Soft Circuit: Short Circuit 1.2

Howdy robot enjoyers,

The time is nearly upon us: Pintopia 2026 and the dazzling array of creations therein launches in just under 5 days from now!



Hit "Count Me In" on the Launch Party page to receive notification when Soft Circuit goes live! In addition to the first 48 hour freebie Softwere pin, there will be a limited number of Early Bot pledge tiers which offer an extra discount on a few combinations of Circuit goodies, and if we reach 300 followers before launch, everyone who was following during the pre-launch period and backs the campaign will also receive a free vinyl sticker!

The last teaser in this space focused on the pins, so -- for those of you who also wish to hug the robots, this update is especially for you.



I've received photos of a couple additional Bytes!! A fresh prototype of our original Byte (left), and a first prototype from a second supplier.

The Byte on the left feels more locked in to my art style for these robots and is almost all the way there, so they'll be our official chompy lil friend! Working with the second supplier has already been lovely though, so I will see this sample through and likely - if this foray into plush goes well! - explore a different line of soft friends with them in the future. (I'm a sighthound creature: interest check on greyhound plushies, anyone?)

Byte looks so satisfying to hug and I for one cannot wait to get my paws on a sample!!



I also definitely look forward to being able to take pictures of these guys! While I super super appreciate the photos my amazing reps get for me, there's nothing quite like fluffing a plush up and taking some photos out in nice natural lighting. Heck, even items like the embroidered patches from last campaign looked so much sleeker in person:



So when it comes to plush you can pledge with confidence, because just like with my pins and patches I will wait until all samples are complete until I lock orders -- and unlike with pins I will also wait until I have those samples in hand, to inspect them and take even more pictures for you to peruse!

So, speaking of prototyping --



You cast your votes and Python prevailed as our next unit line ambassador to explore in three dimensions!!

(Also, quick shout out to another indie creator's work visible in the examples on the above design sheet: the blue dragon is a plush made from a CholyKnight pattern!)

I fussed with draping various things around my neck and measuring them, and realized Python will need to be about three feet (36" or 91.4 cm) to play scarf as much as I'd love them to. I've sent the above design specifications to my manufacturer! If we manage to unlock Byte, all the pins, and all six bandana colorways -- then we'll be on our way to making Python a reality!!

If we somehow also blast past bringing Python online then, well, there's no stopping us from adding even more, but Python will be the final initially visible goal on launch.



More art sneak peeks to come as we count down to launch! I hope you're all excited!! Thank you so much for being here, I think we can all use the levity of silly little guys right now. <3

Hello fabulous robot enjoyers,

First off I am pleased to announce that I will once again be cross collaborating with Kage Davies, who will be running a cephalopod themed campaign this PintopIa: Pods and Pots!



Octave is a high-level interpreted programming language for performing numerical analysis--

--but in the Short Circuit 'verse, they're also a bot board you can get your hands on by supporting both of our campaigns!



Octave will be 2" long and plated in silver nickel, with the finish of the Water line. From Pods and Pots you'll receive a delightfully geometric blue ringed octopus, sized at 1.5" with copper plating. Definitely pop on over to their launch party page as well and give them a follow!

New this Pintopia are "banners", themed sub-groups of participating campaigns~



Soft Circuit is flying the Animal Akademia banner, which encompasses the theme of animals & science! Back 3 or more projects from Animal Akademia and you'll receive a free mini pin from each - which from me, will be an itty bitty variant of the Pause board!! Above is a photo of the real deal! I wanted to make sure the design would work at this scale, so had it sampled along with the Light units.

Then of course, as with all Short Circuit endeavors, backing the project within the first 48 hours nets you another free pin:



A pun I've been desperately wanting to include, anyone who backs for at least one pin within the first 48 hours of the campaign will bring home this 2" Softwere pin completely FREE!!

Returning backers will also receive a free selective holographic sticker of Softwere as a thank you for continuing to show up for these lil friends! I ALSO have additional freebie stickers in the works -- to be revealed soon. :3

The first five pins of Unit Line: Light have all been sampled by my amazing supplier, who came through on them in record time!

For your contemplation, here are photos of each --

Our Light co-ambassadors, Hash:


And Heap! 

I'm delighted that so many of you loved them both, and they will share a joint unlock goal!

Next, the bot board that solidified going with yellow as the primary Light pantone for me outside of its sunny associations, Honeypot:

A shining spirit, Trojan:

And the "elemental" board of the line, Transistor:

Samples of the rainbow anodized + white + glitter alternates for Heap and Honeypot were ordered at the same time, but anodized plating takes a bit longer to work with, so a real life peek at those effects will be forthcoming in a future update.

Lastly, while the small bandana accessory will be manufactured by the same supplier who produces the plush robots, I've paid a separate manu to sample the large bandana! Both will be available to add-on to your pledge separately, if you're just looking for a snazzy way to wear and display pins.



Alternate colorways of the bandanas that match each of the Unit Lines will be scattered throughout the stretch goals - more on those in a future update as well!

With launch less than 10 days away, I hope you're getting EXCITED to bring all these new friends online!! As ever, thank you for reading, and if you know anyone who you think would enjoy any of this - pass them the Launch Party link! The more folks get involved, the more cool stuff we can make together!! <3

Greetings robot enjoyers,

As we teeter on the brink of a New Year, I'd like to offer you a new and long awaited expansion to the Water Unit Line~!



Though they don't have a robot form yet, they already have a potential model function and bug (my metamour was excited about the addition of a shark and wanted to help brainstorm it)!

Designed to cheerfully guide snorkeling tours, Else can get quite snippy with irresponsible tourists. More concerned with protecting the reef than showing sight-seers a good time, this otherwise peaceable unit is rumored to behave aggressively towards travelers who damage coral or drop litter, driving them out of the water early.

Else will be a guaranteed stretch goal in the upcoming campaign, so if you'd like to add their bot-board to your pin collection then get loud and share the campaign around!!

I've been hard at work getting everything else ready for launch (which is in 23 days?? wild)! For those who haven't already met them on the Discord, here's a sneak peek at some of the bear robot art--



And now that the character art is in progress, a reveal of their intended function and bug:

Hash and Heap are stock management units in charge of tracking and distributing retail offerings. They're instructed to crush and toss excess exclusive or seasonal items beyond a certain sell date but, with the help of other units, secretly cache and redistribute the goods to those who could use and enjoy them. Hash units are often employed to handle foods, while Heap specializes in holiday sundries and decoration.

Both bear units will share a joint unlock goal for their default Light colorway, which will include their enamel pins, selective holographic stickers, and robot character art sticker sheets.



That's all for now! I have a few more design reveals incoming, and will of course also excitedly update you here when I receive sample updates on Byte or any other Soft Circuit offerings. 👀

Thank you for being here, and Happy impending New Year!! 🥂🥳

Closing link reminders --  
 
Short Circuit Discord: To see works-in-progress early and hang out with some lovely folks! 💚
Spooky Circuit Pre-Order Store: If you missed out on the last campaign, the pre-order store for Spooky Circuit is still live! 🕸️

Hey robot enthusiasts,

Really exciting sneak peek for you all today: I received images of a first Byte prototype from one of my suppliers!!



As is generally the case with plush manufacturing, it'll probably take a few passes to land on the desired design, but this version already has potential and I'm so stoked.

My adjustment requests include a couple material swaps, removing/adding/changing the color of some embroidery, increasing the size of the tail, and adding more dimension to the nose pattern. I'm also checking to make sure the bandana has a closure mechanism rather than just slipping on and off, since the intention is to offer it as a separate item if desired!

Here's a look at the photos I was sent (left) and a collection of edits with their associated change notes (right) —



A detail I'm absolutely delighted with as-is are the little square paw pads. Perfect peets, no notes!!



I requested a video of Byte being picked up to get an idea of the current leg situation. She'll definitely need looser stuffing, we'll see what can be managed!



No images yet from the other manufacturer; as a reminder, I did contract two of them to produce samples, to increase the odds of quickly landing on something we like. I'm already a bit in love with aspects of this one, but the other supplier was recommended to me as being particularly skilled at handling unusual shapes, so I bet picking the final Byte to run with will be a hard decision in the end.

I'm VERY excited to see the second pass on this version, and also the prototype that the other supplier comes up with, and I hope that you are too!

Before we wrap up this update: I've gone ahead and ordered samples of the five Light line pins, their alternates, and another fun surprise~



The Light units will feature yellow star clutches to mirror the black stars on the Void pins. 🌟

Honeypot handily won the last poll, and will for sure join Heap as an alternate colorway stretch goal!



We're also deviating from the sparkly effect relying on the sandblasted metal itself for this colorway - since the crystal clear tinted enamel is additive, you can't wind up with an effect lighter than the plating itself. That bright green-blue of the mockup feels just perfect for the desired aurora vibe, so I'm going to explore more of a translucency + inlaid glitter effect!

And one last reveal for the night --



A wonderful backer last campaign requested a miniature version of Pause, and I loved the idea. This itty bitty version of a previous favorite will be one of the backer rewards possible to earn! More on that to come as our launch date approaches.

Thanks so much for reading, and please share the Soft Circuit launch party page with anyone you think would be interested!! I hope the holidays have been treating you all kindly. <3

Closing link reminders --  
 
Short Circuit Discord: To see the video of the Byte prototype and hang out with some lovely folks 💚
Spooky Circuit Pre-Order Store: If you missed out on the last campaign, the pre-order store for Spooky Circuit is still live 🕸️

Hello gentle robot enjoyers,

First and foremost, I come bearing results from the past two pre-launch party polls!

The polar bear and brown bear based bot-board designs have tied over and over, so I have decided to go all in on the "Why Not Both??" approach: for the first time ever, a Unit Line will feature two showcase robots!

These big sweethearts needed matching names to mark the occasion, so the brown bear will now be Hash while the polar bear will retain the name Heap. More on their potential function and bugs can be read over on the Short Circuit Discord, and will eventually be shared here as well once their accompanying robot character art is ready. 🐻

As for our first poll -- plush are more expensive items than a BOTH!! solution can sustain, so after securing and maintaining a lead for many weeks, Python will be the next ambassador robot to receive a plush design work-up! If you want to see them become real, please share this campaign around!! Funding more than one plush design is going to be a wild ride, and we could use all the eyeballs we can get. (Remnant fans don't despair, but share extra hard: funding a third plush would be an especially pie-in-the-sky outcome, but I would LOVE to make it happen if enough folks do show up!)

Then without further ado, I would like to introduce the full planned Light Line~



You've already met Hash, Heap, Honeypot, and Transistor, but to round out the group, Trojan the horse joins the mix!

All five are now properly vectored up and will be sent off to sampling. After a bit of waffling I realized I did firmly prefer a yellow-based primary colorway for Light, in part because of its association with our sun and in even bigger part because it helps round out the rainbow of Unit Lines as a whole. The above appearance is what will be sampled for first!

If you did prefer a white pantone, however --

It also occurred to me that since we had copper alternates of two (2) Void units (Remnant and Web), it would be lovely to also produce rainbow anodized versions of two Light units! Heap is naturally a shoo-in on account of polar bears and the northern lights, but the second is up to y'allemaal. Should the other alternate be Honeypot (because of blue orchard bees) or Transistor (the elemental design of the Line, like Web was)? Vote in the poll at the end of the update to choose!

Finally, perhaps a bit out of left field and decidedly self-indulgent, but an additional soft item popped into my head and wouldn't leave me alone!



Robot fingerless gloves based on Byte's paws!! I've found a potential supplier and requested a couple of sublimation printed sample prototypes, one polyester–spandex and one polyester with added fleece backing, to compare the feel and visual results. These are also a bit pie-in-the-sky, but if the samples turn out well and we gather enough funding momentum then they will also be added to the campaign as a stretch goal.

Those are the main updates for the moment! Still awaiting the Byte plush prototypes; I reached out to those suppliers last week and both indicated their samples were in the embroidery stage, so hopefully sooooon. 👀

I hope you are all staying cozy and safe this December. <3

Closing link reminders --

Short Circuit Discord: The disc-orb gets Circuit 'verse ponderings and sketches extra early, and saw both the gloves and Trojan days ago! Come join us, if you'd like. 💚
Spooky Circuit Pre-Order Store: If you missed out on the last campaign, the pre-order store for Spooky Circuit will remain live until surveys lock! 🖤