The Cindi Chronicles

Meltdown of the Parental Kind...

2009-09-04T07:26:00.001-07:00

So, I haven't posted anything in a while and that is because in my real life, I am trying to find a real,j-o-b! Cindi and the rest of the household enjoy eating!

The other reason is that Jordan and I have had a little snag in Cindi's developmental phase. The post in which I said, an inventor really doesn't need to worry about anything regarding engineering, was a MISTAKE!!

If you have seen the movie License to Wed, then I'm sure you can feel our pain....

I looked for a picture of where the character, Ben, actually tears up the doll. But, that is really too graphic for our little blog. Suffice it to say, that is how I have felt.

When Cindi Arrives from the Hospital, a.k.a. Manufaturer...

2009-06-24T19:19:00.000-07:00

I hope we can have our logos designed by this artist!

Valeria Roncoli

www.bellazadore.com/

Monday morning, I woke up to see that this Tweeter was following me. How incredibly honored I am too!

Immediately, I forwarded it to Jordan to tell her I found exactly the kind of art I love for marketing, brand logos, store room designs, etc! Jordan has always known that I had another favorite, which I had dreamed of being able to ask to design something for me!!

But, wow!! One look at Valeria's site and I was in love! Why have I switched allegiance you may ask? It's fairly simple and will make even more sense if you read my post on who our invention, Cindi, is intended for....Valeria doesn't design one woman! She creates women of all shapes, sizes, colors and ethnicities! If you have ever tried to find graphics on-line, you know this is not easy! They don't really seem to be out there.

While I would love for you to think that I look just like my Twitter avatar, I haven't been that size since junior high! Sadly, I've felt hotter as my avatar, than I have as myself in a long time. But, I think Valeria has a knack for making every woman feel beautiful! Don't believe me? Check out the sassy quips her voluptuous nude-beacher makes and you'll feel OK about having that slice of cheesecake!

I highly recommend checking out Valeria's website. It is full of information, eye-candy and shopping opportunities. There is even video that I bet would be useful for anyone about to take their product to market!

Before I go back to peruse her site myself, let me leave you with another one of her pieces with comedic advice....

CAD, What the Heck Is It?

2009-06-20T18:10:00.000-07:00

As promised, I am going to tell you what I know about CADS. If you are a new inventor and not anal retentive, this article should help. If you are an aspiring engineer and know it all already, you're probably reading the wrong blog, unless you are here to help!

According to http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_Does_CAD_Stand_for, CAD stands for computer aided design. Remember in the last post, I told you it seemed like a fancy 3D sonogram of our baby, "Cindi." (Pregnant women or new families will know what I'm talking about here. Sonograms have gotten fan-cey!!)

Now, to how this will help all of you, who like us, are not engineers, just people who cannot stop thinking! You don't have to actually build your product! You do not have to be a talented artist, sculptor, builder or producer of anything, really...That is the job of the engineer!

The way Jordan and I conveyed our vision to the engineer is we actually took pieces from already existing items that would be needed for Cindi. Jordan demolished several items to get key pieces together. (Note: We spend a lot of down time looking at items to see how they are built now! Who would have ever thought, knowing us!?) I then videotaped her showing how everything in our minds would work. The engineer loved it, and best of all, his wife loved it! (A future customer right there?)

From that videotape, the engineers were able to start working on the "CAD."

Once, Jordan sees the CAD she believes is the right design, the prototype will be built from that design. I guess you could say it's like a seamstress needing a pattern before she can sew the dress!

Well, if you are a seasoned pro when it comes to seeing your inventions put on infomercials or store showrooms, this article was probably like reading Dick and Jane. If you, like we were before this began, wondering how to even start, I hope this helps!

Remember, don't freak out thinking you need to design and build your invention! You need to be able to explain or show your idea to an engineer! They then work with you to make sure it is doable (the reason I stated we didn't spend money yet on the patent.)

If you have comments, questions, or ideas for other articles, please drop us a line! We hope you continue to follow us along our road to success!

Blessings, Aubry

Our Invention (Cindi) Is For....

2009-06-17T19:37:00.000-07:00

Women, TALL WOMEN, SHORT WOMEN, Women with O+ or O- Blood Type, A,B,or AB Blood Types, Eco-Friendly Women, City Dwellers, Cowgirls, women with verylittlecloset space, jet set women, homebodies, women with BIG feet, WOMEN WITH little FEET, women with medium-sized feet, women who know what they want!!, Women who are a little Unsure, $$$ women on a budget $$$, divas, tree-huggers, women who can't !!stand!! to shop!, women who can't stop shopping, innovative women, women that need help with fashion, women that LIVE fasHion, hip women, All WOMEN!!!

To Patent or Not To Patent

2009-06-11T18:50:00.000-07:00

I wanted to discuss where we are in the patent process. So here it is.... we haven't even started!

After reading the Mom Inventors Handbook, http://www.mominventors.com/books/, we decided to put our money into paying an engineer to design our product, and then market it.

Remember, we had spent five years watching our other ideas going on store shelves!
Before dishing out money for an engineer, however, we first went through all patents and pending patents on the government's website. The link is conveniently listed for you to the right, fourth one down, under "helpful sites."

After making sure we were good to go, we then began combing the internet for information about engineers. I guess you could call this our beginning stage of "not knowing what to do!"

Update on the engineer...he's paid! Now, we await the arrival of our prototype for Cindi. We are also getting a CAD, which in my mom's mind is like a fancy 3D ultrasound of my baby!

I'll blog about that another time.....

First Day!

2009-06-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this is not really the first day of our process. Jordan and I have been throwing ideas around for inventions for over five years. The reason we have stuck with it is, not because we're crazy, but because everyone of our ideas has turned into a product we've seen in stores! This was absolutely frustrating, but also the motivation to continue.

"Cindi" was Jordan's idea and I wasn't too hyped about it, honestly. I was inwardly fuming because all of our other "great ideas" had been marketed by others, who were quicker and now making the money!!!

Oddly enough, an idea that had been percolating in my mind for almost two years happened to be perfect for "part" of Cindi. I didn't see it at first, but Jordan did. It helped me get on the bandwagon again. (Thanks friend!)

So, here we are, almost one year into working on Cindi. We've almost got the engineer paid off and will hopefully have a fabulous prototype very soon! Next week, Jordan flies out to meet with a company that produces some of Cindi's cousins. It's great people like this, who have already made it, that are such a blessing!

We have a long road ahead of us, but we're expecting it to be fun! I hope our experiences can help someone out there just starting as well, and of course, we would love tips sent to us!

Will write again soon and let you know how Jordan's meeting goes,

Aubry