Son the Frog Ita Bag FAQ

please read this FAQ before you ask me questions much thank 🐸

Kickstarter launches on July 8th @ 12pm PST! Check out the prelaunch page here and get notified when it's up!

last updated: July 7th, 2020

✧ ABOUT THE BAGS:  ✧

I will be launching a Kickstarter campaign to fund 3 ita bags - a purse, backpack, and a mini bag. 

The purse and backpack both have:

• a very handsome frog flap that resembles Son the Frog’s face. has 2 magnetic button closures. lift the frog to access the main compartment. 
• 2 water bottle pockets on the sides. hydrate or diedrate.
• an ita window for displaying pins
• 2 removable ita inserts. The default colors are pastel pink & blue. Each insert features a tiny lilypad design on the lower right corner. Wear a different color and different pin collection every day!
• a large compartment that can be used to store things like notebooks, partial skeletons, snacks, etc.
• a padded laptop/tablet compartment. The size of laptop/tablet it will hold varies between the two bags. 
• a secret phone pocket on the back right side
• pastel pink interior lining
• 5 small pockets on the inside for holding things like pens, small bones, phone chargers, etc.
• cute star shaped zipper pulls on the inner zip pockets. The outside zippers are standard zipper pulls that you can put keychains on. this may or may not be a ploy to sell more frog keychains

PURSE:

• Dimensions: 13 x 11 x 4 inches (not including height of eye bumps)
• made of PU (faux leather)
• can carry 4.4 lb (2 kg) of weight
• 3 interchangeable straps! can be worn with 2 straps as a backpack, or one strap as a purse
• a padded iPad/notebook/illegal document section in the main compartment. 
• will Not fit a 13 inch laptop. Can fit a 12 inch iPad in a padded section, and up to 12.75 inches in the non padded area.

**Please note that the purse is NOT made for carrying heavy loads. If you do this often, the straps may snap. I won't have extra straps. But if yours does break, take it to your local shoe repair shop.

SCHOOL BACKPACK

• Dimensions: 17 x 12 x 5.5 inches (not including height of eye bumps)
• made of waterproof* Oxford fabric
• can carry 11 lb (5 kg) of weight
• weight-bearing padded shoulder straps so you may carry heavy things comfortably
• padded laptop compartment (will Not fit a 17 inch laptop, anything smaller is ok)
• the back features an open pocket, perfect for shoving papers and receipts inside and then promptly forgetting about them
• does not have to be used for school. can be used for all sorts of adventures that require a heavy duty frog to carry things in. 

*not actually waterproof, more like water resistant. please do not dunk your frog bag in a body of water, he will be wet because water is wet. but spills and raindrops are ok.

*NEW!* MINI BAG:

this bag was added last minute out of pity for those international shipping prices. The sample is still being made, so all images and info is subject to slight changes.

• Dimensions: 8 x 7 x 2 inches
• Ita window dimensions: 4 x 6 inches
• made of PU (fake leather). Same material as the purse.
• has 2 magnetic flap closures and a 6 inch tall open pocket on the back for shoving your phone in quickly
• each compartment has 1 zipper pull.
• will Not have interchangeable straps. it can be worn as a purse/crossbody only. the strap will be length adjustable. This is because it must be as light as possible to not go over 1 pound for shipping reasons.
• can fit an entire Nintendo Switch Lite inside. can fit a normal Switch if you remove the joycons. 
• perfect for carrying your phone, wallet, keys, and a piece of lint. maybe 2. 

Current images are of the prototype made of scrap material. This is not the color that will be used. Other adjustments that will be made to this prototype:

• no loop on top
• Son’s nose will be slightly less pointy
• no rings on back for interchangeable strap option. Purse strap will not be removable. 

I will update this section as well as on social media with any new info as soon as I have it.
 

✧ Costs  ✧ Timing  ✧

 °✧ when can i buy this??!!?

july 8th @ 12pm PST is when the kickstarter will be launched.

 °✧ how much will it cost???

Purse - $40

Schoolbag - $50

Mini Bag - $35

i did a lot of math and decided on these prices. i wanted to make them as affordable as possible. all prices in USD.

°✧ how much will shipping cost?? 

i am sorry from the bottom of my heart how expensive shipping is. i have spent Hours doing different calculations and trying different services and these are literally as cheap as I can possibly make them. they cost a lot to ship because they are large and heavy. cries tears of blood over these prices

I have decided to raise the price of the backpack and lower the cost of international shipping as much as I could. i am making like $4 profit in some cases but i want people to have frogs akjdfh

°✧ what the fr*g why does shipping cost so much!!

it actually costs more to ship than what you're seeing!! $76 to ship a purse and backpack to Australia,,,,,,,, wheeze

the items are big and heavy. i did my best, and in the case of international purchases, most of my profit from each bag is eaten up by the shipping cost. i just want y'all to get your frogs

  °✧ will you lie on the customs form for me? (ie: mark as gift instead of merchandise; write incorrect monetary value)

no!! that's illegal!! i can be legally prosecuted for doing that. i only do crimes where i Won't get caught. if i lie on customs, they literally have my name and address right there!!

i know fees are expensive but so is me having to pay fines/go to court for doing crimes. no thx

also, the bag packages will all be insured for however much the package costs. that means if it gets lost or destroyed, we can both get our money back! yay! but if i lie and put the wrong amount, that's how much i'll get as a refund from the post office. not yay. 

°✧ how long will it take to get my bag?

I am currently estimating that it will take 3-4 months. Please note that the timing depends heavily upon when I receive the sample & am able to launch the campaign:

• Kickstarter campaign: 2 weeks
• Kickstarter gives me money so I can pay for the bags: 2 weeks
• Backerkit surveys & preorder store: 1-2 weeks
• Bag production: 1 month
• Bags get shipped to me via boat: 30-35 days
• I sort bags and ship them to people: 2-4 weeks 

I am hoping to have them all shipped out in September or October. If you live internationally, please add on an additional 7-21 days to the estimate.

✧ Colors/Variations  ✧ Bag Specs  ✧ Add-ons & Stretch Goals  ✧

°✧ Non Bag Items:

• Each bag tier will come with 1 enamel pin and 1 knife keychain for free. If you pledge for 2 bags, you will only get the 1 pin & keychain, but you can add on an additional pin/keychain after the campaign is over via Backerkit.
• The knife keychain is 3.5 inches. It will be made out of fake leather. 
• You can pledge for the enamel pin and the knife keychain without having to buy a bag. This is the cheaper option for people who still wish to support the campaign but can't afford a bag! 

°✧ what colors will he come in???

Son the Frog is a minty blue green frog. The purse will be a pastel mint color, while the school backpack is a brighter blue green color. Both bags have light pink lining on the inside. 

I have a few different color variations that will be available as stretch goals. Please note that these will only be made if we reach the money goal underneath, AND I have at least 80 people who want each version.

°✧ why is the school backpack a different color from the purse? will you make a version of the school bag using the same material as the purse? i want to carry a laptop but don't like the school bag color

The school backpack is made of a more durable fabric than the purse. It is difficult to find this kind of fabric in the exact minty color I want. At this point, it is too late to get a new fabric for the school bag sample. if my manufacturer Manages to find a minty color, I will make it an optional variation when it comes time for mass production. but this is all a big maybe.

I will not be making a version of the school bag out of the same material as the purse. The school bag is made for durability and to hold weight, the purse is meant for fashion. The current set up of the bag would not work with the fake leather, because it is not flexible the way the durable fabric is. 

°✧ will there be different colored ita inserts?? 

By default, each bag will come with 2 inserts - pastel pink and blue. Additional ita inserts can be added on, and they come in packs of 2. I currently have these colors planned: 

• Pastel yellow and lavender

• Black and white

• Holographic fabric - a light colored and a bluish purple color.

Each insert comes with a lilypad design printed on the bottom right corner. 

°✧ how much weight will the bags carry?? can they hold my heavy textbooks??

°✧ can i put the bag in the washing machine?

my manufacturer recommends hand wash only, but they have never been tested in a washing machine. i wouldn't risk it personally. but if you do, let me know how it goes?

°✧ show me the bag!! where can i see pictures of the bag!!

please check my twitter or instagram for images of the current prototypes! or if you're in my special patron discord you can see all the images, and know exactly what changes are being made and give me advice on it. 

°✧ please please make it come in the color i want!!!

i would love to do every color that every person wants, but each variation costs money. i would need 100 (at minimum) of each variation, and different items add on to my bill. each one costs $2,000 at a minimum, and raises the price for each individual bag. i cannot accommodate every request because i am a broke binch

°✧ will you make a Sprout or Friend bag??

maybe in the very, very distant future. my poor mother needs time to recover from the current frog onslaught 🙏

°✧ "i think you should make it look like ___" "have you considered (some suggestion/change)"

thank you for your suggestions, but at this point, i have already discussed all changes with my manufacturer and cannot add on new changes to accommodate every request. 

✧ Kickstarter ✧ Backerkit ✧ About Campaign

°✧ what is kickstarter and how does it work? 

°✧ if i pledge for a bag on Kickstarter does that basically mean i bought it?

When you use Kickstarter, you are basically saying that you are promising that you will pay a certain amount if funding is successful at the end of the campaign. If you pay that amount, yes, you will receive a frog bag once they are ready.

Exceptions to this are:

• You don't have enough money in your account when Kickstarter tries to charge you, and never fix it: If this happens, you didn't give me money, and thus I do not give you frog.
• You didn't respond to the survey emails: In order to ship you your goods, I need your survey response. The survey tells me your address and what variations you want. If I don't have your address I can't ship anything. Please be sure to check your emails from Kickstarter & Backerkit!

°✧ how will I choose what variation I want? / what is Backerkit?

Backerkit basically functions as a preorder store, a survey, and a way for people to easily add on additional items to their pledges. When I send out the Backerkit surveys, backers will be able to give me their shipping info and select what variations they want. Or if they want to get 2 pins, they can do so here. 

Backerkit is also nice for people who procrastinated or missed the campaign. Via Backerkit, these people can still get their frogs!

°✧ Are Kickstarter and Backerkit trustworthy?

if you find me and my website trustworthy, then yes. i will still be the one handling all orders, so i won't just take your money and run. Kickstarter and Backerkit will not randomly steal money from you or sell your credit card info, because credit card transactions are handled by Stripe, the service that pretty much all websites use for credit card transactions. 

°✧ When do I get charged?

 Kickstarter will charge you once the campaign is finished. Backerkit will charge you when I tell it to. I'll let y'all know when I plan on doing so. 

°✧ Can I pay with PayPal? 

No. Kickstarter and Backerkit do not accept PayPal. Sorry!

°✧ is kickstarter the only way to get him?? will you have them on your shop so I can ask for him for Christmas??

✧ Misc ✧

°✧ what is an ita bag?

Thanks mom for this question! An ita bag is a bag that has a clear window pocket. You can attach items such as pins and keychains inside the bag. This way, people can display their pins without the fear of them getting lost or damaged. and yes it is definitely a marketing scheme to sell more frog pins thanks for asking 

°✧ where did you get your bag made?? who manufacturers your bag/plushies/etc?? can you teach me how to make a bag??

while i would love to help everyone else start making things as well, please keep in mind that my business is my job. i got to where i am today by doing research, and testing out manufacturers via trial and error, costing a lot of money. i am a full time student, and up until last fall i worked like 4 part time jobs just to fund my business and pay tuition. there are many resources and articles you can find online to teach you, but please be aware that it isn't as easy as just drawing something, and that making merchandise requires a lot of money. many artists consider it rude to ask them for their manufacturers, because those manufacturers were found because they invested a lot of time and money into finding the right one. i'm happy to share info and compare with my friends, but getting a lot of strangers who slide into my DMs asking for my time and advice for free is really exhausting. thank you for your understanding 💖