Custom
Silk Screen Pins
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Where colors can touch
Silk screen pins print a design on a flat metal face. Nothing raised stands between the colors, so two of them can sit against each other, as close as the artwork placed them. The colors and the spacing on a silk screen pin come out as the artwork drew them. Small lettering stays readable on a small pin, since no metal border has to take room around each character.
Companies with strict brand standards order silk screen lapel pins for staff and recognition, so one logo can travel across many locations. Nonprofits order silk screen pins for volunteers and supporters, so the organization’s name goes with the people who do the work. Universities and schools order them for a set seal or wordmark, with the colors and fine lettering already in place. A design with a lot of small text belongs on this pin too.
How a silk screen pin is made
A silk screen pin starts as a flat metal piece. The design is printed across that face one color at a time, and each color in the artwork gets its own stencil, the way a shirt is screen printed. The first color is screened on and set before the next stencil lines up. The next color can sit beside the first or overlap part of it where the art calls for it. The finished face is smooth and even, with the pin's metal plating showing around the edge. Gold and silver are popular, and black nickel and other platings are available.
Silk screen or enamel
Soft enamel and cloisonné pins divide each color with a raised metal line. That line is their look, and it keeps each color in its own cell. Choose those pins when the metal border is part of the design. Silk screen pins have no lines between colors. They fit when neighboring colors have to meet.
Offset printed pins print a full image, with a photo or a gradient included. Silk screen pins print flat, solid colors one at a time, which suits exact brand colors. A photograph or a blend of tones calls for the offset print. Solid color fields call for screen printed pins.
A silk screen print can also go on top of a cloisonné pin when the text or the detail is too small to form in the metal. The enamel carries the larger fields. Across them, the silk screen print lays the fine type.
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Exact
logos
Staff across many locations can share a logo that matches the brand guide exactly. Named colors and letterforms stay put in silk screen, which keeps every site on the same mark.
Sharp
numbers
A number or a milestone that has to stay sharp can be worn as a pin. Silk screen lays that mark in solid color, and the edges stay clean.
Fine
lettering
A seal or a wordmark with fine lettering needs its set colors on the pin. Wearers still get those small letters in silk screen, and the wording matches what the organization already prints.
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We've got answers
People ask a few questions about silk screen pins before they order.
Silk screen pins are metal pins with the design printed on a flat face in solid colors. Each color goes down through a separate stencil, and a later color can meet the one beside it or cover part of it. Because the print sits on that flat face, the logo can keep the spacing the artwork gave it.
Enamel pins separate colors with a raised metal line, while silk screen pins print on a flat face where colors can meet or overlap. Soft enamel and cloisonné pins both rely on that metal line, and it shapes how those pins look.
Choose silk screen pins when a logo must stay as the brand guide drew it, with its colors meeting and its spacing unchanged. A design with a lot of small text is the other time to choose them, since each letter needs a clear space on the pin.
Yes, silk screen can be added on top of a cloisonné enamel pin. The print holds lettering or a small detail that cannot be formed in the metal. The cloisonné layer under the print keeps the broader areas of color.
The minimum order for custom silk screen pins is 100 pins.
Custom silk screen pins take 3½-4 weeks from proof approval, often sooner, plus a few days in transit.