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Messages - Cosmo Solano

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26
Woohoo! Just hit 12k! 400%!

27
I'll be posting the proof of the uncut when I get it sometime this coming week...

the routine that will be on the DVD will use the rainbow card(s) you saw, so at this time there's at least one of the rainbow cards.

I've come up with a couple other routines which could use a double backer, so the gaffs are still being decided.



The art dept. is working on the setting up the colors right now, so I have this weekend to make up my mind about the gaffs. 
The gaffs are based on the routines for the DVD.




28
Thanks for you're thoughts on the joker, this joker in fact is modeled after the joker from Batman.  Its my trademark joker from the effect I have on the market called joker Monte, a brilliant effect created by David Neighbors.  my favori te joker has always been the classic arrco joker from way back,  so I took my joker and modified it as short of a tribute to the Arrco Joker.  (the collar with the bells and the hat).  I've always gotten compliments on it, in fact I've been asked to make t shirts with it and stuff, one guy even asked me if he could use it for a tattoo! To me all jokers jesters and clowns are creepy, but then I kinda like creepy. 

29
Detailz on ??? the bonuses?  it's secret! haven't hit 12k yet!  close.... tick tock tick tock.

30
Holy crap, I'm jealous! I now wish I had been collecting all these years! Very nice sheets CBJ

Thanks to YOU Nathan and those like ya!  Yes hit a milestone, 200 backers.  Maybe I shouldn't say this, and please don't ask.... but I've been giving out bonuses for various milestones, so far several have gotten a free deck or something.

Unreal... Unreal.


31
Thanks magicaddictz!

yeah and today is blowing me away!


32
Coz, can you please confirm the design of the uncut sheets?


I much prefer the way the poster looks, and I might need to change my pledge!

Hey there, the uncut sheet will look as you've seen it on the kickstarter page, with possible MINOR changes to the gaff cards.  You still have 24 days and I will be posting the final proof of the uncut sheet as soon as I get it (hopefully in a few days)  So you can wait to cancel until you see the proof, or cancel and reconsider later.  The color order won't change guaranteed.  If you're not crazy about it then yes you may want to change your pledge.  You can cancel or decrease if a poster is more appealing.

33

Okay sheesh,


Moving on, my apologies to those who don't like the uncuts.  In case you're not aware kickstarter allows cancellations.  Please I would never want anyone get them and be disappointed.


I know and practice in a way that shows my integrity, so I wont even touch the accusations of being misleading. 


The real issue is that some are okay and some aren't okay with the way they look.


The uncuts were never posted on kickstarter, the posters were.  The posters have black backgrounds and a title at the bottom.  I don't recall any uncut sheets EVER being printed that way.
Care was taken to call them posters and NOT to elude any relationship to the uncut sheets.  This isn't in defense but stating a fact for anyone who hasn't been to the kickstarter site yet and might assume the worst of my efforts.  Nuff said.


I recently posted an update on the kickstarter site titled: "These are your cards, not mine!"  due to printing issues, the box design had to change, much to my dismay.  I finally conceded to a design that seemed to work best (all things considered) and after getting a message about it, and through sheer luck came up with something that is more like what I wanted and everyone liked!  Yay!


I do feel this deck belongs to those who get it, and have worked hard to consider the feedback.

So regarding the uncut sheets: An uncut sheet is a product of the deck, exists because of the deck.  The deck is first and foremost.  To alter the design strictly for the sake of the appearance of the uncut sheet would compromise the deck itself.  With that said, just before launching on kickstarter, I kept looking at the printing layout wishing it could be different.  The deck would have been everything it is now and less work for me had I left it alone and the uncut sheet would have been interesting but not in spectrum order. 


Here's the original uncut, as it would have been in ACE-King order, so those of you who like uncut sheets, understand that I spent two days re-arranging the color scheme, laying out the cards and resubmitting everything to USPCC for one reason, to make the uncut sheets more attractive.

Here's what it ALMOST WAS:



The old layout



Some here in this forum have asked me to change it back, but it is as it always was, unless I change it back to the above layout. It never was layed out like posters. Besides, the poster which I'll agree is prettier, is cheaper!  Win/win! 

For those who like the details: the cards are printed in order from left to right in a row, then back to the left at the next row.  and so on, so either I screw up the spectrum when you actually use them and spread them out, or I go with the spectrum starting over on the next row.  And since this is about the deck more than anything, the compromise HAS to be with the sheet.


I can tell you, the uncut will look awesome on my wall as is and I can't wait for it.  Even the above image is pretty cool for an uncut.

The first thing that makes the uncut sheet appealing to me is that it's an actual sheet from the printing of the deck itself, I thought that's why collectors like them? If not the have I got a cooool poster for you!
The deck comes with the cards that it comes with and every card HAS to go somewhere!


On the 2nd day of kickstarter I posted the uncut image you may have seen, at the request of a backer.  at that point only a few sheets had been ordered, so there was no hiding anything.


One last thing, Hazofhorsham deleted a very VERY important point... In my haste to present the uncut image I used an existing sheet from a google search and superimposed the jokers and ace etc, since the rest of the deck is standard bicycle faces.  It didn't hit me that the order of the front is in si stebbins rather than A-K! 


Understanding that the focal point of the "look of the uncut" issue is about the back colors, I simply over looked the order of the front.
Time constraints won't allow me to make an accurate mock up of the front, and I will take down the front sample right away to avoid confusion.
Even though hazofhorsham deleted the post and I could have just fixed it without mention, I wanted to be "transparent" as always.
All the best intentions!  Glad I got saw that H!


Kickstarter took off today again! Whoo hoo!


Coz

34
hey thanks loldude!
Unfortunately I deleted the post!!! Hoping to do it before any responses... my apologies! It was too long and I'm so exhausted I really want to edit it just to clean it up..

the down and dirty until then: nothing has changed in the uncut, y'all are comparing the poster to it. 

I'll follow up later with an explaination to clear it up!

Thanks!!!

35
Hi all, I responded but due to my time constraints will have to edit  and respond a little later...


Thanks!


36
Hey just realized the graphic for the backs of the uncut was some how cut off!  that's weird!  I'll fix it in a few...

Glad you like the box (well some of you...)

:-)

Made mockups of about 8 different boxes, and it's a completely different thing when you have it in your hands then it is on the computer screen.


Oh by the way, the graphics of the uncuts are not the actual proofs I'll be getting those any day now, someone was asking me to post a picture of the uncut, so the picture you see I made... there will likely be a few very minor differences...
Just uploaded the picture again... should look fine now.
Thanks again!


Coz


37
I'd like to do something, not sure yet! 

38
Hey Nathan,

I didn't realize you posted that question here, I pm'd you on kickstarter... thanks again!

@Fallen_Angel...
damn i want an uncut but i dont want 4 decks with the uncut sheet :( i just want two decks

it's easy to get what you want on kickstarter, I've made custom pledges for several people, just send me a kickstarter message if you want.  Happy to make it work for ya!

You can also just get the card and sheet, then add the difference.  there's a verification at the end where you make it clear what the money was for.


Regarding the gaff, unfortunately there's only two slots for gaffs so it's impossible to do all the things I'd like, or all the things people would want...

@hazofhorsham  lol! thanks for picking one up!  I didn't take any of your opinions as negative!  Whenever someone says $XX of dollars is too much I just hear, it's too much for me... everyone has their comfort zone!  And if your grandad would buy you anything within reason, well, I gotta say wow, i'm honored you chose the SPECTRUM deck!

And yes this deck really was designed by and for magicians, but along the way, and the reason for the jokers and ace really came from a friend who's a big card collector who educated me on that market.  Also the limited run gold seal was highly suggested by a couple of VERY prominent names (I'm sure you know who they are, but I won't mention them without their consent) in the card collecting community. 

So truthfully, just IN CASE someone who collected cards got one of the decks, I wanted to offer something to them as well.

Lots and lots of thought, weeks, months of back and forth, even meetings in person and skype!  Sounds silly doesn't it?

Anyway, thanks everyone!

Coz




39
$10 for a deck with only two custom cards? Pass. I'd spend $5, at the most.

Hey wanted to thank Russel K. personally here...
I see he changed his mind about the SPECTRUM deck... thanks for the order!

Coz

40
So after much thought and discussion with my little "think tank" group of friends as well as my marketing consultant out of Florida, the gaffs for the SPECTRUM deck will change slightly:

the routine with the rainbow/blue, double-backed card (full spectrum of colors on one card) is very cool, but I got an email from someone who I've been bouncing things off of, (thanks Simon Beck!) and he informed me that he uses a red deck! So that routine isn't as appealing to him.  I went back and forth about the solid color and because of only having one card slot left, I decided blue since the color change is more drastic.

Red looks great too though!

So now I'll be including the double backer but one blue and one red.
this way it works for all and opens up way more possibilities than having a rainbow colored Ace.

Wish they'd give more card slots!

Thanks
Coz

41
The Conversation Parlor / Re: Need a little Paypal help
« on: February 22, 2012, 11:54:54 AM »
I've been making a living using paypal as one of my primary sources of income, the majority of my sales come through paypal.
I've had my account linked to it for a long time many, many years and years ago I was carrying a large balance there, I was marketing some very expensive office funiture there. The balance was in the 10's of thousands and never had an issue.
I will say that just like any personal and financial accounts it's always possible to worry about identity theft, and it has happened to me, (actually it was my fault as I logged into paypal once, directlly from an email, something I knew better about, but just was being careless) It was involving over $5,000 dollars and paypal handled it beautifully. 

So I wouldn't be worried about the bank account thing.

There is also the paypal debit card, any of you who aren't familiar with it, it's AWESOME.  You can use your funds immediately and not have to wait for the 3-5 day transfer to your account.  I use it all the time.  I almost never transfer the funds anymore.

You can pull money from ATMS as soon as you get them.  Also, they do a cash back bonus when you use your account, and every expense I have I try and use my pp debit card, I usually can count on $50.00-150 extra bucks at the end of the month just from using the debit card for purchases.

ATM use costs like a buck and doesn't have cashback, only purchases.  So I also do cashback at the checkout, this racks up the bonuses too.

Hope that helps!

Don't be afraid to connect your account, paypal is as big or bigger than most banks out there, it's as safe as anything.

42
I love the clips they have an elegance about them!  I spoke with Robert today at Conjuring Creations and will most likely be getting some custom made to offer with my SPECTRUM deck.  Nice product I wish them all the best with the business, I think we'll be seeing these guys grow quickly!  My initial feeling is that they're very professional and passionate about what they do.

Expect to see some clips up on the kickstarter Spectrum Deck soon, we're looking into some special gradient coloring on the clips to go with the deck.

coz

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1790617455/the-spectrum-deck?ref=live

43
that's a good idea, that's actually why I changed two of the colors to the exact color values of the standard red and blue!

none of the reds or blues were exactly the same color so I asked uspcc for the exact values.  Also, this allows you to use it with a real red or blued deck, you just cut to the color you want on top.  Plus I made sure that the bottom most card leads into the top card so no matter where you cut the deck the spectrum continues... (did that make sense?)

Coz

44
LOL! Thanks JM, my sentiments exactly... Surprising to hear from someone who I admired... oh well!

So I relish comments negative, positive, good, bad, indifferent as it is an opportunity to open up discussion, get a different perspective. and in these cases discussion is a chance to educate others about the product.

So here's why I'm glad the subject was brought up... 
It wasn't just an idea to have a rainbow Bicycle deck that would match the deck of cards the ENTIRE WORLD was familiar with, it was a dream!  The lack of original artwork was actually ON PURPOSE!

52 different cards with original faces would have ruined my whole intention.  So for ANYONE reading, I won't say, "sorry..." but instead, "rest assured!" that this deck does NOT have a bunch of new artwork! It will look exactly like a Bicycle deck until YOU are ready to show off the rainbow!"  The one thing that some might think makes this a 4 dollar deck, is EXACTLY the reason I truly believe it's far more valuable than that.

I'm so fortunate to now become a part of the History of Bicycle decks!

Okay so today's my wife's birthday and since she let me put up every penny I have to get this going, I think she deserves my attention!  I'm signing out for most of the day and will get back to the FAQ's asap!

Oh, let me answer this one real quick:

What will happen with the extra money?

I know that's a common "Kickstarter" question, but in the case of a finite product (as apposed to say someone is trying to fund the cost of publishing a book) there really isn't "extra money" everyone who pledges, gets a deck (or decks).   That's it. 

Now that brings up:  what about if (and it looks very likely) we go PAST the 2500 decks?  I factored that in and I do have a plan. 

The logic behind limiting the pledges is too long to go into here, and became a logistical nightmare, but I'll just say in the kickstarter arena it caused more problems than it solved.

I researched and studied every card project on Kickstarter I could for almost 2 weeks, made spreadsheets took notes etc. 

there are pro's and cons of it all.

Either way I Guarantee that this run will ONLY be 2500 decks, as I have already discussed how to handle the issue should I sell out.

Honestly I wasn't sure HOW they would be received, in a world where "new" artwork decks come out every other day.  ;-)
I anticipated the problem but didn't think it was very likely.  so yes there's a plan and if you bought based on the limited run, please don't worry, I'm sticking to that and have a plan.

My marketing plan on all of this is carefully put together and constantly being carefully thought out, (doin' my best here) in fact I am working closely with a marketing consultant, who, (for those of you who think I'm over pricing) I've already paid enough to pay for a new set of wheels!  (that's an inside joke between me and him, he actually just bought new transportation in part due to my business!)

I couldn't be happier at this point.  If you want new artwork there are some great ones out there, and some not so great, but the choices are almost insane! If you want a cool, unique bicycle deck which now will forever be listed as one of the official bicycle decks in history and also has some great uses (magic-wise) I got one for sale on kickstarter! Woo hoo!

I'll make this promise, I won't go talking smack about ANYONE'S effort or deck designs, even though I think some of the designs are hideous and some are awesome! 

Don't hate rainbows! Rainbows are good.

Peace!

Coz


45
I'll be posting the faq's this afternoon that will answer all these types of questions. including the question about limiting that was mentioned earlier.

Coz

46
yeah I can't figure it out the word playing cards is all over the place I added it to the title but that didn't seem to help

47
hey good timing I noticed that last night, 4 a while it wouldn't even find it if I put in the word spectrum  and I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to address that , it could be that I don't have the word playing cards in there like I should I'm not sure how the search engine works there either but I'll look into it immediately  I canT say how much I appreciate that. many of my posts and responses are by phone so I apologize for grammatical errors and not being able to cut and paste quotes !

48
Cosmo,
since you designed the Spectrum deck as a magic related item,wouldn't it be better to have two identical Jokers?
I mean the Jokers are natural duplicates and the magic community would appreciate that.
Just my opinion as a magician.
;-)

PS: i really like your Joker design,very nice Jesters!

I went round and round about the gaffs, there is no perfect solution.  my thoughts on duplicate jokers is that people know that there are 2 jokers in the deck, people don't always realize that 1 is the guarantee joker, a double backer is a more natural solution for a deck like this. but then with 52 different colors what color do you make a double backer? 

like I said round and round.  I finally took the deck and just started playing to see what might come out it of it, I came up with a really cool routine which would use a gaff that would be unique and kinda cool. 

using a joker as a duplicate has never appealed to me.

I'm sure someone will come up with a better idea for the gaff and I`ll wish I had thought of it but for now I hope I am appealing to the magic community.

Thanks for the idea, since I still have the opportunity to make changes i'm always open!


49
Boom Baby!

4 hrs 12 minutes.... FUNDED!

Unbelievable thanks all!

Coz

50
First off, HUGE THANK YOU to those who've already pledged!


Wow CBJ  it's not insanity, why you're so angry is beyond me... some will buy these, some won't, I'm not upset with YOU if you DON'T buy them, if you don't agree with the price.  I researched several other very successful projects and used them as my examples... some will think that an original design deck has more value and some will think the usability of this deck has more and some will think something else!  I'm not trying to shove these down anyone's throats!  with the exception of The earlier mentioned rainbow deck, the other "brand name" rainbows sell for over 20 dollars and they don't have the "same back" design quality.  From a magician's viewpoint that's huge. So no offense is meant to those of you who don't understand the 10.00 price tag.

Look I won't get on here to defend myself, and it may sound that way, but I do think it's my duty to at least try and explain.

Shipping internationally... I will take the time to help you all understand the costs a little later... unfortunately I'm out of time right now, but will get on it, mostly because I don't just see folks saying, nah, too much, but I do see some flaming already! Silly.  My wife would love a 300 dollar coach bag, but we went to ross and got a nice one for 20 bucks.  I certainly won't complain to anyone about things I'm not willing to spend money on nor that some of my friends go ahead and drop the 300 bucks to keep their wives happy!


If someone else is able to charge 5 bucks flat, it's probably because they've made up for it all in volume and they've done this several times. I'm trying to keep the shipping right at what it should be.  If you've spent two hours out of your day as I do shipping you realize what the term "handling" really means.  and I'm not trying to tack on extra for that.

You, Jay, are doing the right thing by not buying it.  You are supporting what you believe in and if this is insanity, then it's the only way to stop it.

I personally think that a new design of a deck every couple of days is what's insane, mostly because of the satuation I don't even know where to begin, hence I buy almost none! And that sucks! Oh, and some have become millionaires doing it.  But I'm not upset that they give me the chance to. And some folks LOVE spending their money that way, no one forces them to.

To call the 2 dollar difference insanity is pretty harsh... I think anyway.
Many will spend more on a burger and coke and not have a cool deck of cards to show for it... :-)

Oh and anytime anyone out there is willing to risk 7-10,000 bucks just to break even let me know, I"d love to have you as an investor in future projects. 

I've agreed with my wife not to look at kickstarter tonight anymore, but within an hour it was going nuts... Sorry if 2 bucks or even 4 bucks ruins it for some of you.  There's a very nice deck available for 10 dollars, Anglo, mentioned earlier in this post. I recommend that one if SPECTRUM isn't for you.  Wait, I just checked three websites, shipping is around $12.00.   

I'll reconsider the shipping issues as I have no intention of gouging or making money on that, but I know for a fact that cheapest shipping on a deck of cards is just under 5 bucks international, I just weighed a deck and checked yesterday. not to mention a buck for the envelope and label. 

I seriously will check that out and adjust for fairness if justified.  The heavier the package the more it costs.

I'm happy to answer to anything but if you want to take pot shots or be rude, I'll just bow out, I'm not into it.

Again, no offense meant.  'Cmon guys you don't like it fine, like I said, I'm not angry at anyone who won't buy it. and no one buys it, I'm screwed.  The 7 grand is real money. Real money that feeds kids and pays rent.  No one, including me is out to break even.

Again, HUGE THANKS to those of you who have supported this!

Awesome!

Coz

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