Thinking about making some buttons? You are not alone. Someone, somewhere is making buttons right now, whether it be for a school, for a church fundraiser, for a sports team, or even just for fun. In fact, it’s highly probably that many someones are out there making buttons right now. And the reason is simple: buttons are a fun, easy-to-make, versatile novelty item that you can easily customize for whatever the needs of your project may be.
So in this post, we are going to quickly outline the five button making supplies you need to get started:
1 - First, obviously you need a button making machine. This should not come as a surprise, unless you have an uncanny ability for turning your hands into rotating dies and can then press the button parts together with some part of your head. Yeah, I didn’t think so either.
The question is, which button maker is right for you? You can get a standard button machine and have a variety of size chooses or to pick from; or, if you are looking to make fabric buttons, you can get a fabric button machine that is specially made for creating fabric-covered buttons.
2 - Once you have your button machine, the next thing you need to consider is parts and supplies. Obviously if you buy a 1″ button machine, you need parts that fit a 1″ button machine. If you have a 1.5″ button machine, you need parts to fit that size, and so on. Find a merchant who has a variety of button supplies for all types and sizes and get the ones that are appropriate for you.
3 - A circle cutter is probably going to be your next consideration. There are three different types of circle cutters: adjustable circle cutters, punch cutters, and high volume paper cutters. Make sure you choose the one that fits your needs and level of button making sophistication.
4 - Next, the question is how will you design your graphics? You can certainly create and customize your own graphics using programs like Photoshop, but some button merchants actually provide free graphics and design CDs when you purchase one of their complete button making systems. American Button Machines, for instance, does this. When you purchase a button making system of any size or type, the good folks at ABM actually throw in Artistic Creations CDs on the house. Talk about making button making easy!
5 - Finally, this isn’t really a supply, but more of a suggestive hint: you need to know what you are doing! While it is very easy to learn how to make buttons, and anyone can truly do it, it never hurts to have a little bit of help along the way. American Button Machines has many resources and videos on their website that assist in the process of learning how to make buttons. Even better, they have start a blog called The Button Blog that provides regular hints, tricks, and tutorials for how to make buttons, and then excellent ideas for what to use buttons for once they are made. Also, most places will send an instructional CD along with your new button maker. ABM includes theirs for free!
With these five supplies and ideas in mind, you are read to spread your wings and fly out into the wonderful world of buttons!
The question of whether or not social security should continue or if the system should undergo privatization has continued to be a hot topic of discussion for taxpayers and elected officials. In part one of a two part series on generational equity we will look at the pros of privatizing social security. In part two of this series on generational equity, we will look at the cons of privatizing social security.
The problem is unambiguous; social security as it stands today will not be able to support the generations that follow the baby boomers. The younger generations are paying for the retirement of the older. However, according to Linda Feldmann of the Christian Science Monitor, when it comes time for the younger generations to retire, the cost of social security is expected to grow to levels that cannot be met by the programs currently in place.
Privatization of the social security system stands strong as a proposal for social security reform. In George W. Bush’s run for presidency in 2000, he proposed partial privatization. The Bush Administration worked toward a system of privatizing social security, and although unsuccessful, President George W. Bush cited it as his biggest domestic achievement.
The Concord Coalition supports a mandatory system of funded and personally owned retirement accounts. Some of the pros of privatization are: morality, avoidance of financial crisis, surpluses in the federal budget, increase in national savings and ultimately economic growth.
Moral – According to Daniel Shapiro’s article for the CATO Institute, privatizing social security is a moral issue. He states, “A privatized Social Security system gives individuals more freedom to run their lives, is fairer, provides more security, and creates less antagonism between generations, fostering a greater sense of community.”
Avoidance of Financial Crisis – The crisis of running out of money to cover social security expenses for the younger generations will be avoided. No longer will young generations depend on social security checks, rather they will be funded through personal investments and savings.
Surpluses in Federal Budget – The cost of transitioning retirement plans will need to be offset. When that happens there will be surpluses in the federal budget that will continue to grow. This will yield tax reduction or national debt reduction.
Increase in National Savings & Economic Growth – All of these things work together to create large economic growth in the U.S. With invested dollars into retirement accounts, “national investment, productivity, wages, jobs, and economic growth” would increase, producing economic growth.
