Because of these extended Stay at Home orders from the City and State, I find myself spending more time on the internet which lead me to a website that I originally visited as part of my usual hurricane preparedness. Namely, the Indiegogo website which is a crowdfunding website started in 2008 based out of San Francisco. Crowdfunding is a means for small companies to raise funds from “donors” like me to complete the manufacturing and distribution of their products. I say “donor” because it’s pointed out on the Indiegogo website that you aren’t actually purchasing a product but simply funding production of that product and that in a worst case scenario, it’s not guaranteed that you’ll actually receive the end product. But so far, I’ve received several items albeit, delayed due to COVID-19 and have been happy with my purchases.
But why “donate” if nothing is guaranteed? Crowdfunders basically are the early adopters who potentially receive a product well before the general public and at a lower cost as it’s usually 20% to 30% below the intended retail price.
GoSun Chill
GoSun is an established company that produces a wide range of solar cooking devices but used Indiegogo when they produced their battery-operated cooler. I funded this project almost 2 years ago as part of my hurricane kit. Even if a hurricane doesn’t make landfall in the 50th, any increase in wind speeds often causes spot power outages which seem to be frequent in Kaneohe. The Chill cooler was meant for us to store our workday lunches during these outages as you really don’t want to open your refrigerator door once the power goes out. We also find the Chill useful when we attend potluck dinners and don’t want to transport a heavy cooler that’s filled with ice. GoSun’s regular price for the Chill is $749 and routinely goes on sale for $699 but my “donation” cost was just $499.
Eto wine preservation carafe
A little after crowding the GoSun Chill, I viewed a unique carafe that supposedly kept an open bottle of wine “fresh” for at least 2 weeks after uncorking the bottle. Once a wine is uncorked, volatile flavor compounds dissipate over time and if exposed to oxygen for an extended period, convert ethyl alcohol to acetic acid… or vinegar. For younger bottles of wine, you do want the oxygen to let the wine “breathe” and that’s why you see sommeliers decant wine into a carafe to facilitate this process. But you don’t want the oxygenation to continue especially if you don’t finish the bottle and save the leftover wine. The Eto carafe simply allows you to decant the wine then purge the air out of the carafe once you’re finished imbibing. Renowned wine expert, Jancis Robinson MW stated that she sampled wine stored in the Eto carafe 2 weeks later and it tasted exactly like it did when it was uncorked. The Eto carafe currently costs $155 to $168 but my “donation” was just $109.
The Elevated Craft Cocktail Shaker
You probably know by now that I enjoy a nicely shaken cocktail… or two. So I do have a couple of cocktail shakers at home. But when you vigorously shake a cocktail, the stainless steel shaker can give quite a chill to your hands and it does take some finesse to pop the top off. Then after pouring your cocktail in the appropriate glass, you’re left with chilled stainless steel that’s sweating from the condensation leaving a puddle on your kitchen counter. The Elevated Craft shaker has a vacuum sealed, double wall like Hydroflasks so no condensation or frost-bitten hands, the top twists off after shaking your libation and the it also has measurements within the inner cap from 7.5ml all the way up to 180ml so you don’t need an additional jigger or measuring cup to create your libations. I “donated” $89 for a pair of shakers though they haven’t stated what the actual retail price is as they are still mailing the shakers to the original crowdfunders.
Still Waiting for Fulfillment
I have a couple other cooking accoutrements that I haven’t received yet but are in the process of fulfillment. The first is the Prepd cast iron skillet which has the same benefit of superior heat retention as other cast iron skillets but the interior cooking surface is milled so smooth that the pan is advertised as non-stick and they pre-season the skillet before shipping so you literally can use it as soon as it arrives! The same company also produces Cheat Sheets which are sheet pans that have fitted silicone inserts that can be heated up to 450 degrees and keep individual food items separate without having to waste aluminum foil as a divider.
Finally, I funded a Carivino wine carrier which is a wine bottle shaped device that’s a vacuum sealed, double walled carrier that’s also ceramic lined so the wine never is in contact with the stainless steel that keeps chilled wine cold for up to a full day and it has a bottom that screws off concealing 2 titanium crystal wine glasses and a corkscrew. The Carivino originally was supposed to ship in August 2019 but various delays and multiple parts produced in China on top of COVID-19 lead to the 1+ year delay but the company’s last update in August 2020 stated that they hoped to start shipping as you’re reading this. You may be wondering why I “donated” to this item as it’s meant to transport wine to be consumed at picnics or beach gatherings and our State prohibits the consumption of alcoholic beverages in public venues. It was just one of those items that seemed so cool, I just had to get it!
Non-Food or Wine items
Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic which probably will continue for at least until next summer, there are many companies producing facemasks beyond the simple cloth or surgical. Two of these feature filtration systems tighter than medical grade N-95 respirators and feature N-99 filters. I’m sure you’re now aware that regular facemasks whether cotton or surgical primarily are meant to prevent the wearer from spreading nCoV19 virus and that only medical grade N-95 respirators really protect the wearer from getting infected. And because front-line hospital workers need a new mask for every shift (technically they should be changed with every patient seen) and there still isn’t an abundant supply for everyone, they aren’t recommended for general daily use for the public even if you can find and afford them. So many companies are now producing facemasks with medical grade N-99 filters in silicone masks that provide a tighter seal around the mouth and nose and instead of replacing the whole mask, only the filter needs to be replaced which is a lot friendlier on the environment. Some masks even feature UV-C inserts that sterilizes air after passing through the N-99 filter. And yes, I have “donated” for these items too.
S2 Silicone Mask A silicone mask with an N-99 filter. I donated $36, once all crowdfunders receive their mask, the price goes to $59.
Breathe 99 N2 Mask Another silicone-based mask with dual N-99 filters. I donated $99 for a pair of masks.
Leaf UV A soft, clear mask with HEPA N-99 filtration and UV-C sterilization. I donated $89 for one mask though there are multiple delays in production.
UVMask A 100% airtight mask with N-95 filtration and lab tested 99.9% UV sterilization. We donated $199 for a pair of masks.
While I still wear my two-layered cotton mask with PM 2.5 filter insert whenever in public to prevent spreading COVID-19, I also want to make sure I’m also protected from the general public. And though I could simply accomplish that by isolating myself in my zombie apocalypse bunker until next summer (I actually don’t have a zombie apocalypse bunker), I do have to occasionally leave to purchase wine for my Carivino and Eto carafe and liquor to make cocktails in my Elevated Craft Cocktail Shaker…
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