Buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog Handmade Accessories • Custom Promotional Supplies • Indie Business Tips • Behind-the-Scenes Secrets Fri, 16 Dec 2011 22:48:20 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Monthly Newsletter http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/16/monthly-newsletter/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/16/monthly-newsletter/#comments Fri, 16 Dec 2011 20:38:05 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1459 Newsletter Sign Up

Sweet discounts, juicy secrets, a free printable calendar & more!
Sign up for my newsletter to receive a monthly dose of Buttonhead goodness.

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/16/monthly-newsletter/feed/ 0 Greetings http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/01/hello-world/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/01/hello-world/#comments Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:13:15 +0000 buttonhead http://phillycoolrob.com/wordpress_281/?p=1 Welcome to Buttonhead.org! My name is Ali, and I make custom pinback buttons (badges), magnets, mirrors, and temporary tattoos for artists, small businesses, parties, and events. On this website you will find behind-the-scenes Buttonhead secrets, news, updates, press, promotions and customer resources. I have also created a library of how-to’s for indie business owners and self-employed artists. I hope you find the information inspiring and the extras entertaining.

Please be sure to leave a comment, subscribe to the RSS updates, and feel free to add me to your favorite social networks, so we can stay in touch. I look forward to connecting with you!

Ali (Buttonhead)

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/12/01/hello-world/feed/ 0 Halloween 2011 Customer Costumes http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/11/02/halloween-2011-customer-costumes/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/11/02/halloween-2011-customer-costumes/#comments Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:04:01 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1382
Check out these wicked costumes made by creative customers using Buttonhead accessories!

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/11/02/halloween-2011-customer-costumes/feed/ 0 Photobooth http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/08/17/photobooth/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/08/17/photobooth/#comments Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:41:30 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1351 Buttonhead Photobooth

Are you curious to see what types of goodies I’m making for other people? Check out my photo blog and find out what’s hot off the presses at Buttonhead!

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/08/17/photobooth/feed/ 0 Meet Amber Rose – Laughing With Broken Eyes http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/05/03/meet-amber-rose-laughing-with-broken-eyes/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/05/03/meet-amber-rose-laughing-with-broken-eyes/#comments Tue, 03 May 2011 17:03:25 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1232 I am so excited to introduce you to a wonderful artist I recently met. Her name is Amber Rose, and she is a femme extraordinaire! Ok. So, there are a lot of bloggers in the world – but she is one of the best examples I’ve ever seen of how to use a blog to promote (and supplement) your art. At ModestJune.com, she has created a total world of her own. It’s so easy to get drawn into each little message about life, love, art… and fashion! Amber Rose has a fearless way of combining all of the things she loves into a wonderful blend of positivity. Best of all, everything is wrapped up in a pretty bow of gorgeous photography that deserves recognition all on its own. I could get lost for hours just staring at all of the dreamy photos!

If you like meeting nice, new people who enjoy chatting about life and style – meet your new obsession! Or, if you are an indie business owner looking for great examples of successful bloggers, look no further. I’m really impressed with Amber Rose’s ingenuity, and I think you will be too.

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/05/03/meet-amber-rose-laughing-with-broken-eyes/feed/ 1 Get Smart! http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/04/15/1223/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/04/15/1223/#comments Fri, 15 Apr 2011 20:22:01 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1223 One of the most challenging aspects of running an art-based business is developing the technical skills to promote your work online.  Unfortunately, it’s not enough to have an amazing talent.  You have to be an entrepreneur too!  Many crafters and artists become frustrated by the idea of photographing their products, setting up a website, developing graphics, and social networking for promotion.  I know, because I’m one of them!  Anything involving a computer can be a major source of stress without the proper training. 

I’d like to recommend to you a resource that has really helped me wrap my brain around the seemingly black hole of computer tech.  Lynda.com is an instructional video library with courses available on pretty much any computer-related topic.  The videos make complex topics so easy to understand – and the subscription price is only $25/month (with NO contract!).  I’ve been using these online courses for nearly a year now.  I’ve learned so many amazing new skills that have helped me take my business to the next level, including: 

  •  Twitter and Facebook for business marketing
  • Product photography
  • Podcasting
  • Using Quicken to manage business and personal finances 
  • HTML/XTML and CSS
  • Website design fundamentals
  • Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver and Acrobat
  • Search engine optimization for websites
  • Print color management

There is so much information waiting to be consumed!  Hey, you can’t learn everything you need to know in a day or even a year.  Just take it one step at a time.  Instead of going to a million different websites to learn a technical skill, watch a training video from beginning to end, then move on to the next course.  I promise, you will not regret it.  The more time you spend developing your technical skills, the more your art-based business will grow.

Lynda.com

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/04/15/1223/feed/ 0 The Buttonhead Logo Story http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/02/07/then-and-now-the-buttonhead-logo-story/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/02/07/then-and-now-the-buttonhead-logo-story/#comments Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:58:19 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1118  

On January 1st 2007, I accepted a challenge: Take a self-portrait picture every day for an entire year. Rain or shine, good days and bad, the goal was to compile photo diary. By July, I had bought my very first button machine and started casually making pins for my friends who were also participating in the ‘Photo 365’ project on Flickr. Little by little, my button-making expanded. I adopted the name ‘Buttonhead’ and began to develop a shop on Etsy. On day 316 of 365, I took the photo that would become synonymous with my business for the next 3 years… and it was completely unrelated to buttons! Inspired by Elvis Costello singing, ‘Tear off your own head. It’s a Doll Revolution!’, the picture was supposed to look like a life-like doll. At the time, I didn’t think it quite accomplished what I intended, so I quickly disregarded it. A few months later, I made a deal with talented illustrator and fellow Flickr friend, Ben Rollman. I traded a few of my buttons for a custom-drawn robot portrait of me based on a photo of his choosing. Guess what? He chose the Doll Revolution photo! The robot portrait was so unique that it made me begin looking at the original photo in a whole new way. So, with branding on my mind, I turned to poptoon dreamer genius, Jelene Morris, to help me create a set of graphics and banners based around the photo. Within days, the Buttonhead girl was born! 

Today, Buttonhead has sold and shipped over 50,000 button-based items worldwide. In 3 years, I’ve grown from offering just 1” pinback buttons to making 3 sizes of buttons, magnets, mirrors, and more! Now, as my studio has grown, so have my graphic design skills. I’m able to accomplish so much more with digital and web media than the girl who just wanted to dress up as a doll and take photos. For 2011, I decided to create an illustration of the Buttonhead logo and give all of my graphics a much-needed facelift. Enter Buttonhead version 2.0! I think the new artwork is fun, fresh, colorful, and most importantly, it’s representative of who I am… and how I started. 

See the new Buttonhead artwork in action:
The Etsy shop
Buttonhead.org
All New Packaging

Have feedback about the Buttonhead makeover? Leave a comment!

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2011/02/07/then-and-now-the-buttonhead-logo-story/feed/ 2 Threads http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/11/14/threads/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/11/14/threads/#comments Sun, 14 Nov 2010 23:08:54 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1043 Hi everyone!  Today, I am excited to announce a brand new line of Buttonhead apparel, including limited editing tees, totes, and extra-long scarves!  I’ve wanted to create wearable goodies for quite some time now, so this is a wonderful new experience for me.  Each item is 100% American handmade with love.  With manufacturing in downtown LA, American Apparel is my exclusive textile supplier.  I am also hand-dyeing these garments in California procion pigments and heat pressing original decals onto each one using Minnesota-made vinyl.  Each one feels to me like a thoughtful personal expression — and oh yeah, they look really cool, too!

Check out Buttonhead Threads on Etsy!

Cloud Coverage Tee by Buttonhead Photo

Cloud Coverage Tee by Buttonhead

]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/11/14/threads/feed/ 0 3 Year Anniversary Vlog! http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/09/02/buttonhead-3-year-anniversary-vlog/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/09/02/buttonhead-3-year-anniversary-vlog/#comments Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:55:16 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=1010

Ali takes a moment to reflect on 3 years as an indepdendent business owner.

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]]> http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/09/02/buttonhead-3-year-anniversary-vlog/feed/ 0 The Buttonhead Buzz http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/07/10/customer-photos-and-feedback/ http://buttonhead.org/blog/2010/07/10/customer-photos-and-feedback/#comments Sat, 10 Jul 2010 01:27:08 +0000 buttonhead http://buttonhead.org/blog/?p=698

See Customer Feedback and Photos:
Ritas Mirrors Photo

Perfection! Great to work with and quick shipping too. Thank you! --Smeeta on Etsy


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