin shipping, but I will keep you posted at every step.
- Regarding the hand-made to order wooden Altar and Apothecary boxes. Please let me know if you want one/both right away, via your survey. I really do not want to burden my wonderful, creative maker at the last minute with a bunch of last minute orders! So please try not to change things up too much with the boxes especially. Also, if you are in the UK, we will be able to drop-ship them, which will probably reduce your shipping cost, for sure your customs/tax/fees. Please go ahead and pay the default shipping so that we can register your order, then we will refund the difference once the boxes actually get packaged to ship.
- Regarding PayPal. I've just learned why Kickstarter does not offer that payment method, and why BackerKit warns you not to offer it. PayPal is very harsh on vendors that do not ship within 30 days of payment. They will freeze your funds and possibly close your account. As you know, with these crowdfunding projects, we can very rarely ship within 30 days (as we are still developing and manufacturing the products!). So of course, scammers have figured to take advantage of that situation. So, if you are someone who must pay via PayPal (I have messaged many of you) do not fret. Let's just keep in close communication and when I am about to ship, we can process your PayPal payment individually at that time.
Okay then, I think that's it for now! Again, I cannot thank you all enough for all your support and encouragement during this project. I really feel such a sense of community and loyality and it just means to world to me.
Sending you all much love and light,
-Xia
THANK YOU! What an amazing campaign...what are the next steps?
6 months ago
– Mon, Apr 22, 2024 at 05:33:13 PM
Gratitude that words cannot adequately express
Hello everyone! So we did it...and how! The campaign has officially ended, after 33 days of just incredible support.
I could never have expected the sheer amount of pledges that were made, or how many kindred spirits I have found in all of you. It was so amazing to see how many of you sent kind messages and shared this Kickstarter with your own magickal communities to help it grow! I am just so grateful...beyond words. I just cannot tell you what it means to go from nothing but the dreams in my head and my own two hands alone...to now, with over 1200 people standing behind me and my work, investing their precious faith, time, and money, to support this dreamlike and magical endeavor. The only way I can think of repaying you all is by continuing to work my hardest to deliver a tool of utmost beauty, quality, thought, and care...to try and create something that is worthy of your love, support, and attention. Whatever the future holds, please know I have, and will always, do my very best to give you my very best.
Now, for the abrupt transition to....logistics!
Next Steps
Kickstarter charges
Kickstarter did process the pledges at the campaign completion yesterday. We had 115 cards errors...this can be due to many factors like fraud alerts from your credit card/bank, expired cards etc... So please don't fear if this has happened to you! Kickstarter will continue to try and process the errored transactions about 3 times, and will prompt you with notifications when you sign into your KS account. So please check the card you used and see if the transaction was processed. I believe they will give you an option to try again or use another payment method. If it still does not go through, no worries! We will have our BackerKit preorder store up soon and you can add/change your pledge there.
Paying with PayPal
I did have some people who complained that Kickstarter does not accept PayPal, which for many international backers (or potential backers) may be their only payment option. If that applies to you, and you want to get in on the Kickstarter Exclusive items (or any items really), please message me on Kickstarter or email me at xiahunt.com and we can manually set up your order in PayPal.
Surveys & Shipping Options
Surveys will go out after Kickstarter officially cuts off the campaign, once the funds have processed. They will come to you from Backer Kit. You will be able to specify what add-ons you pledged for, the coins you want, etc. and even add on more items, if you would like. There will also be an option to choose which shipping method you prefer (yay!):
- Least Expensive (various carriers) OR
- USPS International
Note: you will NOT be charged for shipping until we are actually ready to ship your packages. If there are special considerations or concerns regarding shipping, we have plenty of time to work those out together.
Fulfillment timeline
The only thing that is not yet finished on my end is the little book that comes with the deck, inside the box. My goal is to have that finished by the time the surveys are collected. Then, we submit everything to the various manufacturers. At that point, we are at the mercy of their production schedules and supply chain logistics. This being my 4th campaign, I now know not to make any promises that are outside my control. However, barring any new global issues, I do believe we should be well-able to ship out rewards before the holiday rush in the fall. That is my goal and educated guess...but again, I know firsthand how many unknowns seem to pop up and cause havoc with my best laid plans!
Additionally, for this campaign, as most of you know, I'm working with amazing, talented makers from around the world. Their craftsmanship cannot be rushed! I've already paid down payments out of pocket to start production to hopefully get a jump on things, but stuff happens. They are not machines or robots (thank the gods!). Please be patient and flexible as we may have to accommodate their workflow! As they say, some things are worth waiting for.
Future updates
You all know by now that I'm not afraid of posting updates! However, I do recognize that everyone is plastered with emails and texts and notifications constantly. I don't want to bombard you unintentionally. I will try and limit myself to 1 update a month and consolidate all the information in that one update. But, if I get a lot of questions or concerns about an issue that I think will benefit everyone to know about, I may post a mini-update on occasion. So please be sure to check in with whatever email you used to pledge this campaign so you don't miss out on important updates!
Thanks again so much, and I hope you all have a wonderful night/day!
Almost there! And USPS vs other shippers update
6 months ago
– Fri, Apr 19, 2024 at 11:40:40 AM
Hi everyone,
Thank you so much for the continued support and all your kind messages over the last few weeks! I'm so relieved and grateful this project has gone so well and it's almost over!
A couple of you have messaged me regarding the shipping charts I posted last week. I was not aware of the exorbitant fees charged by UPS and FedEx International to Canada and Europe. The request is that I use USPS International instead, even if the shipping fee is twice as much and the shipping time is twice as long.
I'm more than willing to do that but I'm going to have to update the profiles and so they will affect everyone in those regions. I need to reach out to the BackerKit specialist and ask if it's possible to have an option that allows you to select which carrier you prefer. As I understand it, currently the cost is just based on weight and shipping region. So please stay tuned for more updates on that. I want everyone to be happy and I'll work with you to make sure we get your magikal tools the best way possible!
Sending you all love and light!
-Xia
