Kickstarter

Hello and Happy New Year!

hoping this note finds you all well

as december ended and january rolled in, we successfully received about half of the initial order of cups + mugs.  (photo below)  The espresso cup orders have all been shipped and I will be sending out the remainder of what I have in stock this week.  

we are mostly short on large white mugs, so although my goal would be to ship out the 'Get It All' backers, only a few can be completely filled...  If you ordered GunMetal glaze  -  it looks great!  and expect to see your cups very soon.

Posters will be shipping this week as well.

I am so thrilled for y'all to begin the consumption!

+ also, please check out my FC facebook page as i'll be posting shots of people and their cups as i hand deliver locally...  i invite you to post your own photos as you begin enjoying your cups!

finally - - if you have any problems with your cups or questions / comments -- please feel free to email me directly..  fc@frankcriscione.com

hang tight and much appreciated.

frank

happy holidays to all!

multi-faceted update here...

firstly, we have received the first (small) batch of GunMetal glazed cups and they look great!

and...  

have also received a substantial number of the white (clear glazed) espresso cups!  enough to ship to all the $55 supporters.

there is another shipment arriving this week and i'll update as to what's come in and how many orders i'll be able to fill.

~ here below is a brief explanation of what's been happening - the why and how behind these excessive delays and how we have and are dealing and fixing and moving fwd.     ~ read on if you'd like, or know that your beautiful cups will be arriving soon enough.

thank you all!

frank

unfortunately, due to the glaze problems we've been having, the above shipments, were again, small... and contained breakage and imperfection.   no, i'm not being over-obsessive about the 'perfection'.   the thing is, we've had a problem getting the clear glaze to fuze and shrink properly with the commercial porcelain product that the Mudshark crew has been using.   the result is a cracked / crackly finish to the cups, called 'crazing.'   some have commented that this looks 'cool' or adds 'character'... but ultimately it means failure of the material and will stain and harbor dirty-ness and is not the result we're looking for.     so, this is the why behind the excessive delays.

this 'crazing' doesn't always show up right out of the glaze firing, some of it appears days or weeks later.   this is why the testing has taken so long!

we have arrived at a successful product/process, however, the results are not consistent enough to justify pushing the original porcelain...  so, we're moving to a different, stoneware based clay body - - testing / sampling has begun and i will update results as they are known.

hope that helps!

best to all and yet again, many thanks

hello!

well, from the last hopeful update, i warned of possible 'tragic mishaps'...  and, as would be the case, that is what happened!     yes, we've had success with a small batch of product which has been sent to retail and a few backers.  however, the glaze issues continue!   uggh...  the Mudshark crew is working to fix / solve the issues, yet at this point i don't feel comfortable making any further predictions.   we are all hopeful to have cups in the next few weeks.   

thanks so much, again, for your patience and support.   this has been an enlightening experience indeed....

cheers

frank

hello supporters!

at last check-in, we were looking to the beginning of October for shipping...   well, obviously, that's come and gone, however, i have received the first shipment of finished product!  they look, feel, smell and taste great.   i'm really touched and still excited!  

it was a very small shipment yet it seems we've finally worked out the glazing issues and the full order of cups are set to begin shipping next week.  this means that (again, barring any tragic mishaps) our cups shall runneth over for the Thanksgiving holiday.   

i've been busy finishing up other details as well.   the posters and postcards are printed and retail packaging is complete and ready to go.   we have secured a few retail spots (aslo anxious for product!) and have begun to see a bit of press... a mention in Ceramics Monthly, the Boston Home Magazine and Apartment Therapy.

i had the absolute pleasure of visiting the Mudshark crew in Portland, OR recently.   it was a joy to talk and work with Brett & Chris in person (finally!) see their current shop and their incredible new facility (yes, our production run did fall in the move), and see in person the molds and so many cups!  

please enjoy a few shots of the finished products, the cups in process and of course, the mudshark.

and THANK YOU yet again.   not only for your support, but also your patience and belief in  the process.   we just took a partially developed product from 0 funding to the table in 6 months.   that's awesome!  

cheers!

frank

greetings patient backers!   and i know you're patient because i've heard only minor, yet excited, grumbles of aniticipation.   fortunately, i get to see some of you on a regular basis and am happy to be greeted with a smile and 'where are my cups!?'

so for all of you - - please enjoy this humble note reporting delays...

for the most part - - work / progress is going according to plan.   the pouring and bisque firing of the cups is taking a bit longer than had been anticipated.   i am assured and have seen that the results show the level of craft and attention to detail that has been hoped for!

however, i received another set of prototypes the beginning of last week - - unfortunately there was a slight issue with one of the modifications to the small espresso cups - i considered just pushing through, but ultimately decided to have the Mudshark team re-create a portion of the molds in order to produce the product that i've envisioned.  this of course adds time - - 

i am hesitant to make predictions - - however, barring any further setbacks, i hope to now be receiving and shipping cups by the first week of October.  

  fingers crossed - - hopes high!

thanks again!

frank