Sticky Situations
A Simple Game You Can Participate In
Since I started writing on Substack, a bunch of people say the work I create & document are really cool! They wish they could get a chance to leave their mark on society & the urban jungle. I used to tell people, this life isn’t for everyone. It’s an addiction to writing on things & I don’t know the cure. Some people still want to get involved, even a little bit to be able to say they did it, & here’s how!
Stickers are some of the easiest & most common ways of leaving a lasting mark on society. They are easily applied & can be created from scratch or made via a computer software. Companies looking to expand their reach naturally give out stickers to their customers & potential buyers. This give people the ability to be noticed without purchasing a marketing or promotion budget. Ever wonder why Apple used to give out their apple logo with every purchase? They were subconsciously introducing themselves into our daily lives from the beginning. Integrating into every aspect of our lives, similar to stickers placed in the wild.
Travelers from around the world carry stickers to promote their favorite brands or even themselves. They transform public spaces into a communal storyboards, bringing life & history with every sticker. Ordinary objects become staples of the many people who have passed by before you. One of the most popular magnets for stickers became the Idaho Welcome Sign from the Nevada border. This sign became so famous & heavily populated with stickers, the city of Idaho auctioned off the original sign for approximately $11,200 & installed a new sign just for travelers to stop & place stickers on. Read more at Idaho.gov
Stickers come in all shapes & sizes. I like to travel with a wide variety of stickers for any occasion. I use procreate to make sticker designs & templates, then transfer them over to the Cricut machine. From there I print & cut out vinyl stickers with laminating paper to prevent the colors from fading. I can make any design & any size I want. The only downside to this process is that I’m using waterproof paper & it doesn’t come in eggshell format. Eggshells are the most widely accepted sticker forms in the graffiti world because of their ability to last the longest & be the hardest to remove from surfaces. Normally, eggshell stickers will rip into a thousand tiny pieces stuck to any surface when someone attempts to remove them. The process is difficult & most people will give up trying to remove it once they see it breaking down.
Companies make eggshell stickers in blank formats for people to get creative & make their own hand drawn stickers. For example, some of the most popular design templates include the famous lines “Hello My Name is” or the infamous wavy border. For the longest lasting mark, I’d suggest using ink for your medium of choice. Markers, pens, & paints work good on these stickers as well. Using hand drawn designs give you a unique feel & way of expressing creativity.
For hierarchy purposes, hand-made stickers get priority over available space. If, for example, there is a mailbox that is covered in printed stickers such as logos or company designs, custom hand drawn stickers can go over these stickers no problem. Similar to graffiti spray paint rules, you don’t want to partially cover a sticker, if you can’t fit over the entire thing, it’s best to find a new spot that has the space available. Spots that have been covered in stickers are referred to as hot spots, meaning tons of people travel by here & leave stickers for others to admire. They can include, but not limited to, mailboxes, stop signs, street posts, bus stops, & welcome signs.
Ski resorts are a good place to find an abundance of stickers from travelers. You can find them in the rest area or near the top of the mountain to indicate that someone was there. Highway signs are another public sign that gets the special treatment of stickers due to the high visibility & space that invited people to leave a sticker.
Even doors have see the sticker bomb treatment in all major cities across the country. I’ve seen doors in Boston that haven’t been cleaned in years & stickers from the 90s are still holding strong. The beauty of the sticker game is that anyone can get involved. We all have tons of stickers laying around from different companies or even some postage labels from USPS. You can order stacks of 10 directly to your house for no charge & they give you a nice size canvas for your custom stickers. They aren’t eggshell & don’t hold up great against the natural elements, but it gives you a taste of the joy without spending extra money on ordering custom stickers.
No matter if you’re traveling to the grocery store or on a cross-country trip, the next time you hit the road, be sure to bring a handful of stickers with you to leave your mark & get your foot in the door of a fun game. A game that has a ton of participants & can be created almost anywhere. They aren’t going to get you in trouble with the law & any time you walk by it in the future, you can point it out to friends & family. I consider it a worldwide easter egg hunt that you & your friends can play.
Another fun use for sticker is for trading material. Creatives around the globe use the ancient form of written communication to share notes & messages to others. Stickers are a great way to share fun creations with people you may have never met before. I find trading Priority Mailing Postal 228 Labels is a fun way to give people memorabilia at events. Giving something tangible is more enjoyable than just directing them to your social media links. People like getting something they can hold & cherish. 228 Labels are free & have gotten bigger & bigger every release.
Thankfully, while participating in the sticker game, you aren’t subjected to the same violations a graffiti artist is. Trespassing can be pursued on people who are caught in the act of placing stickers on surfaces out in the world, but thankfully law enforcement isn’t primarily focused on stickers . There are legal consequences, but stickers do not move you into the danger zone or accrue any penalties. While it's important to know local laws & regulations facing street artists, stickers aren’t as heavily frowned upon in society. Make informed decisions & use your best judgement when outside. Find a harmonious balance of creativity & respect for the law. The next time you find yourself at a rest stop on the highway, leave a sticker behind for someone to find or discover in the future. The universe will thank you.
Peace & Love from the 413
Don’t know where to start ordering stickers? Check out my website for a random 5 pack bundle to start your collection & to support a fellow artist! (Here)
Thank you for reading all the way until the end of this post. If you want to setup a correspondence with me to trade stickers, please send me a message or an email at go.spfld@gmail.com so we can share our creative endeavors.
Links to check out
nice love the stikerism