Kickstarter

I'm taking a little break from folding paper to post this update... I've been folding, and gluing for days now, and I'm on my last room. In just a couple more hours the 50 kitchens should be complete, and I'll be ready to head out to Williamsburg to start assembling all the boxes and envelopes.

Below is a picture of the folding in process. I hadn't quite realized how long it would take to make all these. Even though I can make a room in a few minutes, when that is multiplied by 8 rooms, then by fifty units, suddenly it becomes quite a big job. I have to take breaks to rest my fingers, but still even my thumb nails feel sore... 

I'm also filming the process so that each room will have an easy to follow video tutorial. Of course there are many different ways to fold and glue these pieces, but after making 50 of each I've been able to figure out the easiest and fastest way. Even if you are an experienced paper crafter I would recommend looking at these videos before making your rooms -- watching them should be helpful for everyone, and it's invaluable if you've never made pop-up cards. I've uploaded the first of the series here -- I'll be posting them as I edit them, in the order in which you should make the cards, from the easiest to the most difficult room. 

First, I'd like to thank all of you who have responded to the survey I sent out a few days ago. Supporters in the reward tiers from $2 to $26, plus all those who pledged at $160 or above deserve special praise for responding in time -- and although the vast majority of the others have also given me their shipping info, I'm still missing a handful of addresses from the $35, $75 and $100 reward tiers. 

Please do not email or send me a message with your address, instead look for the survey you should have received from kickstarter and respond to that -- this is important to me because once I have everybody's response I import all the addresses all at once, which will prevent errors or accidental omissions.

As I move into this nitty-gritty logistics phase of the project, I am quite grateful that in addition to paper craft I am quite fond of Filemaker and database design... But even the most powerful database won't help me if I'm missing information... So I do need your help...

Besides gathering all the data, I've been busy folding cards for those of you who wanted ready-made pop-ups. And as I fold, I'm also filming my hands, so that everyone else can watch the video tutorials I'll be posting, just in case you need a little help making yours. The kit comes with instructions, but sometimes it's easier just to watch how it's done, rather than read about it.

Below is a picture of a stack of folded pop-ups, and I also posted a very short video of the cardboard for the house structure in the process of being laminated. After going through this gluing machine, it is die-cut into pieces which fit together precisely, making sturdy walls and floors without the need for any hardware. I am really happy I was able to have this manufactured -- it makes the scope of the project much more manageable.

When you get your printed house, and peer into the bathroom mirror, you can think back to this video to remember how carefully each sheet was hand fed into the machine....

I just came back from the factory in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, a long but very pleasant bike-ride away.

All the printing is now completed (I didn't mention this in the last update, but some sheets needed to be reprinted because the images somehow got compressed, and looked very pixelated compared to the other crisp images), and the bathroom mirror is completed. Now they have started setting up and fine-tuning the die-cutting process. This will take about 2 weeks -- since the dies are more intricate and the paper is thinner than a standard job, this will take a bit longer than usual. They need to slow down the machines and feed the paper by hand, and adjust each blade so it presses down on the paper with just the right amount of force.

Below is a picture of the die-cutting machine. The die is attached to the back part, which comes forward and presses down on the paper, which would be placed on the steel plate with all those pieces of tape (which are used to adjust the pressure of the blades on the paper). I'll be sure to go back and shoot a video while they're cutting the pieces, it's really fun to watch in action.

I've also uploaded a shot of the small piece of magnesium which was acid-etched in the shape of the bathroom mirror. This is used to stamp the silver foil on the paper. 

Here's the approximate time line:

2 weeks of cutting.

1 week of assembly (assembling kits, putting them in bags and boxes).

1 week shipping. 

So now I'll be needing your help: this evening I will send out the surveys to all those who have not yet received them. Please answer as soon as you can, because to minimize the possibility of errors, I need to process all the information at once rather than in bits and pieces. Once I get your replies I will be sending you individual emails with your shipping address and your list of rewards, so you can verify that all the information is correct. You won't need to reply to this email unless I made a mistake, wrote your zip code down wrong or forgot to include an item I'd promised you. I need all your answers by the end of the two weeks of cutting to avoid any delays.

Thank you!