This post is very straightforward: how to make a pinback button, in this case, a Pinda. 

Tools & supplies

Front row (L to  R): Button press, rotary cutter on steel cutting board, art designs

Back row: Bags of pin shells, clear mylar (tiny bag), pin backs, completed pins

The smaller photo is a close-up of the 4 pieces of a pin: mylar (the circle that’s darker than the rest of the background foam), art, pin shell, & pin back.

Ready to make a button? Here are the steps with a visual guide. 

1. Cut artwork in a circle. (You can use a dial cutter or scissors.) The circle needs to be a bit bigger than the final diameter of the button because it will curve around the edges of the shell. (I had some pandas already cut into circles, so I skipped this step when I took the demo photos.)
2. Swivel base of button machine so shallow die (“pot” or “dish”) is accessible.
3. Put pin shell face in shallow die.
4. (Ditto)
5. Put artwork on shell, then clear mylar.
6. Rotate base of machine so shallow die is under press.
7. (Ditto)
8. Grasp handle & press down. This will press the shell, picture, & mylar together.
9. When you release your, it pick ups the pressed pin front.
10. Place pin back in deep die. Make sure squiggly side is up so that when the pin is pressed together, the straight latch of the pin is on the back of the pin. The squiggle will be inside the pin. (You can’t undo a pin press if you put the wrong side up.)
11. Rotate base of machine so deep die is under press.
12. Grasp handle & press down. This presses the pin front & back together.
13. Release. This drops the new pin into the die. Rotate base again so you can take out the pin. 
14. Ta-da-!

As promised in my previous preview post, I am pleased to present Pandagram Pindas! Even more petite than the original card set, these are pin-back buttons featuring all 11 of the current Pandagram antics. (7 are pictured here.)

They are simple pin-back buttons, like any old “I Voted” or “Save the Whales” buttons. Pindas are 1.75″ in diameter. That’s the size kit I bought from American Button Machines; they have other sizes, but I thought 1.75″ was best for these. Any smaller would be too close to the sticker size, and too much bigger would get them close to the card size.

From the time I participated my first anime artist’s alley (back at Kawa Kon 2015), I noticed that many artists and vendors sold pins. At the time, I was not particularly interested in pin-making, but I did take note that more people were more apt to purchase small items than a big poster or art print, and buttons were a hot item in that category. (The next time around, I made sure to have a small item: Pandagram stickers in 2 designs.)

Then, a year ago November, I attended Anime Iwai in Florida and met a gal who happened to have a pin-making machine right at her booth! I asked her about it, and she showed me how to make a button. It’s quite simple once you have the right equipment. Perhaps next time I’ll post a tutorial on how to make buttons.