I have some happy updates today - that come with pretty pictures :)

The manufacturer has sent me photos of all the pin and charm samples! And they are looking so pretty ✨🖤 With how intricate and complex my designs are, I'm always a little nervous about how they will translate into metal and enamel - but these ones have actually exceeded my hopes :) and I'm so happy to show you guys how these are turning out!

They sent me photos of both metal colors for each design, as well as photos of both pins and charms for each design. So rather than upload hundreds of photos - I put together a photo of each in both metal colors. The pins are charms are mixed together, but most have a photo of each if I had one. There are a few designs that they didn't send a photo of both metal colors, but there are only a couple of those and you can get a pretty good idea of what they will look like from the related photos.

There are also one or two Pantone colors I am changing - for instance, the lightest pink on the peony pin is too different from the other pinks in my opinion so we are changing it to a more harmonious pink color. But overall, I am thrilled with how pretty these are coming out.

These samples are also before the UV printing - so the colors won't be this simple or flat. These enamel colors were chosen to be good bases for the UV colors to be printed on top of to create gradients of color - so the final pieces will have all the color and variety once the UV printing process is done.

We have been having some trouble getting the UV printing right - as on some it looks ok, but on others, it is way darker or less blended than expected. So we are in the process of troubleshooting the UV printing now to make sure they come out as pretty as possible :) This might add some time again as we troubleshoot why that is happening and how to fix it - but as always, I would rather take the time to make sure they turn out as beautifully as possible rather than try to rush them.

And I think when you guys see how pretty they are turning out so far with the molds and enamel - you will be very happy! :) Ok - without further ado:

On another note, I have been thinking a lot about the upcoming Pintopia event in January. I have been trying to decide if I will be able to participate again - and I would really love to!

I was nervous because they moved it up by 3 months which made the timeline much more difficult for me to get everything finished with this campaign, as well as all the work for the new campaign - and I wasn't sure if it would be ok to run a new campaign if this one wasn't completely wrapped up yet.  Since each new round of troubleshooting (like we have now with the UV printing) puts off fulfillment by several more weeks usually - and makes me not sure if I can get everything completely finished before the next Pintopia. 

But a lot of the time in between is downtime, as I wait to hear back from manufacturers - and I am super excited about my ideas for future Pintopias. So I am still on the fence but I am leaning towards going ahead and participating in this upcoming Pintopia as well - but wanted to make sure you guys know it will in no way interfere with me finishing everything with this campaign if I do. Just that I want to make sure to take the time to ensure these ones are as nice as possible, even if it means there will be a little overlap in the timelines. 

Anyway, that's all the updates for today 🖤 thank you for all the support and patience as I bring these little treasures to life and I hope you guys love the sample photos!!