Real gift cards are here!

Designing for yourself can be lots of fun, but designing for someone else? Uhh...thanks, but no thanks. Even my husband and I aren't that close. While it may be "the thought that counts," sometimes it's the font that counts.

Because nothing says legit brewer like Comic Sans.

So instead of spending hours over a Ouija board and Photoshop trying to divine their perfect brewing logo, why don't you save some time this holiday season, and give them what they really want: creative freedom!

Seriously. Nothing's as much fun as coming up with your own brand. That's the joy of BottleMark. While we've had digital gift certificates available for purchase since last year, we've just added a new and even better option for the savvy gift-giver: the REAL gift card.

Because nothing says legit gift like plastic.

Give the gift of custom caps in a tangible, wrappable, stocking-stuffable form. Cards come with a redeemable code, a gift card sleeve, and a LOTR reference on the back. You know you want to see one for yourself! Shipping's a cheap $2 in the USA.

Get them here: BottleMark Gift Certificates and Gift Cards

Dec. 7: New Christmas Deadline

Here at BottleMark, we don't like to make promises we can't keep. We calculated our original Christmas deadline assuming a heretofore unprecedented daily order volume. But it seems even that number wasn't high enough. We have grossly underestimated how much you guys want custom bottle caps.

When bottle caps attack!

Our new deadline for Christmas delivery is FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7 @ 11:59 PST. That means you've got two more days to place your order! DO IT NOW!

Christmas Guarantee

We're very happy to be very busy here at BottleMark. With the holiday season upon us, we're churning out custom caps as quickly as the machines can go. But we're not Amazon. We're not pulling from a warehouse.

Not us.

Want to give the gift of custom caps? Order by December 10, and we'll guarantee your caps will arrive before Dec. 25. In other words, order now!

Missed the deadline? Consider giving a gift certificate to the homebrewers in your life--it's the gift of custom caps and creative freedom! Because, let's face it: they probably won't like your font choices anyway.

Check out BottleMark's December shipping details here.

Happy holidays to you and yours! Cheers!

The Bottle Cap Bar of Dodge Brewery

After four and a half years of brewing, Eric Dodge finally has all the badging of the pros. He's put his family crest logo on t-shirts and labels before, but nothing says "official" quite like a bottle cap.

Classy? Quite. 

But wait...it gets even classier. Saddled with an outdated bar in his basement, Eric Dodge decided to jazz it up with bottle caps. He edged it in wine corks, laid out a substantial collection of bottle caps, and covered the top with half-an-inch of clear resin for a solid top surface.

The ultimate basement accessory.

Check out the cork siding.

A custom cap in action!

Dodge's only regret? Not using more custom caps. My only regret? Not having a basement where I can have my own bottle cap bar.

If you collect or otherwise craft with custom caps, check out our quarter technique tutorial—by far the best way to remove a bottle cap without damaging it.

Design Resources

Check out our new and improved Design Resources page. We revamped all the material and put everything on one single page. From templates to screencasts, we've got all the information you need to create a fantastic bottle cap, all in one place!

Design like this!

Not like this.

Design Lesson #5: Clip Art and Finishing Touches

At long last, the quest for a perfect bottle cap design is over! Check out the final steps of the Tully design in this fifth Inkscape screencast. You'll learn how to use the Open Clip Art Library, how to draw stars, and how to use the dropper tool. Remember to double-check your design at 1" to make sure no element is too small! Seriously!!!

And here's the cap in real life:

Rock it, kitteh.

Now if only I could brew and bottle such a beer...

Bierkast and LA Ale Works

Some folks love beer so much, they can't have just one cool beer project—they need two. Such is the story of Kip Barnes, a founding member of both Bierkast and L.A. Aleworks.

Bierkast began as a group of beer lovers and exploded into a blog of tremendous energy. It's the kind of site that puts 99.9% of bloggers to shame—yours truly not withstanding. While it chiefly spotlights personalities and events in the Los Angeles beer world, Bierkast offers its readers much more than that. It's slick, it's entertaining, it's wide-ranging, it's personal. It's passion on a webpage.

And here's passion on a cap.

Now I know you're not doing anything productive on this lovely Friday, so go check out Bierkast. But beware the green-eyed monster jealousy: some of the writers went to Oktoberfest.

Because a kick-ass blog is not enough, Kip needed a kickstart project, too. L.A. Aleworks is a handcrafted work-in-progress. Tired of the less-than-thrilling brewing scene in LA, John Rockwell and Kip Barnes decided to take matters into their own hands and start their own brewery. LAAW promises to be a boutique community brewery. They're starting with their award-winning homebrew recipes...

Gams-Bart Roggenbier (a Bavarian hefeweizen brewed with rye malt instead of wheat malt)

Dampfmaschine (a California Common, aka Steam beer)

Lievre Saison

With a few custom caps, their sample bottles now have both the look and the taste of the pros.

Expect a Kickstarter campaign soon to support the launch of LA Aleworks. Keep up with LAAW news on Bierkast here.

Major props to graphic designer Ken Barnes (father of Kip). You can tell he has mad branding skills. Both the Bierkast and LAAW logos translate phenomenally on bottle caps. Nothing's too small, nothing's too complex, and the strong color contrast makes every element pop. These are the kinds of logos you remember.

Here's to more ale in the city of angels!