In Celebration of Originality

I’m an artist, and I believe in inspiration.

I’m inspired by the people around me. I’m inspired by inanimate objects. I’m inspired by fashion, history, music, theatricality, memory, color, architecture, conversation, and, yes, other artists.

Inspiration is part of being an artist.

Stealing is something else.

When I first started PinMe 1913, I began with three designs that I purchased for retail. They were existing pieces. But I realized very quickly that if I wanted to carve out a space for myself, I could not build a business selling the same things everybody else was selling.

I had to create something of my own.

I invested in one particular piece in a way that no one else had, and that piece helped put PinMe on the map. From there, original design became increasingly central to the business.

At first, my custom designs existed separately from the standing PinMe collection. Eventually, I realized that distinction no longer made sense. If PinMe 1913 was going to have a point of view, then the standing collection had to have one too.

I had to give people things they had not already seen.

And so I set out on an adventure.

I’ve been producing original designs ever since.

Every Design Is a Story

What bothers me about other business owners taking my work and going so far as to have it manufactured is that they genuinely have no idea what they are actually copying.

Every PinMe design is a story.

There is a reason for the placement of an element. There is a reason for a number. There is a reason something is a pearl instead of a stone, a flower instead of metal, a particular color instead of another.

And because every design is a story, I sign my work.

Every single PinMe 1913 pin has my signature in it, whether you can see it or not.

I am not simply talking about the PinMe 1913 logo on the back. That is the obvious signature. But not every design allows for an imprint on the back, so I learned to build my signature into the design itself.

I've had to tell people the piece they purchased isn't mine. Not only because I don't have an order number for them, but because I can look at a pin and know. If my signature isn't there, it isn't mine.

I Used to Chase Every Copy

In the early days of PinMe 1913, I spent an extraordinary amount of time sending cease and desist letters.

I searched for copies. I reported vendors. I reported listings. I contacted people manufacturing my work without permission. I tried to stay on top of every place my designs appeared.

I don’t have it in me to do that right now.

PinMe 1913 is a growing business, and I am a solopreneur. My energy has to go toward building the company, serving my customers, developing new collections, fulfilling orders, creating new work, and continuing to grow this business on the foundation of the original designs that made it what it is.

I simply do not have the bandwidth to constantly monitor every vendor, every marketplace, every manufacturer, and every website attempting to profit from something I created.

And yes, some people are taking advantage of that.

But let me be clear.

I am growing this business so that I can expand this business.

And when PinMe reaches the place where I can devote the necessary resources to decreasing the amount of tomfoolery surrounding my intellectual property, I will.

The cease and desist letters will go out.

The platform reports will be filed.

And I will have the time to follow through.

And Then There Was This One

This post came about because I recently saw one of the most flagrant copies of one of my designs that I have seen in a while, fully manufactured and being sold. It’s pictured below. Please do not mistake this for PinMe 1913.

I absolutely hate it.

It is a knockoff of my 2026 Founders Day design, but what makes it almost comical is that they copied the appearance without understanding the concept.

They completely missed the story.

They apparently thought they were doing something by making the 3 violets too.

They didn’t understand that the design was celebrating 113 years.

There was a reason only the 9 was represented in violets.

There was a reason for the entire composition.

But listen.

I don’t need to explain my design to the people attempting to steal it. No need to share the complete design story.

They already demonstrated that they didn’t understand the basics.

So, Let’s Celebrate Originality Instead

Rather than spend this beautiful Sunday irritated by people who refuse to come up with their own ideas, I would much rather celebrate the people who support original art.

So I’m doubling down on the promotion I shared in my Instagram Stories.

Use the code ORIGINALITY2 now through Tuesday, August 25 for a surprise promotional offer site-wide at PinMe 1913.

Minimum purchase: $22. Custom orders are excluded.

Consider it my little celebration of the artists who create, the customers who recognize the difference, and the very important distinction between being inspired by something and stealing it.

Thank you for supporting the real thing.

PinMe 1913

Original by design.

You can find the original VIP- 113 2026 Founders Day Design here: https://www.pinme1913.com/product-page/vip-2026-founders-day-special-edition

If you want to see video of VIP-113 visit PinMe's Instagram and watch all the related reels. Here is a direct link to one: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRRy8C-DWZy/?igsi=MW1va3E0cGJ0b2pwcA==