Need help with makers mark

Varga Knives

Varga Knives

Joined
Aug 12, 2006
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Okay, this is going to be rather long winded because there is a lot of information that goes into this decision. I have been sitting on a Personalizer (not a Plus) for a couple of month and have just finished up my third knife (I know, big wup). I think they are coming out better than I would have guessed and I really need to order some stencils and start marking them. I have been so indecisive on coming up with a logo/name/brand/makers mark/whatever that I realize if I don’t get outside opinions I’ll never pull the trigger.

I first started penciling out ideas and realized my initials (M over a V) could be easily made to look (I think) like a fox by adding two little line eyes. An animal associated with a brand sounded good so I went with the idea for a while. My knife making influence is my father and he is from Hungary; fox in Hungarian is Roka, so I thought that was cool too but for reasons stated in similar threads I thought having a name like Roka Knives would only cause confusion. I still like the fox, though, but the image without an association to my first and last name might be meaningless to all but myself (which may actually be okay - dunno).

Back to thinking like the grown up I am supposed to be… I am now leaning towards a simpler “VARGA” with something like “Custom Knives” curved like a smile underneath and maybe a dot or a diamond in the center. I lose the mascot but oh well.

I have very little talent in drawing up designs, so simple is all I could come up with. Any opinions or advice would be appreciated.
 
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Go to Ernie's knives. He has a lot of ideas on his website and u can order the stencils from him. I can't say enough good things about him. Last time I ordered stencils from him they were at my door in about 3 days. He is a great guy.
 
So, I take it your last name is Varga then?? That's a good place to start if so. IMHO everything related to your design should be looked at from a standpoint of clarity and longevity. Most folks will tell you simple is good when it comes to designing a maker's mark. Having your name and location may be a common strategy for the same reasons we side step fresh cow pies (simple and effective).

If you are planning on quitting your day job to go full time, then all this probably matters. A lot. If you are just making a few knives for you and yours, maybe it is easy to over analyze here.

FWIW there is at least one well-known living maker that uses only a fox outline as his mark. And not by coincidence, it's a lot harder for me to remember who and where he is. Word.

I have some background in graphic design and the related software. I'll be glad to help you work out your ideas.

Best
Andy
 
Bomp - I have been to Ernie's site and was actually planning to order my stencils there. Maybe I should just give him a call.

Andy- Yep, Varga is my last name and thanks for the offer. No plans to go full time at least until I retire but just the same I maybe want to eventually start selling. I agree that ease of identification is key and so the only things left on the table would be a play on the name (Varga, Varga Knives, Varga Custom Knives, etc.).

Stan - Thanks for the article. I haven't read that one before and it gave me some clarity. You've always been more helpful to me than you know.

I think Varga is uncommon enough to not warrant the location and with a global society is a big reason to go with a location simply tradition? Not counting it out alltogether just yet.
 
Just make it simple:

Varga Knives
Albany, NY

or ( better in my opinion)

Mike Varga
Albany, NY


No one will ever have any problem identifying the maker or where he lives. If you become famous, these will easily be recognizable.....if you don't they will still be recognizable.
 
Just got my first set of stencils from IMG. Patricia was very helpful at turning my less the stellar hand sketch into several options that were much better looking than my original design, and she did this within one working day. It took a couple more days to fine tune the design and once I gave her final approval I had my stencil in the mail three days later! The point I'm trying to make is that there are people out there who do the graphic design stuff all day everyday and they are much better/faster at it than we are; so don't be afraid to enlist their help in order to get the results that you are looking for. I can't say enough about how positive my experience was with IMG.

So far I've only etched a couple of blades,but the results have been promising using "homebrew" etchant. I have the real stuff on order and it should be here today or tomorrow. I am hoping that the commercial etchant will give a darker mark and be less harsh on the stencil.

Jeff
 
Patricia at IMG knows her stuff. She's also as nice as she is knowledgeable. Also, once they have your artwork on file a new sheet of stencils is only $10 + shipping.
I'm also of the opinion that simple is better. My stamp and stencil are both simply my first name centered over my last name. I'm sure you'll come up with something nice.
 
If you did wish to keep the fox you can always use it on the opposite side of the knife. I have my initials in a chop, but knew that would not be sufficient, so I had a visual mark and a script mark made.

IMG_7135.jpg

IMG_7134.jpg
 
I started working with Ernie on this today and here is where we are:
Mark.jpg
I like the diamond thingy in the middle but I am a little concerned it might be too busy. The bottom one is simply from Excel and the reason I included it is it has "CUSTOM KNIVES" in a different font that I like. Also, I figure if I wanted I could on occasion (spine) use only the name. Opinions?
 
I vote for the bottom one. Can't say I'm liking the diamond thingy. Your idea on just the name on the spine would be another plus for the bottom one.
 
I like simply "Varga", with or without the diamond; Instead of (or inside of) the diamond, you could also put the year of manufacture.

I don't see any need to put "custom Knives" under it though. If you did put something under it, the city and state where you live would be better from a buyers (mine anyway...) perspective. I always like to know where my favorite makers are from, and I think it gives a more personal "human" touch. And, what if you get an itch to make an axe?

VARGA
13
Albany, NY​
 
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