Designer Neoprene Laptop Sleeves

Put a wetsuit on your laptop. Honestly, I would not advise submersing your laptop underwater. These are not waterproof, but the slick feel of neoprene fabric makes for a hip laptop cover and gives you some cushioning and climate control for your computer. You can have these laptop sleeves made up in dozens of color and size combinations, with fashionable designer fabrics to integrate them with as well.

Here is a a design by P.K. Reese



Here is the standard solid color style



And here is a cool two-tone, which is perfect for school color applications

Free Design With Purchase of Promotional Item

I saw something for the first time today which I think is potentially going to be a major trend in promotional products marketing. ETS Express, one of my favorite promotional products suppliers is now offering ready prepared designer graphic wraps for several of their stainless steel water bottles.

These wraps are colorful, customizable and you can just insert your logo and order. They really aren't anything more than graphic design done for you, and included in the price of the water bottle. They are also very smart, on ETS part, because they encourage additional upcharges as the customer needs to pay additional run charges to replicate some of the designs. And several of the retail water bottle companies have bright colorful designs like this, and so I can see these being popular in the promotional arena as well for those that can afford them.

I think we may see more pre-designed graphics which can be used in connection with a corporate logo to really dress up the look of a promotional product. In an earlier post, I mentioned designer neoprene computer sleeves, with the designer stripes already worked in.

I see this high level of customization becoming more and more prevalent in the industry.

Slinky Adhesive Notepad

A note pad which looks and plays like a classic slinky. It looks fun and surprising. American Promotions sells the slinky notepad here in five separate colors.

Icefil Performance Cap

The Icefil Performance Cap by CapAmerica is very innovative. The Icefil technology takes sweat and converts it to a refrigerant cooling the wearer's head faster and more efficiently than the sweat alone. The fabric contains Xylitol, the same ingredient in an "icy" chewing gum. The cap also shields the wearer from IR and UV rays.

It is moisture absorbing, fast drying, have 2 way air circulation and an anti-bacterial coating. So ditch your basic fabric poly cotton caps and put your org's logo on the coolest cap of the year.

American Promotions, Inc. sells the Icefil Performance Cap here.

Fabriko Ship-N-Tote Bag

A very cool way to get your package opened, provide a gift with a big "Gee Whiz!" factor and be green all at the same time.

The Fabriko Ship-N-Tote Bag is a mailing packet which converts into a tote bag after it has been opened. It can be all over printed.

It comes in a drawstring bag and shopper's tote variations.

Awesome Floating Globe

This awesome floating globe is the type of thing I can't have on my desk, because it would be hugely anti-productive. I would just spend the whole day spinning it and playing with it. The globe floats via magnetic suspension. This reduces all friction except the air around it, so it can spin effortlessly.

This is the perfect gift for letting an employee or a great customer know you can work magic. I want one!

We sell the magnetic floating globe here.

14 Best Designed Products of 2009

I'm a fan of ASI, the Advertising Specialty Institute, which is a major information provider and technology developer for the promotional products and advertising industry. They have a great website at www.asicentral.com. The best stuff is for distributors only, but there is all kinds of neat promotional ideas for the general public as well.

Not everything about ASI thrills me, but for the most part, they provide more utility and service for the promotional products professional than any of the their competitors (of which there are only a handful).

I was reading on ASI's website today, and I found an article featuring the 14 best-designed products of 2009 and all of them are very cool and unique - true standouts among the literally hundreds of thousands of promotional items in the marketplace. I liked them so much, that I have decided to feature them on this blog, with my own comments - 1 per day for the next 14 days (Sundays not included.)

MoMA Magnetic Perpetual Calendar

Uniquely designed functional art which gives you the date and month. Sits on a desk or on the wall. Perfect for an advertising agency or a design centric client.

And you get to put your logo on it!

MoMA Magnetic Perpetual Calendar

Tire Key Tag

This is an example of a U.S.A. made soft vinyl key tags. A vinyl key fob is a promotional standby. It comes in hundreds of shapes, and custom shapes are not out of reach for most budgets. High contrast imprints display well on this item.

I like this tire shaped key tag, because it is simple and the message is clear: "Let's go." This is a budget promotion for lean times to help your customers feel appreciated and remember your business.

Make Winter Travel Safer

I think one of the most appreciated promotional gifts is the roadside emergency kits. These are a great premium, Christmas or safety award, because they are something which everyone needs if they drive distances; they convey true care and they are something which people really appreciate, because it might not be the first thing they think to buy, but if given it, it is like giving peace of mind.

I think this is the perfect incentive for an insurance agent to give to someone who chooses to make a larger insurance investment, such as placing all of their policies with the company and buying higher limits. American Promotions offers an entire line of auto safety kits.

Thanksgiving - The Day After

I'm sure I will enjoy some left over turkey today, and after a client appointment in a couple of hours, we are headed to the hills to get a Christmas tree.

I just wanted to wish my readers and American Promotions loyal customers a Happy Thanksgiving.

I thought this promotional Turkey Pencil is unique and fun.

Papercraft is Growing (and it makes a good promotion too)

I've always loved building toys. I spent years building toys in my childhood and teen years. My brothers and I were very into papercraft - building paper toy models and objects with three dimensional designs. Our family did not have a lot of money, and we created most of our toys except for the ones we bought with our own money, and the few which we received at Christmas. My brothers and I thought we were unique in the creation of paper toys, but I've learned just in recent years that it is a fast growing worldwide hobby, which has in some ways exploded because of the advent of the internet and the color printer. Papercrafts can now be inexpensively downloaded and printed out, and some people seem to have created little side businesses actually selling the higher quality downloads. This is all very cool.

My favorite blog for monitoring the world of papercraft is Papercraft Paradise. It is a great aggregator of links from all over the world to new papercrafts, and a vibrant community of people who do this for a hobby. I've never used it, but there is a Japanese software called Pepakura which facilitates the conversion of a 3-D digital image to the parts of a papercraft model. From what I can tell, there is still quite a bit of skill which goes into producing a good design, but this tool is really helpful in creating good designs.

I've also learned that offering papercraft designs is growing in popularity as a business tool, and it is something free that a company can offer to generate website traffic and interest in their product. Canon, Yamaha and Nissan all seem to be getting in on this action.

American Promotions has not entered the business of offering 3-D papercraft printable models to it's promotional clients, and at this time, although it is a very interest field, I do not see us going there. However, there are other promotional building toys which we do offer, and hundreds more which we have access to.

I particularly like this Icon Stix and Stonz executive toy. You can logo the tin which goes with it. This Icon marble maze is also a neat promotion.

Weekend Explorer Grill

This is a unique set. I can't imagine it being in huge demand, but it has a certain innovative appeal. It is a Weekend Explorer Grill and Cooler set. I'd have to see it in person to know how it really works. The outer chamber holds the grill, while the inner chamber holds up to 12 cans of cooled beverage - not bad to pack all into one unit. My only question would be: How long do you have to wait for the grill to cool before you put it all back together, or if you just cooled it with water, would the fast temperature change warp the product.

To use this as a promotional product, it can have a single color or multi-color logo put onto it with image-bonding. This is an unusual imprinting methodology, and I think I'll ask Primeline, when I get a chance more about it.

Sweatshirt Blanket - Junior Size

Our sixth baby is over six months old, and he is huge. I think he weighs more than 25 lbs. now, and he just started rolling over a couple weeks ago. He is fat, adorable, smiley and a very contented baby. For whatever reason, he has started to interact more just within the past few weeks - kind of like he woke up from his previously contented nature. We are having a lot of fun with him.


It started me thinking about good promotional products which could be given by a hospital, another medical facility, or someone who wants to market to or gift to mothers. One of the best is this is this sweatshirt blanket. We sell a lot of these in a larger stadium blanket size, but this size would be perfect as a blanket for kids, toddlers and babies. It comes in a wide variety of colors and even the hang tags can be customized if your organization is offering it as a gift or offering it at resell.

An Evening With My Daughter

Tonight, I go with my daughter to the annual Daddy/Daughter dance with my little girl sponsored by our church, Mandy. She is not so little anymore, as she turns 12 next month. This is the last year I will be attending this dance with her, as the dance is put on for girls age 8-11. It is always a very sweet evening. It usually has a Fifties theme. The fifties is kind of out of fashion in the U.S. right now, and even though it predates me by a couple of decades, I think about that era with fondness. It may be more perceived than real, but it seems to have been a simpler time, and an era of family values and wholesomeness. I'm sure it has many of the same problems as our modern era, and there is an element of innocence encapsulated in that decade.

I was searching for promotional items representing the fifties, and I frankly didn't find much. The sixties, seventies, eighties and even the thirties are a lot higher up in the cultural consciousness right now. I did however find a Compress T in the shape of a jukebox which I thought was kind of fun. I'm not too fond of the stock art, but it could be customized with cooler colors and design.

Need More Sports

I didn't grow up a very athletic guy. I regret it a little. I wish I would have been more involved in team sports. I played some basketball with a pick-up team at my church, and I practiced basketball a lot at home, because I wanted to be better. The only other sport which I really did competitively was swimming and I really enjoy swimming. My grandparents had a swimming pool and in the summer months, I used to swim four or five times a week. I was on a swimming team in 6th and 7th grades, and I really enjoyed that. We traveled to meets, and I did ok, and placed here and there.

I would like my children to be more involved in athletics than I am too, but at present that is not going so well. We have a big family, and I work a lot, and my children seem to be more interested in creating things, the sciences, books, stories, hiking, camping and cooking and the like. Those are fantastic skills and interests, but I would like them to be a little more involved in sports, and I guess I just need to make it more of a priority. I had my three oldest children in Little League for a while and that was fun, but all of the driving around just became a little too heavy.

Anyway, I need to put more emphasis on physical activity with my kids and sports.

Promotional products are a natural tie in with sports. One of my favorite vendors is Sport Products. It's a pretty unimaginative name for a company, but they have a great focused line of promotional sports balls and a bunch of cheering items as well. I really like their line of soft sport footballs.

On the americanpromotions.com website, I found lots of cool football promotional products. I really liked the mini football with laces. It is just really sharp looking with a logo. I also really liked the micro mini football by Sport Products. It can be made in all kinds of school colors.

One of the more innovative suppliers in the promotional products industry right now is CorporateKey. They supply and manufacture over 1000 small portable electronics devices such as USB drives, wireless mice, USB hubs, MP3 players and digital photo frames.

American Promotions can offer any product which CorporateKey sales and at a discount. However, our website is best supplied with USB drives.

Election Candidates

I'm keeping my vote private, but I will say that neither of the two major presidential candidates represent the kind of Constitutional and foundational thinking about government that I hold so dear. They are both cut from the cloth which states that government can solve most of humankind's problems if we can just find the right set of policies. This is fundamentally flawed. People must solve their own problems through their own efforts, with their families and by means of voluntary cooperation from like-minded communities. Governments, by contrast, try to coerce and financially incentivize change.

Our founding fathers were inspired men who understood that the primary role of government is to protect those rights which are inalienable to us. Neither McCain or Obama will govern this way. Both of them are ready to open the goody bag (and already have) for all types of special interests and ideologues even if it means freedom gets short shrift. Both are ready to help people avoid the consequences of poor choices.

I've always been interested in the political process, and I think if I were more of a collector, political memorabilia would be a great place to collect. Most political items are promotional products, and they are highly effective ones in that the primary function is message, as opposed to the peripheral function as with other promtional items.

Here are a few: patriotic foil pencil, custom hand fans, Republican elephant hand fan, Democratic donkey hand fan, and bumper stickers.

Here is a cool site if your are interested in becoming a political memorabilia collector: http://apic.us/

Cutting Wood


I had a very manly Saturday this last weekend and a lot of fun. Every year, many of the men from our church go up onto a property in the Applegate Valley in Southern Oregon, and we cut and split wood for other members of our church who are in need of it, and are unable to do it for themselves. The manly feeling runs deep as everyone is in their woodsy clothes and the sound of chainsaws, the splitting ax, and the mechanical log splitter pierce the cool mountain air. It is hard work and a lot of fun, and their is laughing, grunting and sweat.


I took my two boys with me this year, one 9 and the other 7 and they moved the cut wood into piles and pulled and lifted the more manageable pieces to be cut.


This is the type of job that is much less pleasant without the right tools. A natural promotional product for this type of work is the work glove. American Promotions offers an entire line of logoed work gloves from the inexpensive gardening type to high quality cowhide leather work gloves. I really like this pair.

Custom Table Covers

One of our biggest sellers on our website is our custom table covers and our imprinted table runners and logo tablecloths. We sell these almost every day, and we believe with proper marketing that we could triple our performance on those items. We use multiple suppliers for our table covers. The more expensive ones demonstrate a real quality difference.

Our customers use these table covers at trade and community events, and from what I understand, some of them use them in retail as well. I believe we have the sources to do matching banners, which hang behind the table cover, but we need to improve that area of our website to show more possibilities. My business partner explains that they do not sell nearly as well as the tablecloths do.

The best made table covers have a polyester fabric which is woven in a way that the wrinkles virtually just fall out of them. We offer a less expensive table cover, but we have had a couple of complaints as of late that the product doesn't have the same wrinkle free drape. We have addressed this with the manufacturer, and they are working to correct the problem, but we hate selling stuff which does not convey quality, so if we cannot get the problems solved, we may have to discontinue this other line.