project-image

Today

Created by Scott Thrift

The 24-hour timepiece beautifully designed to change the way you see your day.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Saving Daylight. Spending Money.
over 6 years ago – Fri, Nov 10, 2017 at 11:02:51 PM

 

Daylight Saving?

The video above describes the stance TODAY is taking on Daylight Savings Time.

Yes, so if you already have TODAY, wait until it's noon or midnight and set it correctly using the blue dial on the back of the movement. 

When "Spring Forward" happens in March, leave the hand on TODAY as is and take notice. The hypothesis being that, come Spring, you may not have the desire to set TODAY forward. I haven't tried this yet so I am curious how it might go as well.

If you're one of the 884 people still waiting on TODAY, simply pop in a battery at noon as we are already in Standard Time.

Speaking of waiting, here are the numbers.

It's going slow but it is happening. I've hired three people to help and I'm spending the extra money to have inventory pick-up instead of me renting a truck and driving it there.

All 71 International 11" Open style TODAY's are wrapped in a pallet and will be picked up today for delivery to the shipment facility. They will need Monday and Tuesday to ingest before beginning to ship Wednesday.

The same schedule goes for the first 264 TODAY clocks which are ready and on palettes being picked up today. They will also begin shipping next week and it will be international first.

I have 36/250 of the double orders completed. These are the boxes with two glass clocks, (1) ThePresent and (1) TODAY. 

It weighs 14 lbs and it's 15"x15"x10"

 


More boxes and packing materials arriving today. 

 

I'd like to introduce you to business model of  

Time in Color, PBC

Private Installations fund Public Installations 

10,000 private installations  = 1 public installation 

There are currently over 7,500 installations across 52 countries

 

 

Are watching this and thinking, "Is there some way I can help Scott?"   

The answer is yes and the way to help, if you are someone with the means to do so,  is to grant a small personal loan to me off the collateral of the remaining clocks. The estimate for the cost of shipping out everything to 52 countries is $32,000. 

That does not include the extra staff I have hired or all the incidentals of boxes, wadding, courier services etc estimated at $7,500.
 All of my money is in the shape of clocks right now and I'm having a hard time convincing shipping companies to let me pay them in timepieces. I'm not embarrassed to ask for help like this, it's what Kickstarter is based on. 

I'm disappointed to no end with the way this went down this year - but the final product is right on the money.  

In 2012 I took a personal loan from someone for $56,000 to wrap up the project. I paid them back $20,000 in 2012, 2013 and 2014. In 2015 I took on a $50,000 personal loan that I've already paid back with 4% interest. I can provide reference letters if needed. I have roughly close to $50,000 in post Kickstarter inventory that will be finished and ready to move in late January. 

I'm currently looking for one backer to front $20,000 against the collateral of the unsold clocks, or for 10 backers to front $2,000. You get the idea. 

In 2018 I will be running the small seed round for Time in Color, but in the very near meantime though, an influx of working capital would do wonders for delivering on time right now. 

The money would immediately go to hiring two more assistants bring the total to five short term employees who are examining and fixing the surprise cosmetic assembly process, helping me pack and allowing me to hire a shipping service to pick up and deliver the pallets to the shipping facility. 

If this is you and you want to help, please email me, right now, at 

[email protected] 

With the subject line:  I've got your back

If you want to help in the softest terms possible, simply continue your gracious display of patience, thank you.
 

I will have an e-commerce site up soon if you want to help that way (wanted to have site ready for this update but my clone is still is still about 24 years away from existing) 

If you are waiting on your clock and you feel like you should have it, but don't, please do email me. It may take me 48-hours to respond. 

NO clocks with glass have been shipped, that won't happen for the first time till next week and those will be internationals.  

I'm certain there are typos. 

gotta go 

scott  

Cosmetic Assembly
over 6 years ago – Sun, Oct 15, 2017 at 11:22:16 PM

There is so much going on that a text update is not enough.

 

1 carton = 5 clocks

90 cartons of steel and glass clocks arrived on September 8th 

100 cartons of steel and glass clocks arrived on September 26th.

Ran out of space at Kickstarter and had to relocate to a new office.

this is about 80 cartons a few days before another 170 were due to arrive
this is about 80 cartons a few days before another 170 were due to arrive

 

170 cartons of steel and glass clocks arrived on October 13th to that office.

Everything has now arrived.

Hang on a moment, let's just savor that sentence. 

Everything has now arrived.

That's a sentence I've been waiting to write for over a year.

The news flash is that the assembly firm was not able to deliver at the level of quality we demand. We did everything we could to ensure that this did not happen but it has. 

COSMETIC ASSEMBLY

A new assembly process has been formulated and performed for the past month and will continue over the next 6-8 weeks. It seems that 8 out of every 10 clocks require some degree of delicate cosmetic touch-ups. This is certainly not ideal and I am moving fast to hire more help to get through and pack as many clocks as possible. I will not be waiting until I have ALL of them done before shipping. I will be driving ready-to-ship boxes out to the facility when I reach 250 individually packaged and boxed units.

Though I am individually boxing them, I am smart enough to not try to print shipping labels and send each one out myself. So what happens is that I build up enough to fit into a cargo van then make my way an hour east to drop them all off. 

Backers who purchased single TODAY 11" open wall clocks, at least 70% of the 258 of you will have a shipping notice by the end of the week.

Antipodeans, please hang in there, your flipped faces are special orders and I don't want to make the mistake of accidentally sending a northern hemisphere version. 

Anyone else out there waiting on bamboo based versions, 

TODAY 5" Desk Clocks      98% have shipped

ThePresent 5" Desk Clock 95% have shipped

yes, this is out of focus
yes, this is out of focus

ThePresent 11" Wall Clock  90% have shipped

TODAY 11" Wall Clock        50% have shipped 

(50% accounts for double shipment of ThePresent and TODAY - single 11" units will begin shipping later this week)

TODAY                              0% have shipped

ThePresent                       0% have shipped

All steel and glass clocks are locked up in a process of filtering through the units. 

We cannot afford to take this kind of hit long-term (we will make it work right now) and must write detailed reports that itemize specific issues we find with the clocks. Only if we take the time to record the status of every clock we pull out of a box will we ever be able to be reimbursed for their subpar job. The real truth of the matter is that ultimately we have to build two assembly processes into the budget and manufacture of these clocks from here on out. 

Manufacturing Assembly & Cosmetic Assembly.

The trip I mentioned in the last update is a critical business trip to a weekend-long conference. I have a strong hope & feeling that I will be able to form an important partnership with the organizers of the conference. I leave Wednesday night and return on the following Tuesday. Cash is ridiculously tight right now as all my capital is tied up in the shape of clocks but I believe it would be a huge loss to not attend and attempt to partner with this organization that I revere.

As always, thank you.

I'd say this is the final obstacle but again, I've challenged murphy's law to a duel too many times on this one already. 

It looks like it will be December (with some arriving in November) after all. 

 

Arrival
over 6 years ago – Mon, Sep 11, 2017 at 12:11:07 AM

On Friday I’m moving out of the space I’ve been renting in Long Island City, NY.

 

In an interesting turn of events, Kickstarter has stepped up and offered me space (and maybe a few hands) to help complete the fulfillment process. Kickstarter HQ is just a few blocks from where I live and it’s going to be a HUGE help.

It was good timing because I was able to land the first 410 TODAY clocks in Steel and Glass on Thursday at Kickstarter HQ. 

I proprioceptively registered that top one might fall, there are 5 clocks in each box. 

As soon as I saw it moving towards the point of no return I started a light jog  

save!
save!

 

these boxes are filled with fully assembled clocks
these boxes are filled with fully assembled clocks

Yes -  finished steel and glass TODAY clocks are inside those boxes.

Yes - I admit to using an assembly team to speed things along, I had no choice. The time it has taken me to just make the bamboo clocks has been, well, you know, long.

ASSEMBLY TEAM

So this summer I spent a week training a small team of obsessives to put each clock together with the same level of focus that I do. By the end of the week, only 2 out of 10 were being spotted and reassembled due to minor cosmetic errors. The point is that I have a lot of confidence in the quality of assembly of Steel and Glass but I’m still going to have to inspect every single one. 

INSPECTION

Don’t worry, the inspection should not take long. We are meeting at 11am tomorrow to begin the process of inspecting and packaging the clocks. Each one is already assembled beautifully so the hardest part is done. I'm simply taking a look and making sure nothing jumps out. 

If there is nothing wrong with the clock, all I have to do is put the booklet and pin in, put the clock in place, do my best to erase my fingerprints, close it up, slide the sleeve on and it’s done… well, then it still needs to be put in a box with thoughtfully placed padding, sealed and labeled with its UPC then stacked in a cargo and driven to the fulfillment agency in Bay Shore, NY… then it’s done. 

REASSEMBLY

If there is an issue, e.g. a huge black spec over the white cloud like part of the clockface - it will be set aside for reassembly when I’ve moved through the winners. Like I said, I’m expecting 2 out of every 10 to need some sort of minor cosmetic fixing. Hopefully, I will be pleasantly surprised with a 1% reassemble rate.

This all means that I'm sure to begin shipping out TODAY clocks very soon.

Another shipment that includes more TODAY clocks and several hundred of the ThePresent in Steel and Glass arrive at the end of the month. The plan is to have the current load at the fulfillment agency before the next one lands. 

THOUSANDS

From Fall of last year to Spring of this year, every decision I made, as you may or may not know, was one that consistently refined quality but increased time

My decisions from Spring to Summer have all been to diminish wait time for you without jeopardizing the quality already invested (imbued) in the objects. 

Every time I make and pack a timepiece, I am astonished that they exist at all. I can't help but be amazed that we were able to make all these in a little over a year. They are going to last a lifetime and for the first time with packaging that gives the gifts the appropriate context.

Including all ThePresent and TODAY clocks, in total

4,150 

units will have been made and shipped in 2017. 

Add that number to the 3000 ThePresent clocks that are already out there across 52 countries and you hit,

7,150.

7,150 people exposed to ancient and vital perceptions of time that renew our understanding of the natural world.

By years end I can confidently say that thousands of people are beginning to see Time in Color. This is very good news for a variety of reasons I'll spend the next decade going into. 

Without your belief and support in the idea itself, it would be nowhere near as far along as it is now.

As the clocks are packed, the room empties. Digging myself out of the quicksands of time. Moving soon.
As the clocks are packed, the room empties. Digging myself out of the quicksands of time. Moving soon.

 

 

BAMBOO SHIPPING

If something has been shipped to you - you will receive an email with a TRACKING NUMBER from the Fulfillment Agency RUBY HAS in NY. 

The 250 people who ordered the PAIR of TODAY & ThePresent in 11” bamboo… 

The first stage (125 boxes = 250 clocks) of that order was delivered by me to the fulfillment agency on Friday. I expect those to be in the system by Tuesday and literally shipping out by end of week. I will drop off the last of the PAIRS of TODAY and ThePresent 11” bamboo this coming Friday.  

27 boxes = 54 Clocks in this picture so it was five trips of these to the cargo van - I delivered 125 boxes.
27 boxes = 54 Clocks in this picture so it was five trips of these to the cargo van - I delivered 125 boxes.

 

that's the Xenon lights they use around this time of year in downtown.
that's the Xenon lights they use around this time of year in downtown.

For the 150 expecting the PAIR of TODAY & ThePresent in 5” bamboo… 

Those were also delivered to the fulfillment facility yesterday. They will also ship this week. 

Stacked faces of TODAY on top of 215 finished and packaged ThePresent clocks awaiting their TODAY buddy to be packed together in one box.
Stacked faces of TODAY on top of 215 finished and packaged ThePresent clocks awaiting their TODAY buddy to be packed together in one box.

For the 250 backers who ordered the 11” TODAY only, your clocks will be made while I am at Kickstarter. If there is some way I can continue to work on weekends, I expect to be delivering those to the fulfillment agency first week of October. 

If anyone is waiting on a 5" TODAY - they will ship this week as well.

FRIDAY OCTOBER 13th

I am going away from the USA for a long weekend from October 17th- October 22nd. It would mean everything to me, if everything (yes, even the Steel and Glass) was at the fulfillment agency by,  October 13th

Ha! Look at this! Another deadline for someone who thinks we should call deadlines, lifelines. 

Will every single clock be shipped by October 13th? 

That is the target.

Is that target even possible or are you overselling yourself again? 

Technically it is possible to hit a bullseye on your second toss of the dart but the reality is almost always that you'll land somewhere near the target right? I was a fool to think that since I made 3000 steel and glass clocks and 500 bamboo prototypes that the second time around wouldn't be a big deal. I actually believed that. 

Total nonsense. I blame my own enthusiasm, which covered an ignorance dipped in a tincture of arrogance. I might as well have openly dared Murphy's Law to a duel. 

This project clearly has a pace of its own and my optimism (trying to please everyone) has clashed with practicality (it takes you forever to make and pack these things at the bar of excellence they deserve). 

That is all to say, yes, the target is Friday, October 13th but life is a controlled accident. 

Why Friday the 13th?

"It gets bad on Friday the 13th, but it gets worse on Saturday the 14th."

I think I'm honestly frightened to imagine what will happen if I don't have it all at the fulfillment agency by Friday, the 13th of October so the date seems appropriate. 

Time in Color Inc. 

All of the time I'm spending making clocks has been a vital exercise in the creative evolution of Time in Color. I'm happy to announce that the phrase is in the process of being trademarked. I'm so excited about it but will refrain as much as I can from delving too deeply into it here until I have shipped everything.

 

Isn't this ridiculous? It's off the coast of Africa, not sure where.
Isn't this ridiculous? It's off the coast of Africa, not sure where.

 

Looking forward to moving forward with this story.

Your patience is a gift that is greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Back to the time shop.

scott 9.10.17

This update took 6 hours to create from start to publish.

I intended it to be "simple and short, with maybe only one picture."

Time in Color
over 6 years ago – Wed, Aug 09, 2017 at 12:43:55 AM

 

 

 

 

Here is a link to 19MB version of this photo 

All of the small versions of ThePresent and TODAY have been completed.

If you ordered only one single TODAY desk clock, your shipment has either arrived or it is in transit. 

If you just got it and you have questions, [email protected] 

It's best to just pop the battery in at noon, that way you know you have a clean start.

This links you to a simple 'setting' page.

IMPORTANT TO OWNERS OF OPEN FACE CLOCKS

The edge detail of the print on the bamboo version is exposed (on purpose) and susceptible to damage. If it is dropped from a few feet onto a hard surface, it may crack the print. 

The ink of the print itself is sealed beneath a layer of thin matte film. The strength of the film is that it prevents surface scratches, is easy to clean and dramatically reduces UV damage. The one weakness of the film is the edge, it is simply more fragile than I expected, please be cautious.

 

Also, it's Not a Big Deal if you drop it, I don't want to scare you, we can always fix the face if your middle name is butterfingers. But really; If you handle it with the most basic level of care and try not to drop it, your clock will last a lifetime.

For further explanation or questions, send a note to       [email protected]  

 

For anyone expecting a PAIR of ThePresent & TODAY - your clocks ship next week. This includes people who purchased the 4 pack

  • 1 ThePresent 11" Wall Clock
  • 1 TODAY        11" Wall Clock
  • 1 ThePresent   5" Desk Clock
  • 1 TODAY          5" Desk Clock

Your pair of 11" Wall Clocks will ship separately later this month. Please disregard any prior shipping dates. I expect to have bamboo based clocks completed and shipped by the end of this month. 

 

Since I finished the 5" version completely (which was a wonderful and long overdue relief) I've moved onto the 11" Wall Clocks. They look really good and I have a solid system now. Currently making 254 ThePresent 11" wall clocks, followed by 467 TODAY 11" wall clocks. Can I make and pack 721, 11" Wall Clocks by Thursday, August 31st and deliver it all on Friday, September 1st? I'm going to do my best.

Any New Yorkers out there who want to help out for an hour or two next week?

If you are willing to help, you have to travel to my temporary space in LIC.

[email protected]

 

Steel and Glass

Shipping will begin in order of backer number in mid-September, that is if nothing else holds us back - I think we are good though, I think..

 Time in Black & White

 

Time in Color 

 

Refining the philosophical message below, not related to shipping.

Deciphering the simplest way to connect a stranger quickly and resolutely to these ideas is so important to me. So far, Time in Color is the best way to briefly explain the ambition, value, and potential of these timepieces. 

It's saying, clearly, that time-as-we-know-it is, time in black and white and ThePresent and TODAY is Time in Color. These supplemental layers of time are more sympathetic to the human experience and serve to expand our understanding of time. 

So I bought  timeincolor.com ! (it's empty now, but can you believe that was available!?) I could be wrong here of course (I don't think I am) but soon I'll have to "market" these timepieces. I want to stay true to them but I also want people to buy them - so I'm always looking for a way to simplify the whole thing into a phrase that sparks curiosity.

Still working out the details on this, I'm sharing the idea early but sharing it nonetheless.

Time in Black and White

  • Type: computer time 
  • Potential: binary 
  • Uses: scoring racing events, keeping appointments, turning time into money 
  • Side effects: anxiety, instability, short sightedness, impulsivity, inability to be still, struggling with 'being present', general time confusion.

Time in Color

  • Type: human time 
  • Potential: infinite 
  • Uses: catalyst, space to think big, an invitation to stillness and repose. 
  • Side effects: harmony, continuity, long view thinking, patience, calm, being present, general time awareness.

Einstien said a bunch of smart things - one of them was something to the effect that, you cannot solve problems with the same thinking that created them. I don't think we can face the challenges of our time, personally and civically without cultivating a healthier, more holistic and broader relationship with the whole of time.

We already know what the world is like with a society that sees time in black and white. 

This. is. it. The world as it is now. Take a picture.

What we don't know is what the world will be like with a society that sees time in color. 

[email protected]

The Dreaming Moon
over 6 years ago – Sun, Jul 23, 2017 at 10:08:28 PM

Everyone who ordered a single TODAY 5" 

They are all in this picture. 

359 Desk Clocks
359 Desk Clocks

 I dropped them off at the fulfillment center on Friday, July 14th.

 

They've taken the past week to "ingest" each box and put the UPC into their system. I expected this to happen a lot faster and for shipments to start this past week. Looks like they will begin this week so hang in there.

 

 

 A tower of time.

THEPRESENT 5" DESK CLOCK

For anyone who got the pair of ThePresent and Today Desk Clocks - I am wrapping up production on the 100 ThePresent clocks to match those orders this week, so...

Desk Clocks of ThePresent
Desk Clocks of ThePresent

International packages for ThePresent and TODAY Desk Clock will ship as one package.

Domestic packages of ThePresent and TODAY pairs will likely ship separately.

 

STEEL AND GLASS ASSEMBLY

Assembly of the Steel and Glass timepieces has, finally, begun.

 

Before the glass
Before the glass

 

Coming together
Coming together

 

 The aftermath of the first few days of assembly.

Error Arrows
Error Arrows

 

Once the assembly team would finish a half a dozen units, I would inspect and mark errors. The main issues have been either fingerprint smudges on the inside of the glass or distracting specs of dust trapped behind the glass.

The beauty of that statement above is that we are not having issues with things lining up. All of the mechanical issues have been remedied (beaten into submission).

Errows
Errows

 

To make sure that every clock is aligned, I went through 2000 prints for two days and marked the high noon & winter solstice marks. This way the assembly team lines it all up without guesswork.

Marking Noon
Marking Noon

 

 

Centering the Solstice
Centering the Solstice

 

All the movements are tested while they wait for inspection. 

These all checked out.

Testing one two, six
Testing one two, six

 

We had the steel factory make 250 production level parts to be assembled for my review. Better to make a smaller batch than to make 2000 and then find an issue.

And I'm glad we did that because we found an issue, that we had not prepared for - the laser etching is causing trouble with the lacquer.

Etching
Etching

 

It cracks the lacquer in a small way that can easily become a big flaky deal if you pick at it. The picture below is after picking away for a few minutes, The laser etching at the bottom under the movement is what casues the issue.

With a little prodding the lacquer began to flake.
With a little prodding the lacquer began to flake.

Without the etching there is no chance of breaking up the matte lacquer - unless you really make an effort by cutting into the lacquer with a razor blade, which I can't imagine anyone trying - I hope.

This means that I will not be etching anything on the backs.

I am developing a solution for anyone who expected an etching. I'm thinking of a personalized card that sits behind the timepiece and above the instruction booklet. Please stand by as I figure out the best solution for this. I love being able to offer some sort of custom messaging but the laser etching is too risky. 

There isn't enough space on the bamboo for etching either without making things crowded, so the solution I come up with to replace customized etching will be the same steel and bamboo.

So, I removed the etching and it's never looked better.

The back looks so good now for a number of reasons.

The quality of steel is what I always wanted. We also stopped using Pim Nuts on the back beause the application of the pim nut was occasionally warping and or scratching the backplate surface. So we designed and produced a custom matte finish hex screw for the backplate. Those three custom screws connect the inner cup (that holds the movement) to the backplate wihtout warping the metal or introducing scratches.

The creative evolution of this whole process is astounding. Every step we've taken has made the quality higher and more consistent than ever before.

These timepieces are going to last a very, very long time.

It's Go for Assembly
It's Go for Assembly

 

The assembly team is used to making clocks, it's a small clock making factory. However, they won't refer to these as clocks, they call them works of art. I hope that when you finally get your hands on it you'll agree.

I've been so deep into the mechanical and logistical elements of the project that I haven't been sharing what's next for ThePresent and TODAY. 

Here is a hint.

 

 

For everyone who is still hanging in there, thank you. 

Good grief! We've been through a lot. The time has been used wisely and none of it has been wasted. In fact, the extra time has allowed me to produce at a level of consistent quality that I didn't trust was possible. 

As I said at the beginning, making something timeless is more important to me than making something timely

Beyond making this first new batch stellar, I'm also building out a long term system of production here so that I never run out of clocks again. Murphy's Law has been ripe on this one to be sure, but we're closing in on the home stretch and Murph is winded.

 

Now, every time I say a time when I think, "that will be the time!" I'm proven wrong and my foot returns to my mouth.

That said,

ALL bamboo timepieces are slated to be finished and shipped out bythe end of August.

ALL steel and glass timepieces should, by all means, begin shipping in late September.

I believe the shipping facility will be sending everyone emails with tracking numbers but I haven't confirmed this yet - one would assume that would be the standard, right? I'll let you know for sure and send another update when ALL the 5" timepieces have shipped out.

That will take roughly 2 weeks so  hold. me. to. it.

The Dreaming Moon is just a nice song I was listening to while I was making this update.

[email protected]

if you need clarity on anything, really, anything.

thank you for reading, supporting and helping me make this happen.

scottthrift