Lapel pins based upon United States Postal Service (USPS) stamps

Stamp Pins - The Beginnings

In the early 1970s, balloonist Doug March became active in ballooning clubs and events in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Looking for a unique gift idea, he decided to send a photograph of a balloon to a friend in Asia who made custom cloisonné lapel pins. The final product was a hit soon thereafter. The balloon pins became a popular collectible at the next gathering of balloonists and their popularity among balloon enthusiasts continue to this day.

The first Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta took place in 1972 when a group shy of 10,000 people gathered to watch 13 balloons rise into the morning air. The Fiesta has grown to include 700 to a thousand balloons and hundreds of thousands of visitors. Trading souvenir pins of the Fiesta and visiting balloonists became a tradition with Doug March in the center of the action.

By 1974, Doug March formed Southwestern Balloon Adventures/The March Company and quickly became the largest supplier of balloon pins and patches in the world. Since then, The March Company has provided millions of pins and patches for a growing collectibles market.

In 1983, the United States Postal Service issued a block of four Hot Air Balloon stamps (U.S. Scott # 2032, 2033, 2034, and 2035).

March thought these would make an excellent addition to his balloon pin inventory. He approached the Postal Service for permission to make metal pins based upon these stamps. The USPS did not have any rules concerning granting such permission. March sat down with the USPS and helped develop a non-exclusive license agreement which was granted to him. Soon, March developed a goal to "...eventually produce and stock pins of every U.S. postage stamp ever made." This goal was not achieved but he ended up with more different designs than any of his later competitors. The 1989 edition of the March Company Color Catalog lists 766 stamp pin designs not including variations such as earrings, necklaces, key rings, magnets, and paper weights. Many additional designs were added in subsequent years.

Each of the March stamp pins was individually hand made in their factory in Taiwan and, later, in China, using high quality material and most skilled artisans. Most pins were sized exactly to the scale of the original postage stamp though some showing blocks of stamps were reduced in size and some of the popular designs were also issued at a reduced scale.

Later, pins were made with an offset photo image of the stamp. Winco International seems to be the originator of this style of stamp pin production.

The March Company success was soon copied by others. The March Company left the stamp pin business in 2004 and no longer manufactures or sells stamp pins. It followed the demise of such companies as Jayne Co., and Jonathon Grey. Currently only a few of the recent stamp designs are being produced for the United States Postal Service with some being released to the public by the manufacturer, most notably U.S. Allegiance and Concord Industries. Most of the pins on the market are from secondary sources.

Cloisonné Lapel Pins

Cloisonné pins are the fine-art tradition of glass enameling, it started in China century's ago. Metal (brass or steel) pins are made from a die and each color is injected into a recessed area or "canal." The pin is baked between every color. After all colors are applied, the pin is polished. After being baked at a very high temperature, the glass enamel is sanded and polished to be flush with the metal lines that separate the colors. This gives the pins a smooth and lustrous quality.

Offset Printed pins

Offset printing with the design printed directly onto the metal base, the print is then covered with an epoxy or acrylic dome for long-lasting protection.