Photos from the printer!
10 months ago – Fri, Jan 26, 2024 at 11:57:31 AM

I just got some photos from my printer of the hard-copy proof for the MicroCosmic Oracle! I'm still waiting to see them in person, but I wanted to share this little sneak peak of the printed cards, book, and box. I'm working with Wheel of Fortune Tarot, and they do high quality work and have printed many of the decks that get produced through Kickstarter. 

These prints are not the final product, I'm getting them mainly to check colors before going in to production. They may look slightly different from the deck you will receive, and they don't have the holographic foil edges that will be on the finished cards. 

We're still on schedule for you to receive the oracle decks by May, and I will keep you posted as things progress. 

~Julia Y

Happy New Year- all calendars fulfilled
11 months ago – Mon, Jan 01, 2024 at 11:55:54 AM

Greetings and Happy Holidays,

I have some good news updates for you all. 

All 2024 calendars have been shipped! 

That means all of you should have your calendars to kick off the new year. I love the feeling of being able to put up the new calendar on January 1st, so I try to make sure all of my backers can as well. A few exceptions are:

• International backers- your package might get delayed in customs
• A few calendar backers who have not filled out their surveys
• A few local pick-up orders that I haven't met up with yet

All of your tracking numbers have been loaded into BackerKit, so if you have filled out your survey and your package hasn't arrived yet, you can check your tracking number or ask me if you need help locating your order. 

Surveys & rewards have still not been sent for:

• Oracle Decks
• Wooden Card Holders
• Altar Cloths

I'm still holding on to these surveys until Spring so I can make sure to get current addresses and accurate shipping rates. I'll probably send them out in April, and will post here when they are available. 

Gallery show in Seattle

I currently have 20 of the original paintings from The MicroCosmic Oracle on display at The Crystal Lounge in Belltown, Seattle. This is a really awesome new shop, and you can see my art alongside some of the largest crystals you've ever seen outside of a museum. A few paintings have already sold, but you might still be able to snag your favorite if you missed your chance during the Kickstarter campaign. 

We are having a reception on January 4th for First Thursday Artwalk, and you can see the art any time during the shop's business hours. 

Hours:
Wednesday - Friday: 11:30am - 6:30pm
Saturday - Sunday: 11am - 7pm
Monday - Tuesday: Closed

Oracle deck updates

Some exciting developments have happened! I have the deck scheduled for production beginning February 26th! This means I have less than 2 months to get the book completed. 

This also means I have an estimated date of APRIL 30 for receiving the decks! It might end up being a few days before or after that, but it does mean that I will be shipping the decks out in May as promised in the campaign. 

The art is (almost entirely) completed! I've spent the last few weeks making some adjustments to the last few cards, and I'm really happy with how they are turning out. I did some Photoshop magic to go back and update a few older paintings that didn't have the right shapes/patterns/symbols since they were made while I was still figuring out the structure for the deck. I also made some color adjustments so that every sign has it's own distinct color palette. 

This image of all of the cards probably looks about the same as the version I posted two weeks ago, but I think you'll appreciate those fine-tuning adjustments when you receive the final product. 

I might need to adjust some colors/values based on my next test print as I use a lot of colors that don't like to convert to CMYK for printing. But other than some (hopefully) minor color adjustments, I can quit messing with the artwork and get on to the second draft of the guidebook. 

I hope you are all enjoying a happy holiday season, and I'll post again in a few weeks with updates. 

Happy New Year,

Julia Y

Surveys and shipping have begun!
11 months ago – Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 04:05:34 PM

Surveys and shipping!

I started sending out surveys through BackerKit last week, and I've been able to start shipping my first orders! 

You should have received a survey from BackerKit if your pledge included:

• Calendars
• T-shirts or Tank Tops
• Hoodies
• Original Paintings

If you ordered the above items and didn't receive a survey please email me and I will send you the link to your survey. The sooner you fill these out, the sooner I can send your in-stock rewards.

Once surveys are completed, BackerKit allows 48 hours before locking your order, at which point it will charge your card and allow me to ship your rewards. If you need your rewards sooner and want to skip the 48 hour waiting period, just message me and I'll expedite the order. 

If you only ordered these rewards, you will not receive a survey until Spring 2024 when pre-order items are ready to ship. 

• MicroCosmic Oracle Deck
• Altar Cloth
• Wooden Card Holder

This way, I'll have up to date addresses and shipping rates for all of you who ordered the oracle deck and will not have to charge you for shipping your rewards in separate packages.  If you need any of your add-ons before Spring, please contact me and I'll get your survey to you early. 

Something that is not fulfillment!

Not gonna lie, admin work and shipping packages isn't my favorite part of the creative process. I'm simultaneously working on finalizing all of the art for the cards for the MicroCosmic Oracle deck. You might be thinking "aren't these paintings already done?" and the answer is "yes, kinda." Since I started this project in 2018, my concept for this project and my understanding of the individual cards has changed so much, and I need to bring some of them in alignment with their new meanings. 

For instance, I initially painted the Squirrel as "Mercury in Capricorn- Planning," and later found out that squirrels organize their food by freshness and nutritional content... which is the most Virgo thing an animal can do. The painting is now "Sun in Virgo- Order" and I updated it to share the Virgo color palette and the radial lines of the Sun cards. 

I've also been making digital adjustments so that the cards for each sign have their own distinct color palettes, and each planet has specific types of shapes associated with it. I've also had the time to sit with some of the paintings that just don't sell as well, and I've been giving them glow-ups. I want every single card to be someone's favorite, and I want ALL of them to be my favorite in some way. 

Here are a few of my favorite "Before and After's:"

My plan is to send these off to the printers in the next week so I can receive a hard copy proof before going to production. This will give me a chance to make adjustments to colors and account for any color-shifts that occur in the printing process. Even with this extra step, I'm still on track to have the decks produced and ready to ship by May 2024. 

I'll continue posting at least every 2 weeks until the deck is ready to ship this Spring. As always, please feel free to reach out if you have any issues or questions. 

Thanks,

Julia Y

Surveys will be coming soon through BackerKit!
12 months ago – Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 08:39:15 PM

Hello all, 

It's been two weeks since the campaign ended. I did take a little time off to get some rest, but I've also been hard at work on finishing the MicroCosmic Oracle deck and sorting out fulfillment logistics. 

I am pleased to announce that I will be working with BackerKit, one of the top crowdfunding support services. I have set up your backer surveys and am waiting on review from their team, but I hope to have those sent out by next week. Keep an eye out for an email from them. 

I am also offering FREE LOCAL PICK UP, so you can avoid paying shipping fees by picking up your rewards at any of my vending events. I still won't have the oracle deck at these events, but I will have your calendars, art prints, and in-stock t-shirts. 

You can pick up your rewards at:

• 12/03- Issaquah, WA- PNW Witches' Market Yule Celebration
• 12/10- Seattle, WA- Market of the Beast 
• 12/17- Portland, OR- Market of the Beast
• 01/13-14- San Diego, CA- Oddities & Curiosities Expo
• 01/20-21- Los Angeles, CA- Oddities & Curiosities Expo

I'll post another update when reward surveys are being sent out. Until then, always feel free to reach out for any updates. 

Thanks,

Julia Y

Campaign is over- THANK YOU ALL
about 1 year ago – Tue, Nov 14, 2023 at 05:20:01 PM

After 4 weeks, this campaign has ended and I could not be happier or more exhausted. Thank you to every single last one of you who helped make my dream into a reality. Whether you contributed $1 or a few hundred, your support means the world to me and I am so grateful to have you along on this journey. 

First order of business- I am going to have dinner and go to sleep without looking obsessively at the internet. I've put in countless hours every day for the past month promoting and managing this campaign and I really just need a moment of quiet before I can start on the next steps. 

Later this week, I will be sending all of your backer surveys where you can select your art prints, t-shirts, sticker packs, and anything else with a variant. As soon as Kickstarter collects your pledges, I'll start shipping out any rewards that are immediately available for delivery. And then I'll get in to the more complicated process of getting the deck completed and produced, and I'll give you updates every step of the way as that happens. 

I'll post a more thorough update soon, but I couldn't let this moment pass without expressing my gratitude. 

~Julia Y