Horse Shoe Crabs have survived 445 million years almost unchanged out living other creatures that went extinct or evolved into something we would recognize today, every patch will feature Horse Shoe Crabs with a creature that was left behind in time. If you would like to know more fun facts please scroll down to the "Why Horseshoe Crabs?" section.
All patches will be 3"X3" printed with the art then embroidered with glow in the dark thread on top. Iron on backing.
1 for $15 2 for $28 3 for $35 4 for $42 5 for $50 6 for $56 Special Tier for $70 (Limited to 8 backers) Get 3X patches, 2X sticker sheets and a custom painting!
Mock-ups below, designs subject to change.
This period ended with a most dinosaurs being wiped out by a meteor, inlcuding the Velociraptor.
Here the 'dawn horse' or Hyracotherium. It lived around 50 Million years ago and became what we know as the modern Horse today, in the background a group of Horseshoe Crabs gathers under a shining moon as they have for millions of years.
This period saw tropical swamps and the emergence of winged insects. This art has an Edaphosaurus in the background, an intresting creature that was more closely related to a mammal than a reptile!
This period came after the largest extinction event but was born of the chaos were dinosaurs and the first mammals. Here a pod of Ichthyosaur swim along peacefully.
This period saw a huge bloom of new ocean life including the Horseshoe crab!
During this period land started to become more biodiverse and the Tiktaalik appeared, a link between fish and land animals. It used its strong fins to come out of the water onto the shoreline.
$2,400 Every backer gets a 3" free glow in the dark sticker with new design!
$2,700 Fossil print bucket hat
These unlockable have not been done yet, when unlocked I will have an interactive vote on what period to do next from Quaternary, Neogene, Jurassic, Permian & Silurian; along with the scene and creatures!
$2,900 Patch 7 ?
$3,200 Patch 8 ?
$3,700 Patch 9 ?
$3,900 Patch 10 ?
$4,200 Patch 11 ? +Vinyl sticker sheet upgraded to 2 sheets that include all 12 designs (including collab art)
$4,700 New add-on! Fossil print cotton denim bucket hat to iron your favorite patch to! $10 4"X5" glow in the dark sticker sheet, 10 mini fossil stickers
$8 5"X4" vinyl sticker sheet with the 6 designs and 2 mini horseshoe crab stickers. Please note no glow in the dark details on this one.
$40 Special watercolor painting 4"X4": You can choose your favorite animal living or extinct! Pets welcome!
I have had this idea in my head for a while and already had the cretaceous extinction painted, but wasn't sure if I would use the art for something. When I saw the STEM project event here- I knew it was time for my nerdy-ness about horseshoe crabs to shine! I love them, they are so cool. Having survived 445 million years and for the most part resisting any evolution, truly living fossils! They are nature's perfection. While they are called crabs they are not crustaceans but are arthropods, closer related to a spider or scorpion. With that you might think their tail is dangerous but it is harmless to humans, it's purpose is to help it turn itself back over if a wave flips it. On top of that fun fact, most of our vaccines are made using their special blue blood which is known to detect bacteria, making it safer for all. Due to this and other human made factors such as habitat loss their populations are being threatened, they have survived mass extinction events that killed the dinosaurs only to be close to being wiped out by us.
This is why I will be donating 3% of what I will be funding here to the Tampa Bay Watch nonprofit, to help horseshoe crab populations in my home state of Florida thrive.
More on the design: I wanted to create something that had that childlike wonder of first learning about science and while brainstorming I remembered these wall stickers I had as a kid- glow in the dark stars and planets. These made it so fun to learn with and I thought why not see what I can do that has that same core magical educational vibes!
I want to mention I am not a scientist nor educated in fields, I did research on which creatures you might see but I could have gotten it wrong- so please remember I did this for fun and out of love if you notice an out of place creature.
Patches are great because it is DIY friendly- and I believe that is good for the Earth. If you stain a shirt you can cover it with a patch or instead of buying something new you could alter something to give it style! I love to tell fun nature facts- now you can to! When someone says "Hey, I like your patch!" that is your chance to spread the word about why these creatures are so important, the more people who know the better!
I am a born and raised Floridian specializing in watercolor nature art and freelance children's book illustration. I want to create works that inspire all ages to find a deeper love for the planet we all call home.
My previously funded Oracle deck and 2 children's books through Kickstarter:
Example of smaller printed patches I previously had made in 2021.
Expected to be delivered by early December. It would make the perfect holiday gift!
Pledges can be canceled until end of campaign, if funded it will charge you then. Shipping fees collected post-campaign in Pledge Manager
Shipping fees collected post-campaign in Pledge Manager, this means after the project funding period ends and is fully funded, then your money will be taken and shipping fees collected- if we are not funded you will not be charged. A survey will be sent out a bit after this and I will be collecting your address and any other questions for reward fulfilment.
USA: Shipping calculated later should be around $5-$7
International backers: Shipping calculated later based on your location. You will be responsible for all taxes, tariffs that might result.
Challenges: I have run 4 successful Kickstarters but this will be my first time on BackerKit! Challenges I may run into are personal/health/family or manufacture related. I will post updates if anything happens and keep all my backers informed!
You have reached the end of my project, part of the Super League of Science, be sure to go check out the rest of the League now- all projects that educate and inspire!
This is a curated group of crowdfunding campaigns who launch together on BackerKit! Every project in the League explores science in its own way — through art, storytelling, collectibles, games, zines, apparel, and more. Some dive into physics or space, others into biology, chemistry, tech, or science history. All of them celebrate curiosity and imagination.
