PlaqueMaker Blog

the best time of year to realize your awesome geekness, or that of one of your closest geek friends.

“I have a unique musical instrument, which I display on my wall,” William tells us. “It is a hand-crafted Mountain Dulcimer. The plaque explains the history of the instrument and credits the designer who built it.”

Three-year-old golf phenom Baby James took fourth place in his first tournament against kids twice his age!

While it is not a must that you give someone something during their graduation ceremony, the practice is pretty common today.

It’s all part of the wildly popular fantasy role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons –D&D for short- a storytelling adventure with at least 20 million enthusiasts worldwide, and counting.

Here’s a lovely idea on how to do it! Tammy Holloway is the Program Director for Snack in a Backpack of Blue Ridge, Georgia, a nonprofit organization that provides nutritious food to local children in need. Funded entirely by private donors and local businesses, the program is dedicated to reducing childhood hunger in Fannin County, serving more than 400 students in seven county schools.

Kei Preston recently shared his custom plaque creation with us, which has a fabulous back story. We’ll let Kei tell you about it:

“This plaque is designed as a thank you gift for a friend …

… He was the ‘game master’ for our Dark Heresy campaign (essentially a Warhammer 40k variation of Dungeons & Dragons) and he did an exquisite job. The story arc he had laid for us was intriguing, his ability to react to our unpredictable whims was impressive and his use of sound effects and voice modifiers was phenomenal. Paired with his stellar voice acting, the experience was really unforgettable, largely due to his performance.”

“Laughs and close calls were shared during our campaign …

… He also role played our commanding officer, allowing us to ask questions and interact with him in such a way that did not disrupt the game. When our campaign was over, his character went missing and was presumed dead.”

“To thank him for his top notch performance and guidance, my other friends and I pitched in to award him the equivalent of the Medal of Honor posthumously with a plaque honoring our fallen commanding officer.”

Kei and his friends chose PlaqueMaker for our affordable price, especially when ordering an individual plaque. The plaque is totally personalized with words written by Kei, along with the Rosette of the Inquisition, which is the fictional governmental organization their characters worked for. Our design team helped Kei with the plaque layout and also made several changes at his request very quickly.

“We love the final product! Thanks again everybody,” Kei tells us. You’re quite welcome!

Create easy design tabletop or card tournament game award plaques for your next champion. It’s easy to customize with winner’s name, tournament name and a special message.

Recent PlaqueMaker customer William W. Burrows shares a story he’s written that describes the artistic work of North Carolina-based Windsong Instruments and the hand-crafted instruments they make. “They are true works of art, hand-crafted the same way as it was done 300 years ago,” William says. “Many people, including myself, purchase these custom-made, authentic old-fashioned dulcimers to hang on the wall as room decorations. One thing was missing – a plaque that explained the significance of the musical instrument.”

PlaqueMaker’s extensive clip art gallery has thousands of logos, seals and other artwork for every branch of the military, including the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines as well as the Coast Guard, the National Guard, POW-MIA and more.

Robert Rock, Jr. of Certified Grinding and Machine in Rochester, NY was looking for a particular plaque design that would not only reflect the company’s place in the machining industry, it would commemorate a customer/supplier on his retirement, paying tribute to their long and happy working relationship.

The best gift you can give someone is one that comes from the heart and says what you want to say especially if you can't find the right words. One such gift is a personalized plaque.

When the group of volunteers from Harriet Hall’s church left for their annual mission trip to Nicaragua earlier this July, they packed enough for 10 days in the rural community of Plan Grande 2, north of Managua – including a set of beautiful custom engraved plaques that are given to those students who graduate from high school.

Looking for a unique gift for Mother’s Day, last minute? This custom personalized plaque has loads of style and is made using PlaqueMaker’s unique Easy Design templates. Our template is very easy to use and with so many options for customization, you’ve got this!

Companies that believe in employee recognition know that custom perpetual plaques are a unique way to document an outstanding history of success. You may have seen perpetual plaques on display at a university to honor notable alumni or the corporate office of a non-profit or community organization to thank inspiring leaders or generous donors. Perpetual plaques are a great way to celebrate a number of individual achievements with one award.

Surprise that special birthday someone with a personalized plaque this year.

If you’re looking for a fresh new way to celebrate a birthday, why not create a custom Happy Birthday plaque from PlaqueMaker?

Say you’re planning a huge surprise party for a friend who’s about to celebrate the Big 4-0. Wouldn’t it be cool to have a personalized plaque made especially for them – and commemorate their milestone in the process?

Our Aluminum Plaque gifts are great for that milestone birthday, special event or “just because.” A Happy Birthday plaque is perfect for anyone of any age. It can feature festive, colorful graphics and can also be personalized with the recipient’s name, a personal message and the date.

And you know, not all of our Easy Design birthday plaques look the same. You have even more ways to customize your unique gift. There are a variety of sizes to choose, such as 5"x7" to a 18"x24". For the board, choose from Cherry, Black, Oak and Marble, or upgrade to Bamboo, Solid Cherry, Solid Walnut or a Glass Board plus Base. The glass can be ordered with holes already placed for mounting. For the metal, you have the option of Silver, Gold or White Aluminum.

And that’s not all. For the recipient’s name, your personal message and the date, a color printing upgrade is available. So you see, our Easy Designs are oh-so-versatile, too!

Looking for a Custom Plaque Layout?

If you’re feeling especially creative, why not design the entire birthday plaque yourself? You can request a custom plaque layout by emailing us at help@PlaqueMaker.com, or simple browse our entire selection of personalized plaques. Truly, there’s something for everyone – and designing them on your own can bring out your inner artist. We have even more options for materials (crystal, granite and copper, for instance), layouts (a variety of shapes and sizes) plus plaques and frames that feature photos and artwork – even newspapers, magazines, journals or websites. (You can feature the newspaper headlines from the day the recipient is born!)

Wish a Happy Birthday the novel way, with a personalized Happy Birthday plaque – the person who is celebrating a birthday will undoubtedly say, “That’s so cool – thank you!”

Giving a plaque to a local hero is always a gift that is well received. Personalizing the plaque makes it both meaningful and memorable. You can choose from one of several ways to honor a hero - all which distinguish them in a special way.

Usually awarded at the end of a school year, the Student of the Year award recognizes outstanding students who use their natural talents for good – achieving top academic marks while giving back to their school and their community.

In a world of stress, sometimes it just feels comforting to be reminded of the serenity, courage and wisdom we use to get through the dark times. Share these values in your home with our beautiful bamboo Serenity Prayer sign. It’s easy to personalize, too. Just type your family name into our online design form and you’re done. Makes a fabulous gift for the New Year, or any time.