Custom Orders

I've been doing a few custom orders recently for badges and mirrors.

Mandi Cromer from Design Birdie used her wonderful illustrations for some mirrors which she now sells in her etsy shop. I've been a fan of her work for ages, and it was really nice to eventually meet her at the Horse Show in the RDS.

Artist Harriet Myfanwy Nia Tahany is preparing for her upcoming exhibition in Belfast, and she will be selling pocket mirror versions of her art at the opening for people who want to take home some of her work at a more affordable price, what a great idea! The show is on Sept 1st in 'Frame of Mind, Ormeau Rd, Belfast at 7.30pm if any of you are in the area.

I also made up these comic book style magnets for my friend Claire from Ecobrats, they are for her sons bedroom as she is in the process of doing it all up in comic book style. I loved doing this commission and I'm now going to be selling this set in my etsy shop. You can get the 6 magnets in a set for just €10. They are perfect for using on your fridge, or in your work space.

If you are interested in ordering any magnets, badges, pocket mirrors or bottle openers with the image of your choice on them please click here for more details or email me at ruthcrean@yahoo.ie.

Zombies, Vampires and Witches, Oh My!

I got my Halloween badges made and I totally love them, it's made me really excited about Halloween like a little kid. I listed the party pack of 20 in my shop for $30, and I'll be listing them individually later in the week when I get a chance to take more photos. When the courier arrives on Thursday with more badge parts I'll make up some beer bottle opener versions...I think the Zombie secretary would be fun for that one!

Button Press Machine Has Arrived

At long last my fantastic button press machine has arrived! I'm so excited I've been saving for this for months at arrived yesterday morning. This now means I can produce my own large badges, pocket mirrors, magnets and beer bottle openers instead of ordering them from the US as I've been doing for the past 2 years.

It was funny timing for the arrival of the machine, the courier landed on my door just before my Dad, sister and her 2 daughters. I was torn between ripping it open, and doing some last minute house sprucing/cleaning. It turns out my nieces were delighted with the contraption and were fascinated by the idea that we could make a badge together. My father was even more intrigued, and I think he was rather sad when we had to leave and he couldn't play with it anymore!!

I already have my first order to do this weekend for The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra, as they have ordered badges to sell during their upcoming nationwide tour. This evening I listed in my etsy shop listings for 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, and 1000 custom made badges. Fingers crossed the orders start rolling in soon!!

Button Press Machine

Do you remember this post where I was toying with the idea of buying my own button press machine? After a couple of weeks of weighing with the pros and the cons I decided that I'm going to buy the machine. I did lots of research online and I found a company in Europe that makes the machine and supply all the button/mirror parts, which will save me a fair bit of money by not having to ship it from the US.

I'm still at the saving money stage but I'm hoping that by the end of the month I'll have enough to buy it. I already have my first pre-order of badges which is very exciting. I really can't wait to get started, I've lots of new ideas for my own designs and I'm excited about doing some custom orders as well. At first I'll be targeting local business and musicians, and then after that I'll focus on the online side of things. There are so many different sectors, from custom made party badges, hen nights, local bands, and wedding favours.

Since I changed the presentation of my badges at the market they've been selling really well, I'm really looking forward to restocking and adding lots of new images.