The Claddagh Pint
The Claddagh Pint design is one that I’m most proud of. I created it back in August 2021, before releasing it on September 30th, 2021 in and it’s my top selling pin to date.
As you may have seen from elsewhere on my site, I’m a divil for taking traditional Irish designs and updating them with nods to modern Ireland. The Claddagh Pint is by far the most popular example that I have of this.
While I’d like to say that it exploded and sold out instantly like the Lady on the Rock did, the truth is that it was a real slow burner. As I said, it has since become my best seller and I’ve made a few variations of it.
How it came to be
I still remember pretty vividly how it came into my head. I was sitting at home on the couch, the dog on my legs (big dog, small legs) and I was looking at some old Irish jewellery on my iPad. This was a fairly common evening for me before our baby was born. Now I have a dog on my legs, a baby on my chest and Bluey on the telly. Anyway, I was playing around with the Claddagh design and for some reason I had Po, she from the Teletubbies in place of the Claddagh Heart. (Po looked more like Rudy Guiliani in this design, truth be told). My friend Seán texted me, asking me how I was getting on, and he mentioned how he was enjoying a cheeky afternoon pint. I told him how jealous I was, I changed Po to a pint and I was floored with how iconic the design looked.
The Original design
Now, I’m not a great hand-drawer, so I took the idea and cleaned it up in Adobe Illustrator. It was too good to be mine. I must have stolen this from somewhere without knowing, I thought.
Too good to be true?
I contacted Hephee, Bunti Lee, Mink Superstore and a few other local illustrative heroes asking if they’d made this design before. They hadn’t. Hephee said he hadn’t but wished he had - I knew I was onto a winner from then on. That said, I still held my horses and I sat on this design for a little while longer.
I’m always very careful to check that whatever I release, hasn’t already been done by somebody else already. You see, about 6 months before I created the Claddagh Pint, I drew up a mouth inspired by the Rolling Stones logo, but changed the words under it to ‘Fridgets annonymous’. I was toying with the idea of making it into a pin, but it was mostly just a lockdown doodle that I had made. I threw it up on my Instagram stories and asked whether it would and within minutes I had some of the angriest and accusatory messages I’ve ever received from about five separate accounts. Someone else had made a badge that was similar in content and they all thought I was ripping them off. I wasn’t, but either way, it wasn’t an experience that I particularly enjoyed, so from that point on, I decided to ask around before posting anything concrete. I regularly google reverse-search or put out the images on my instagram with a ‘has this been done’ proviso to it, to be doubly-sure.
Getting it made
Once I was sure this was good to go, I ran with it. I had a hundred made up, I plastered it on my packaging and I made some accompanying stickers, keyrings and fridge magnets to accompany it. I was sure that this was going to be a winner, and while it didn’t prove to be instantly so (probably because the original photos were rubbish, see below), it has since become a fan favourite.
The Reaction and how far it’s gone
In the three years since I released this, it has become my best seller, only recently overtaking the Lady on the Rock pin. It was featured on The Lad Bible, was worn by a guest on the Tommy Tiernan show, was featured in the Irish Indo, the Irish Times, District Magazine and it has been tattoo’d onto at least three people that I know of.
Not only that, this pin has travelled further afield than any other deadly pin. It has been sold, and found a home in Ireland, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Netherland, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, every county of the UK and 13 US states. Someone even took it to the Arctic Circle with them! I know of at least two foreign delegates at the UN who received one from one of my best customers too!
The OG Design vs the modern version
As for the design, I’ve made some changes to it over the years, to make it more wearable and pleasant on the eye. The original version had a black nickel outline to it. It’s not hugely noticeable from a distance, but considering there aren’t very many colours on the pin as is, I felt it was neater to make the outlines part of the body of the piece. This makes the piece feel considerably nicer as well as making it seamlessly beautiful up close. However, it does leave it a little bit more exposed to grubby fingerprints! Don’t handle it after a bag of crisps and you’ll be grand, though. The colour of the circle behind the hands has also being changed to be a little warmer and the hands have been tightened up a smidge too. Here’s a before and after for you to wrap your retinas around:
I’ve also made 3d metal versions, a larger version for bags, which sold well, a fridge magnet version a load of stickers and even a bottle-cap opener.
Claddagh Pint Pin
The Claddagh ring is a traditional Irish symbol of Love. Typically the centre is a heart, but we all know what it should be. A delicious, creamy pint.
Show them where your heart lies with Claddagh Pint Enamel Pin. This is the Original design of the Claddagh Pint, first released in August, 2021 - years before any of the loud imitators.
Size
26.2mm tall
38mm wide
Pin Details
Hard Enamel Pin
2 Pin Backs for stability
Yellow rubber clutches
Deadly.ie embossing on the back
Original (and best) design
Free sticker (while stocks last!)
The Original Claddagh Pint Design
Despite loud claims otherwise, deadly.ie was the originator of this design. It was released here three full years before anyone else made their versions and 4 years before someone else claimed the Intellectual Property on it. Madness, I know. You can see the original design here on Google Photos back from August, 2021, or you can see it when it was released to the public on Instagram here.
Others claim that they’re the originator of the Claddagh Pint, but unless their name is Richard Joyce, the original designer of the Claddagh Ring from the 1700s, I think I’ve got this design locked down and the receipt to prove it!
I’ve nothing more to add, but let me know what you think about this one in the comments, follow me on instagram and encourage me to keep growing my TikTok.
Pint Claddagh
The Claddagh ring is a traditional Irish symbol of Love. Typically the centre is a heart, but we all know what it should be. A delicious, creamy pint. These are the gold and silver variants, different to the OG Claddagh Pint.
Show them where your heart lies with Claddagh Pint Enamel Pin.
Size
26.2mm tall
38mm wide
Pin Details
3D Enamel Pin
2 Pin Backs for stability
Black rubber clutches
Deadly.ie embossing on the back
Free sticker (while stocks last!)
See also the alternative, original Pint Claddagh design here.