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The Giant's Causeway Finn McCool Jigsaw and Mugs

1/23/2017

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Years ago I set my sights on creating souvenirs for the local tourist industry. I grew up hearing about the mythologies of the land and the famous landmarks associated with it.

Since then my postcards are in local shops, but what i'm most happy about is that finally i've been able to see my artwork on a jigsaw puzzle (ok so the first jigsaw I produced from this design was created about 4 years ago for my young nephews but i'm now able to offer it on my site). Back then I had created a jigsaw through a POD site (print on demand). At that time the production cost per jigsaw was just too high to be able to resell,

I decided to research into the possability of smaller independent printers being able to print jigsaw puzzles, so ordered up a few from the UK.

The first puzzle/printer was not up to standard unfortunatly. A few other printers were tried until we settled on one that although is a little more expensive than we had intended, the quality of the print along with the cardboard stock and the press quality is outstanding. We've tested this printer a few times now, all with excellent results.

So last night I spent the best part of 6 hours putting it together. I'm sure a person who is good at jigsaw puzzles would do it in less than half the time, but I haven't done a puzzle in years. I didn't intend to spend the evening engrossed in a jigsaw puzzle but I try to

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"become" the customer in everything we offer because if I notice anything that annoys me, rest assured the customer will be annoyed with it too. I was careful to keep an eye on any peeling of the image from the cardboard (like the earlier puzzle/printer we'd tried).

In over 300 pieces there was not a problem and since then i've rebuilt the puzzle a few more times for good measure. I can truthfully say I am pleased with the results, and I admit, it still took me about 6 hours lol. I guess the key is to build the frame first and work on it from there. It was nice to be able to revisit many of the old illustrations I had created. Some of them are over ten years old but still have a great atmosphere about them.
In an ideal world I'd have them for sale in the tourist shops where they would get the most exposure but unless you're able to have the products produced in China at a minimum of 500 - 1000 pieces per order, then shipped here (along with the huge import tax waiting for us) you have to go the print on demand route. Thankfully i've found a great contact in the UK for the puzzles, and very competent and professional printers in Canada and the UK for the mugs.

I am pleased with our progress. In regards to the tourism stuff, it has been a slow progress since most of the time has been taken up by freelance projects, but since the mythology images are already created over the years, I welcome these new products to the store.

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I'm also able to finally offer Irish souvenir mugs. I've currently secured a reasonable POD printer in the UK for cups, and have sourced a printer in Canada which can deliver to the U.S / Canada, so we'll see what happens.,One of the hardest aspects of producing souvenirs, card decks etc is not the illustration, but finding a printer / manufacturer that can take your artwork, print it, and having the product affordable while allowing both manufacturer and artist/creator a profit.
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Packaging on our Mugs

1/15/2017

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I wanted to share with you a little that goes into the packaging of our mugs. (UK only until i research our Canadian/US supplier's packaging)

To the left we see an example of one of our mups. It's from an illustration of my partner Christine that I created a few years ago and to test out the quality of the mug it made sense to use one daily for a few weeks to see if it deserves my seal of approval.

The company that supplies the mug claims the mug is disherwasher and microwave safe and this seems to be very accurate.

It's equally great with both hot and cold drinks, which you would expect from a mug of this nature.

Another reason it was important to test out the company's mugs before selling them on my site was for the quality of the packaging. These mugs must be able to to ship to customers around the world, so naturally they need to be able to hold up in transit.

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To the right you can see that the cup is secured in a plastic container. Another plastic container is then inserted on the top, keeping the mug secure in the cardboard box it comes in.
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Being able to offer these mugs to the public has been a great dream come true. We envisioned offering Northern Irish themed souvenirs almost ten years ago but as everyone knows, sometimes these plans get put on the backburner due to work commitments.

With over 20 Finn McCool and Giant's Causeway themed mugs to choose from, we hope you will be happy with your mugs when they reach you, no matter where you are in the world. We also have similar Irish themed mugs like the Children of Lir, Dunluce Castle and the Bushmills Whiskey Distillery.

With the mug being secured with the plastic layer placed over the top the boxed is then sealed up.

Truth be told, a lot of research went into finding a company that would not only produce a mug at an affordable price but provide the best possible packaging. Now that we've found a company that can provide both of these things, we are proud to offer these mugs on our site.

Everything on our site includes FREE shipping, from cards and jigsaw puzzles, through to these mugs. Why free shipping? Well, If you're like us you'll much prefer to see the price of the item you are buying up front, without being hit with postage and packaging fees before purchase. Or, in much simplier terms we want to make shopping on our page a much more enjoyable experience!

Thanks for reading, and if you're interesting in checking out our mugs, click here

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