The Quirky Cloak popped up on this morning’s Today Show, in a feature on “fun finds for every age” that included wearable wallets, Darth Vader-shaped pancakes, and a knock-off of Chelsea Clinton’s wedding dress. Hrm… we’ll take it.
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Until today, many Quirks were left clueless when it came to cleaning their Cloaks. Yes it is one of the few products on the market made from hearty non-slip rubber. Yes black is notoriously known to proudly display any imperfection. But this is the Cloak, we’re talking about–the much anticipated, brand spankin’ new, best iPad case ever. Something had to be done about this messy situation.
Community Intern to the rescue! In the past 24 hours, I’ve been on a quest to find a quick and easy solution. I tested a rag and multi-purpose cleaner, (’twas too soapy), Clorox wipes (left behind too much residue), Windex (there’s a reason it’s made for glass), and even baby wipes (no comment) with no prevail. I also trued running the Cloak under lukewarm water, without the iPad in it, of course, for somewhat satisfactory results but I refused to settle. Finally I discovered Pledge Multi-Surface Wipes. The wax-free formula in this multi-surface cleaner wiped away dust and dirt without leaving any residue build-up behind.
Bottom line: If you’re willing to shell out a few bucks at the corner drugstore, go ahead and Pledge your allegiance now. Otherwise, as I found in my most recent experiment, a damp textured sponge works quite well too.
Stay quirky and keep your Cloaks clean. Over and out!
We’re wrapping this project up!
(Note Nikki’s epic victory dance around minute 1:06)
UPDATE: Our warehouse friends were able to ship out more than 500 Cloak packages in just one day. From here on out it should be smooth sailing! 
This morning, at an ungodly hour, Nikki, Matt, and two Bens set out to Quirky’s Pennsylvania warehouse to oversee the first outbound shipment of black Cloaks.
(You: Wait, what? Did I read that right? Cloak is shipping?!)
Yeah, you read that right. After a long journey filled with ups and downs, we are finally ready to roll out probably the most anticipated iPad case in iPad case history. And we have pictures to prove it!
The next series of pics will come from you… post a photo of you with your Cloak on our product page when you receive it!
Cloak ideator Mike McCoy just couldn’t wait to get his hands on the product, so he stopped by our HQ to check out the goods in person.
Plus, he wrote about his visit.
Check out all the Quirky customized shippers ready to be filled with Cloaks and shipped out to you!
Our warehouse says “Bring on the Cloaks….we’re ready!”
We’ve alerted our warehouse to the volume of orders that will need to be shipped out in a very short amount of time. They have done all the prep work they can to get these out effectively and efficiently and have added extra staff members for the Cloak shipping days.
The Cloak is coming!
Everybody sees
and everyone agrees
That you and I were wrong
And it’s been that way too long
Take it as it comes
and be thankful when its done
There’s so many ways to act
And there’s many shades of black
There’s so many shades of black
There’s so many shades of black
Big week, Quirks. Big week.
As most of you know by now, we’ve been sending out emails to all of the folks who have committed to buying a Cloak, asking them to come back to the site to finalize their purchase and pick a color.
It’s a big moment of truth for all of us. It’s when people respond to this email that products get shipped, credit cards get charged, and last but not least your checks get written. Response to this email can make or break a product.
… and I’m happy to say that the response has been GREAT.
For those of you keeping score at home, since we released the email last Tuesday, we’ve confirmed orders of over 2,300 Cloaks generating over $120,000 in revenue. We’ve shattered all kinds of Quirky records here, and are still going strong!
So you all get a great big pat on the back for designing and marketing a product that so many people are this excited for. It’s really an amazing thing. I think you’ll all be very happy to have been a part of this product, especially as influence check time draws ever nearer…
Take care, Quirks! And if you haven’t confirmed your order yet, GET IN THERE!
-Matt
Can you feel that heat? Just like NYC today, the Quirky Cloak is so hot right now.
After a wild ride through Chinese factories, top cover finalization, and final quality testing, we’re almost ready to ship the best iPad case/stand combo out there. And by we, I don’t just mean us at Quirky HQ (though we’ve certainly worked our asses off). I also mean you, dear Quirks. Everyone that took the time to influence, commit to, and ultimately purchase this product deserves a gold star and then some. We couldn’t have done it without you!
Allow me to provide a few more updates on where we stand:
1. We just sent out order confirmation emails — exciting! Just click on the link in the e-mail to select your color and confirm your shipping and billing info. We’ll be sending out Cloaks on a first-confirmed, first-shipped basis, so don’t delay.
2. Due to higher production costs, we’ve raised the product price to $54.99 for all new orders. Don’t worry — we’ll be honoring the price of all pre-orders. Consider it a thanks for all your patience!
3. We’ve provided new photorealistic renders on the Cloak product page. Try to picture the sample photos we posted last week with those slick colors, and you get an idea of what you can expect. Oh, and feel free to gawk… we know we’ve been.
So get excited! Barring any unexpected delays, these orders will be shipping super soon. Trust us, we are as eager as you are to get these rockin’ Cloaks in your hands.
Can I get a woohoo?
Good news: We’ve gone ahead and given the green light for production to begin on Cloak.
As you can see here (in our July 4th weekend edition), the top cover now looks extremely gorgeous (just as we imagined it).
So where do we go from here?
1. You’ll receive an email from Quirky on Tuesday, requesting that you complete your order & choose your color. Remember: Your Cloak order is not complete until you return to the site & confirm your order.
2. We’ll be kicking out roughly a thousand units a day starting on July 3rd. We’ll have to prioritize color runs to be efficient. We’ll be producing Black first, then Pink, then Blue, then Green. Keep this in mind when you complete your orders (as this is the order in which the Cloaks will ship).
3. Exact shipment dates will be determined by the time you receive the confirmation email next Tuesday, but we still believe we will be able to ship most colors (perhaps not green) prior to July 15th. Blacks may be able to start shipping as early as next Friday.
Any questions? You know where to reach us. We’re excited about wrapping up this project and getting this awesome product in your hands.
