A CMO in Austin should know that a case study is supposed to look polished, that's kind of the point. What they probably meant is it felt too clean and didn't show the messy parts of the work. Next time send it as is and ask them which parts felt fake, that tells you more than "too polished" ever will.

Heard watchmakers swear by ultrasonic cleaners with plain water and a drop of dish soap instead.

Wait, didn't the city say 14 bins were taken?