We love when customers bring in unique pieces for us to engrave. Well, love might be a strong word. We should say, it challenges us, and we like a challenge.

Recently, a customer brought in handmade serving trays. Someone took planks from an old barn and made a border around them to create the trays. Then, they brought them to us to engrave. Well, see for yourself how it went:

These kinds of artisan pieces really inspire us to create our own new products, especially for the holidays. Below are some ideas we've had, including custom snowflake ornaments, dry erase boards, acrylic awards, and print marketing materials.

The ornaments and acrylic awards were crafted by us; all we started with was a sheet of acrylic. The rest were designed and produced in shop.

We hope these pieces inspire you to create!

When I heard that September is National Little League Month, I got excited. See, I'm from a baseball family. My parents played throughout their childhood and into college, my sister played from age 9 through college, and I played throughout high school and umpired the intramural league at my college. This doesn't begin to mention the shrine my mom set up for the Cincinnati Reds, or the obsession my sister had for the Atlanta Braves in the 90s, or how exciting it was to live in Kansas City when the Royals won the World Series a few years ago.

I still have all my certificates, plaques, trophies, and medallions from participating, winning tournaments, and setting records. I consider these personal achievements of hard work, practice, and love of the sport. Conveniently, I now work at a place that offers these items to the next generation of baseball athletes.

The fact is, I love the game, and I don't even begin to compare to Little Leaguers. If I love it, they breathe it. I played softball during waking hours; they play baseball in their sleep. Worldwide, 2.4 million kids play Little League baseball/softball. It's played in all 50 United States and in more than 80 other countries. That's a lot of baseball! Even celebrities (John Krasinski, Elizabeth Banks, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to name a few...) grew up playing Little League.

Why is this? Maybe it's the strategy involved in the game. Perhaps it's the adrenaline rush that comes with hitting a line drive. It could be the quality time spent with friends who also love the game. For whatever reason, this game has become almost legendary.

So, if you are one of the diehards, welcome! Have a fantastic month of celebration of the Great American Pastime!

Making awards and keepsakes seems simple, but we would not be able to do it without key things we learned in school from some fantastic teachers. Here are some examples of how we use the subjects in school to help us make quality products for our customers:

• Science - The machines we use for engraving utilize lasers, diamonds, air pressure, extreme heat, and observation.
• English - We constantly edit and spell-check our work, analyze conversations with clients, and effectively communicate with team members to complete our projects.
• Math - While designing a project, we have to make sure exact measurements are taken, double-check that angles are accurate, and problem-solve issues that arise.
• History - We keep records of all previous jobs and customers. This way, when someone asks about their previous orders, we can look into our archives and find pertinent information.
• Social Sciences - We come into contact with people of many cultures and backgrounds and constantly analyze client behavior.
• Art - We use a variety of artistic methods and applications to design our products: painting, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, CorelDRAW, aesthetics, color theory, etc.
• Technology/Computers - Our machines have complicated user interfaces that we utilize every day and we use computers to design, communicate, market, and analyze our work.
• Health/Safety/Physical Education - Within our workshop, we have potentially dangerous chemicals, sharp tools, and mechanical dangers that we make sure to manage safely. We are also often on our feet to finish our projects.

So, I guess what we're trying to say is "Thank you!" to our teachers for giving us the skills and knowledge necessary to do our job.

This year for the Spring season, we are on a mission: to save the Easter bunnies (and their friends)! See, every day, animals suffer from lack of proper care and/or a loving home. The Humane Society of Greater Dayton helps those needs by providing vaccines and other veterinary care, investigating animal cruelty and abuse, and seeking out great homes for animals of all sorts. This is why we've teamed up with them from now until April 30th; we'll be donating 10% of proceeds from all St. Patrick's Day and Easter products that are sold. 

How can you help? Spread the word! Anyone who wants these items can call us, email us, or come in to make a purchase. Share on your social media sites and tag us. That way, even if you can't purchase anything at this time, you can still help save the Easter bunnies.