BalloonLife,May 1999

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The first origins of cloisonné can be traced back to the Egyptians
who used it as ornate artistry on the coffins of the pharaohs. The
ancient art of cloisonné (colored glass within a metal border) is
just that: ancient. This jewelry-like finish became popular in the
Far East shortly thereafter. And it was there that the Chinese took
this craft to the level of fine vases, sculptures, and lapel jewelry.
Lapelpinsmadeinthecloisonnéprocesshavebeena
mainstayinthemilitariesoftheworld.Aroundthe turnof the
century,pinswereusedforeventssuchasworldfairsand
expositions.Cloisonné emblemshave gracedautomobilesand
appliances for the last 100 years. It has nowfound its way into the
hearts of balloonistsworldwide.
In the early 1970s, balloonist Doug March became active in
early ballooning clubs and events in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Looking for a unique gift idea, he decidedtosend a photograph
of a balloon to a friend in Taiwan that exclusively made custom
cloisonné lapel pins. The balloon pins became a popular collect-
ible at the next gathering of balloonists. The popularity of these
colorful pins exploded. By 1974, due to demand, March formed
SouthwesternBalloonAdventures/TheMarchCompanyand
quickly became the largest supplier of balloon pins andpatches
intheworld.Sincethen,TheMarchCompanyhasprovided
millionsof pinsandpatchestoa growingcollectiblesmarket.
Someofourcustomersovertheyearshaveincluded:United
States PostalService, AppleComputers,LucasFilms,Disney,
andBandai America.
There areseveralpinprocessesavailablethatareoffered
today. The mosttraditional processiscloisonné. Cloisonné has
alimited color palate, but is atruejewelry process. As with all die
struck pins, ablank copperplanchet is die struck, cut to shape, and
color filled with powdered glass. The powder is mixed with water
to create a paste and then applied by hand with a small spoon and
packedintotherecessedareasofthecopper.Asonecoloris
completelyfilled,the pinis firedat1800degreeswithalarge
blow torch. The glass melts evenly and flat. This process of color
filling is repeated with different colors and fired until finished. A
wet stone grinder is used to hone down the excess glassmaking
thehardenamelevenwiththeraisedmetal.Afinalfiring
smoothes out any imperfections in the glass. The pins are highly
polished,platedand the attachments are thenapplied.
Aclose resemblance to cloisonné is a new process known as
Pro-Enamel(alsoreferredtoaspolymerenamel,imitation
cloisonné or faux cloisonné). Pro-Enamel looks almost identical
tocloisonnéwithacoupleofdifferences:colorvibrancyand
accuracy. Thisprocess usesa plastic resin instead of powdered
glass.Pro-Enamelisaneasiermediumtoworkwithwhenit
comes to polishing, resulting in a higher degree of detail. Unlike
cloisonné, Pro-Enamel canbe colored matchedtothousands of
colors. Not only is Pro-Enamel more durable and cost-effective
but it is consideredto be the process of the future.

The Making of a Pin

by Jonathan Abdalla

Left: Die striking

Right: Cloiso nne
color filling

Left: Final polishing

Right: Wet grinding

Left: Firing of cloisonne

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BalloonLife,May1999

An alternative die struck process known as Baked Enamel
uses a soft enamel instead of hard enamels which are utilized in
Pro-Enameland cloisonné. BakedEnamel isalsoone of the most
cost-effective processes. Eachpin isdie-struckand thecolorsare
then applied by hand using syringes. The pins are placed into an
ovenandtheenamel isbaked;similarto whatis donein
automotive paint shops. A clear coating epoxy overlay is op-
tional. The epoxy notonly protectsbutalsoaddsdepth tothe pin.
Balloonpins have become as common as hot chocolate and
propane in the ballooning community. The giving and receiving
of these unique pins has become a tradition amongst balloon
enthusiasts worldwide. In the 11 years I have been designing
pins, the advancement of computer technology coupled withthe
challenge of offering new and exciting pin design makes my job
rewarding and fun at the same time. It is always an honor to be
asked to make and design pins for my customers. The March
Company hasmade pinsandpatches for justabouteverypossible
type of customer and the challenges keep coming.
The future of enameled pins look justas bright. New poly-
mers, translucent and light-responsive enamels are being pro-
duced for use in pins. I personallyvisitChinaoften todiscuss my
ideas and seek new and excitingprocesses and materials. Inno-
vation and great designs keep pin companies in step with new
innovations. The March Company has made every effort to stay
one step ahead of the industry while looking towards the future.
Jonathan Abdalla is sales manager at The March Co.