Every pin begins with a design, a digital illustration showing the pin’s artwork, colors, and metal linework. Once a design is finalized, the first manufacturing step is to create a mold (die) of that design. Using computer-guided tools, the artwork is etched or engraved into a piece of high-strength steel to make a mold that will stamp out the pins.

This process may involve CNC milling to precisely cut the recessed areas and lines into the steel. After cutting, the mold is heat-treated to harden it (a process of heating and cooling) so that it can withstand the stress of stamping without deforming. The result is a mirror-image cavity of the design in a steel block, ready to imprint that design into metal blanks.

Why this step matters: The quality of the mold directly affects the detail and clarity of the pins. A well-made die captures the tiny line work of your design, so our manufacturing partners put a lot of care into this step and may even make slight adjustments to keep details crisp on the final pin.

With the hardened mold ready, it’s loaded into a hydraulic stamping press. Now it’s time to create the metal pin blanks. A sheet or strip of base metal is placed under the press. Common metals for pin bases include iron, copper/brass, or zinc alloy — all of which are softer than the hardened steel mold.

When the press comes down with tons of pressure, it die-strikes the design into the metal. This creates a raised outline of the design and recessed areas where enamel will later go. For simpler shapes and 2D designs, iron or brass sheets are common; if a design has lots of cut-outs or an irregular outline, zinc alloy casting may be used instead.

After stamping, the pin’s outline is cut from the metal sheet if the mold didn’t cut it fully. A separate cutting die or machine tool punches out the silhouette, and excess metal is collected for recycling. At this stage you have a pin blank — the right shape with all the design relief, but still just raw metal with no enamel.

Now the pin post on the back is added. Posts are usually soldered onto the back with one or two posts used depending on the pin’s size. After cooling, you finally have something that looks like an unfinished pin.

Quality check: Raw pins are trimmed and lightly polished to remove sharp edges and tiny metal burrs. This makes later plating and enameling cleaner and safer.

At this stage in a soft enamel process, the raw pin blanks are usually plated before color is added. The pins are dipped into an electroplating bath that deposits a thin layer of metal (like gold or nickel) onto the surface using an electric current. The result is an even layer of shiny metal on all the raised areas.

Optional alternative: Instead of a metallic plating, some pins can have their metal base dyed to a specific Pantone color or given an antique finish. That’s how you get black-outline pins or vintage brass looks. This flexibility is a big advantage for soft enamel.

For hard enamel pins, we typically wait and do the plating after polishing so the finish doesn’t get scratched or buffed away during the smoothing process.

Now comes the step that gives enamel pins their name — adding the enamel colors! For hard enamel, this is both an art and a science. Enamel (usually a resin-based paint in modern manufacturing) is prepared in the required colors. Each color area on the pin is a little “cell” surrounded by raised metal walls.

Enamel can be filled by hand or machine. In hand filling, workers use small tools or syringes to place enamel into each recessed area. Machine filling uses automated dispensers. For hard enamel, each cavity is filled up to the top so the enamel is level with or slightly above the metal lines.

Once all color areas are filled, the pins are baked in an oven to cure and harden the enamel. Complex designs may be filled and baked in stages, with different color groups done separately. After all colors are baked, the surface looks colorful but uneven — little domes of enamel sit above the metal. Polishing will fix that next.

One hallmark of hard enamel pins is a perfectly smooth, flush surface. To achieve this, the baked pins go through a thorough polishing process. Abrasive wheels or belts grind away the excess enamel until it is exactly level with the metal borders.

After polishing, you can run your finger across the pin and it feels completely flat. The metal shines brilliantly and the enamel has a smooth, glassy look. This extra labor is a big part of what makes hard enamel pins feel so premium compared with soft enamel.

Now that the design is polished and perfect, it’s time to add the metal finish. The pins are dipped into electroplating baths that coat the exposed metal surfaces with the chosen finish — gold, silver, black nickel, and more. The enamel areas do not conduct electricity, so they keep their original colors while the metal borders and backing take on the new plating.

After plating, the pins are rinsed and dried. At this point they finally look like finished products: full color designs with gleaming metal outlines.

Technical note: Some traditional cloisonné processes plate before enameling, then grind and may re-plate. Most modern imitation cloisonné (hard enamel) follows the method described here with plating last, as it’s efficient and gives a crisp result.

If a design has tiny details too fine for enamel alone — like very small text or delicate eyes on a character — extra steps can be added after plating. Screen printing or pad printing can lay down ink on top of the enamel to add those details. Each ink color is applied with a separate screen and cured with UV light or heat.

Another option is an epoxy dome, a clear resin coating that gives a smooth, domed surface. Epoxy is more common on printed or soft enamel pins; hard enamel is already smooth and durable, so we usually skip epoxy to let that polished texture shine.

Finally, any remaining assembly is done. If the pin has a spinner, slider, hinge, or dangle, this is when the separate parts are added and secured with rivets, jump rings, or small screws. We check that all moving elements work smoothly and feel secure.

Every pin then goes through quality control. Inspectors look for missing enamel, wrong colors, scratches, or plating defects. Pins that don’t pass are set aside (often recycled as scrap metal). The good pins are wiped clean, paired with their pin backs, and mounted on card backs.

At this point the hard enamel pin is complete — shining with color, built to last, and ready to be traded or displayed. From a sketched concept to a tangible collectible, every step involves a lot of craftsmanship. Next, we look at how we bring sustainability into this process.