Welcome, Artisan Collector!
Welcome, Artisan Collector!
Author: rmendis
Published: Dec 30, 2020
I bought my first artisan in December 2016, and within a few months, I was deep into the rabbit hole, fully addicted to artisan collecting. For many people, artisan keycaps are a fusion of several things they may already enjoy - indie art, collectibles, personal computing, and photography - all rolled into a single hobby. Add in a diverse, active community, along with the unique opportunity to interact with makers directly, and who can resist?
Like many before me, I discovered these colorful little sculptures during my research into mechanical keyboards for a new PC. I was in search of something that evoked the feel of the sturdy, buckling-spring IBM keyboard I used as a kid in the 80's. Inevitably, my search brought me to Geekhack, Deskthority, and Reddit's mechanical keyboard sub.
Among the various photos of pok3rs, model M's, and “kustoms”, were curious little creatures perched around the edge of the peripheral, turning something that would otherwise be "just a keyboard" into a unique and interesting display of art, which reflected each owner's personal tastes.
The initial excitement around finding cool sculpts like fugus, brobots, kosmos and others, gradually gave way to apprehensive curiosity. Where are new artisans available for sale, why are existing ones so expensive and hard to find, and if they aren’t available for sale, how do you actually obtain them? Navigating my way around this esoteric and seemingly insider-only community was, and still can be, daunting.
The path to learning where and how to get these artisans was fraught with mistakes and hard (costly) lessons learned. The primary motivation behind this site is to expose more people to this wonderful hobby and provide a modicum of help to newcomers, that they may avoid or at least be aware of some of the potential pitfalls.
Finally, my search to obtain these artisans led me to something as interesting and enjoyable as the product itself, and certainly more rewarding: the people I befriended during my quests. As I look back on my collection, I realize that some of my favorite caps, and certainly the ones that are most meaningful to me, were obtained only with help from friends I made along the way, and friends are what keep me coming back when I felt burned out.
I truly believe that the best part of this hobby, and what I have come to love most about it, is the interaction with fellow enthusiasts and the forging of friendships along the path to collection. If you invest the time to get to know others and help them, not only will your searches be easier in the long term, but the hobby will be infinitely more rewarding, regardless of which caps you are able to obtain. Aspects of this philosophy are scattered throughout the guides, in hope that you may find in the hobby the same enjoyment other like-minded collectors have.
Permit me to take a moment to thank all the friends in the community I've met, helped me learn, and encouraged me to make this site, the makers who give this hobby life, and especially my wife and kids, who, amazingly and with the utmost patience, put up with my obsession. Much love.
TL;DR: whether you are a "casual" collector, looking for a low-cost artisan to adorn your keyboard, or a determined “grail-hunter” who is about to enter the rabbit hole in seek of rare, vintage caps, I hope this site provides some value and helps you enjoy the journey as much as the destination. =)
Read on to learn about the site structure and content...
Responsive Content
The content and layout of this site, especially the gallery, looks best on larger displays. However, many hobbyists are constantly on mobile devices, so effort has been made to ensure the pages also work well on smaller screens, including in portrait mode. The entire site is responsive, which means some content will be formatted differently on smaller screens, or, in rare cases, optional content will be hidden for brevity on smaller form factor devices.
