The Great Steampunk Empire Pin Contest

Ladies & Gentlemen of the Empire,

In honor of our fine crossroads of the aether turning 5000 in citizenship, and inspired by a recent forum thread by the dear lady Yo, Vict!, this month shall see a battle of creative prowess as Hephzibah and I invite you to partake in our second ever design contest.

Many of you have expressed a wish to be more recognized as citizens of the Steampunk Empire when out in public, mingling at cons, or other such occasions, and some have responded to this plea with the suggestion of pins. Yes, pins! What a fabulous idea!

For the month of November we shall be holding a design contest, much like our banner contest in January, for our talented and creative members to create a pin design that is simple and yet captures the essence of Steampunk Empire. On November 28th a short list of entries will be selected and voting will proceed to choose a winning design. The winner will receive an actual pin of his or her design (once they have gone into production) and this delightful replica of the Victoria Cross medal.

Please note very carefully that by submitting your design to Steampunk Empire you are agreeing to make it the property of Steampunk Empire

and that your compensation for the use of your design will the medal above, an
actual pin of your design, and more kudos than there is tea in India.

To enter the contest, simply submit your design as comment to this thread. Good luck, and may the best design win!

Post Script: The replica medal that is being offered as a prize for this contest was purchased in Scotland at Edinburgh Castle, the head quarters of one of the British Army Regiments (the Royal Scots Regiment to be precise), so rest assured that the Government of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II consents to non-military personnel having ownership of this replica.

Post Post Script: There are varying opinions regarding war medal protocol and the separate discussion thread on the topic is a most appropriate place for this debate to continue. Meanwhile in the interests of keeping this thread focused on its original topic some comments have been removed. It is the conclusion of Steampunk Empire's administration that the winner of this contest will be at liberty to decide whether or not to accept the replica medal as a prize.

Tags: badge, contest, creative, crumpets, design, empire, medal, pin, tea

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Permalink Reply by Mary Vuong on November 8, 2010 at 7:19pm

How exciting! I am percolating ideas....

~Trulie Serendipitis

Permalink Reply by Damien Von Salvadore on November 8, 2010 at 7:30pm

Good sir, might potential designers be informed of design specifications such as format, shape and resolution?

Permalink Reply by Aric Jorn on November 8, 2010 at 7:33pm

Should the designs be in 2 or 3 dimensions? Is there a size, number of colors or other criteria that must be met? Is this to be a cast, enamel or stamped pin? Announcing any such boundaries would be helpful.

Permalink Reply by Aloysius Fox on November 8, 2010 at 7:45pm

Ah, technical nonsense with the specifications!

Indeed good questions. Let the creativity flow, but I suspect something that has three dimensions and will be cast out of a brass like substance would be a strong and popular contender.

My thoughts are that the winning design would look excellent as part of a steampunk costume. But enough hints and bias from me; get thinking about those designs!

Permalink Reply by Scott Hepner on November 8, 2010 at 7:48pm

I am a master goldsmith. I'll be glad to help with the pins.

Permalink Reply by Yo, Vict! on November 8, 2010 at 9:17pm

Ah, so we're getting swanky with the embossing/casting element!

For those making and judging designs, may I humbly propose that any designs intended for 3D effects also look nifty as a flat drawing so that our new Cafe Press shop can slap it on mugs, T-shirts, buttons and the like?

So much for pasting my original SpE button idea up here.

But... VICToria Cross? I'll pretend that's for me!

Permalink Reply by Johannes "Bunny" Leopold on November 8, 2010 at 11:00pm

A fine idea! I am very much looking forward to seeing what masterpieces the creative citizens of the Empire come up with. I will get to work on a design myself right away.

Permalink Reply by Countessa Lenora on November 9, 2010 at 5:06am

I very much look forward to the winning design. I will be most pleased to wear a Steampunk Empire pin!

Permalink Reply by Pierre Foisy on November 9, 2010 at 5:58am

Fantastic idea. Since I design pins every day (well sort of), it won't be too different for me. A flat black and white drawing is usually what is needed if a pin is cast and watch out for very fine details, they might not show up. If it is stamped, then I don't know.

Permalink Reply by Pierre Foisy on November 9, 2010 at 6:14am

Question: Is the logo on the masthead the official logo? Do we need to use it and if so, could we have the EPS file or at least the actual font used? If the people in charge need a quote for a price, I freelance for a company that produces pins, key chains, etc. and I would be happy to have one sent to you. Just email me at : renaissart@videotron.ca

Permalink Reply by Aloysius Fox on November 9, 2010 at 8:56am

The pin design does not have to be a reproduction of the masthead banner, in fact I would encourage quite the opposite.

Permalink Reply by Pierre Foisy on November 9, 2010 at 9:17am

Okay, got it!