A thought occurred to me the other night; could I get staples in other colors besides boring ol' silver? One quick Google search later, and I had discovered that I could indeed. After reading a few bad reviews though, I decided to hold off on buying any. The complaint is the same for a few different brands; the color is just painted on and tends to flake off.
I came across a suggestion to use Sharpies to color the staples yourself, so I searched for info on that. Not much came up though, no tips, how tos, pros or cons. It sounded like a good idea, plus I have loads of staples and dozens of different colored Sharpies, so I tried it out for myself. Here's my experiment, complete with unprofessional pictures!
In this picture you can see how a few different colors look; blue, purple, green, orange, red, teal, magenta, and black. I got all fancy and drew black stripes on the the last one. I've just colored the tops of the staples here, but you could color the sides as well. I guess it depends what part of the staple you'll see on your finished product. Also, some colors show up better than others on the staples.
Color quickly, trying not to go over the same place two many times. Coloring over the semi-dry ink seems to cause it to sort of "gum up" and wipe off. This picture is of the worst looking ones I did. Once they are dry though, the ink doesn't wipe off with normal handling.
The ink can scratch off, but not easily. My fingernail didn't make much of a dent, so I tried it with the sharp pokey end of a chunk of staples. That certainly did the trick.
Victory is mine! I think I like the stripey ones the best.
Got any hints? Got a better idea? Done a similar tutorial? I'd love to hear about it, so bring it on!
Wow! great idea.
ReplyDeleteOh, that's neat.
ReplyDeleteI've had kind of an opposite experience: the staples that I've bought at Walmart and the grocery store are made too cheaply. They're plain metal,of course, and almost every staple is so soft that it gets all bent up and stuck inside my stapler. I think they just use a cheap kind of metal.
I started looking for colored staples, because I'd used them before and they seem more durable. I looked ALL OVER for them (interestingly, not online, which is uncharacteristic of me, but whatever) and I couldn't find them anywhere...except at Office Depot. They had one kind, and they were blue. They've done the trick. My stapler hasn't gotten stuck since I started using them.
The thing is, colored staples from the store cost more than plain staples, but what, like $1 more? $2? A box of staples lasts me years, so it's totally worth it.
Of course, if you can get your hands on some silver staples that are well made, this would be fun to do. I just have to use blue for everything.
Thanks for your super-nice comments guys! :)
ReplyDeleteEmily, what brand are those staples? Coloring them was a fun project, but I'd love to try the "real" ones.
UGH! I needed purple staples for something recently. I searched everywhere and finally found them online. I purchased enough to last me a good 2 years or so. Now I'm wishing I hadn't. The color on the staples I purchased chips off quite easily. I can just use this trick from now on.
ReplyDeleteWhat FUN! Anything to spice up life, eh? I was wonnerin' how you could incorporate them into industrial jewelry! And what about a RAINBOW staple??? :D
ReplyDeleteI've been doing this for quite some time. I use them to staple treat bags shut. I wipe across a strip with rubbing alcohol. Even the natural oil off your fingers can affect the ink bonding to the metal.
ReplyDeleteKim
Thanks Kim, that's great! I'll have to remember that.
ReplyDeleteWonder if nail polish would work any better?
ReplyDeleteI have been meaning to try this for a while. I just used some alcohol ink and it worked great! Just swiped it across the whole strip with a felt applicator. I now have lovely lime green staples! :D
ReplyDeleteHow about nail polish? I have tons, but never use them...
ReplyDeleteHmmm...nail polish has potential. I'll have to give it a whirl the next time I paint my toes. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's really cool Lily! Sounds much easier than coloring with markers too. lol
fabulous idea, thanks for sharing
ReplyDeletefun!! going to try this right now!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks!!! :D
ReplyDeleteOne of those goofy simple and VERY cute ideas!
ReplyDeleteBTW...great photos and layout.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the super nice comments! I love how I'm not the only one who thought this was cute! :)
ReplyDeleteI totally love this idea! If I still worked in an office, my documents would never have boring staples again! I still occasionally use staples, so the ones I do have will be getting a makeover. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting.
Anything to make officey-type work fun! Thanks for the comment. :D
ReplyDeletethis is awesome :)
ReplyDeleteCheck these out! http://blog.shoplet.com/office-supplies/swingline-color-staples/ They are so bright and colorful!
ReplyDeleteAfter I saw your post, I colored some paper clips and thumb tacks with sharpies and that was pretty fun. I love the idea of coloring any metal office supplies!
So cute ideas for kids and officer, i like it very much. Thanks for sharing
ReplyDelete