"Like most guitar players I eventually found myself without a guitar pick. In a pinch, I cut them out of materials I had on hand such as plastic lids and expired credit cards. I remember saying to myself, 'there must be an easier way!' So that's when the Pick Punch was born." Von Luhman, Inventor
The Pick Punch® has been available since 2009 but I saw it for the first time recently, when I worked on a post about re-using old credit cards and gift cards. I thought it looked like a genius product, so I wrote to the inventor/owner (Von Luhman) and asked if I could have one to test, then give away to you lovely doodle folk... he said yes! (FYI: Pick Punch® is a local business for me - I consider Indiana local and I'm thrilled to feature them!)
I learned to play acoustic guitar very young and was taught to pick with my fingers. So I've never used a pick myself. However, I know plenty of people who do, and they lose them all the time. For $24.95 this punch pops out a life-time's supply of 1-3/16″ (30mm) tall by 1-1/16″ (25.5mm) wide picks in the standard tear drop shape (351 or Fender shape). Here's what Von told me about the resulting picks:
We make picks here as good as, if not better than, a factory. And you can also make picks from materials that are not sold by the guitar industry, so it's actually better in many ways. You can put left or right handed bevels on our picks unlike factory picks (they tumble them with even bevels).
The punch is exactly what it looks like - a very strong stapler/paper punch. It arrived with a sanding block, which I wasn't sure I'd use but did. In the picture above, I have the yellow card positioned design-side up for the shot. However, if you flip the card over, you can see exactly where the shape will punch out and position it accordingly. Very handy for aesthetic purposes.
The punch works perfectly - cuts through the card with little effort and the resulting pick has a really clean edge that is quickly beveled/perfected with the sanding block. I popped out picks from two gift cards and a credit card. I was done in minutes and had ready-to-wear jewelry in another hour or so (see the tutorial for the guitar-pick earrings and pendant).
I'm as impressed with the Pick Punch® as I hoped to be and excited to send it to a new home! Giveaway opens 12:01 EST Tues, 7/3 and ends Fri, 7/6 at midnight. WINNER announced Sat 7/7. It's easy to score multiple entries and increase your chances of winning - enter below for details... (Open to US residents 18 and older)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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