The TRENDY 7
Haute couture badge-maker The Trendy 7 has crafted a beautiful pin-badge celebrating Ernest Wright tailor shears. We spoke to the brand’s founder and kingpin, Lucas Cruz Bueno, to learn the story behind ‘The Shears Pin’.
The FIRST PINS
Like every one of Lucas Cruz Bueno’s ventures, The Trendy 7 started with a passion.
A Brazilian-born native of Lisbon, Lucas has worked in fashion for over fifteen years. His atelier, ‘Cruz Bueno’, was born of a love for designing womenswear, which Lucas nurtured while working as a costume designer for theater and ballet.
Lucas had always been fond of pin badges, but could never find high-quality pins that represented his vocation as a fashion designer. This frustration planted the seed of The Trendy 7.
“When I was looking for pins based around fashion – scissors, measuring tapes and so on – I could never find badges with lasting quality,” says Lucas.
“So, I started doing some sketches of things I would like to make. I did a 3D design with a digital designer, and together with my two friends – a photographer and a stylist – I set out to create something to help the fashion community to show their passions.”
Lucas’ vision became reality in September 2020, when The Trendy 7 launched with its first pins.
Celebrating the craftsmanship behind fashion
As well as creating standalone badges depicting subjects from plants to pincushions, The Trendy 7 has collaborated with several of the brands Lucas uses as a fashion designer. These have included Janome, Willam Gee, and – lucky for us – Ernest Wright.
“Always the angle is, let’s celebrate the craftsmanship behind fashion,” says Lucas.
“I love the art behind tools like tailor’s shears. It’s very easy to forget about the people who spend hours and hours creating something that we use in our trade. That’s why the pin is a reminder for many, that there is an art behind pretty much everything we use.”
When Lucas approached Ernest Wright, he’d already prepared the design for ‘The Shears Pin’. Naturally, we soon agreed to have this beautiful idea transformed into a badge that we, and our customers, could wear with pride.
UNDERPINNED BY QUALITY
Given Lucas’ love of craft and quality, it comes as no surprise that The Trendy 7 pin badges are made to last.
“We wanted something that would be big, in your face, eye-catching, but super-strong,” says Lucas.
“We use two butterfly clutches, which are the strongest ones you can find, whereas most pin badges just have just one clutch. We also send a replacement clutch to the client, so if you lose one, you can replace it and keep wearing your pin.”
The Trendy 7’s pins also come with a polishing cloth – “because our fingers have natural oils that dim the shine” – and a velvet bag.
As Lucas puts it: “It’s like a piece of jewellery; it’s not just an ordinary pin. These badges have a special connection to the owner.”
Making the pin badges is an elaborate process involving multiple craftspeople in and around Lisbon. The badges are made by melting and setting a zinc-steel alloy in a debossed mould, which is a negative of the design drawing. Several polishing processes follow, after which the badges are coloured with lacquered resins. Finally, finishing touches such as laser-engraving are applied.
“It’s such a joy to make them,” says Lucas, “because everything is handmade, all the packaging is carefully put together, and everything is biodegradable, recyclable and has a sustainable footprint.
“I want the pins to be something special, and for people to receive them through the post, open the box and have an experience of discovery and excitement.”
A WAY FOR PEOPLE TO EXPRESS THEIR PASSION
Lucas comes across as a principled person, from his championing of unheralded fashion industry workers to his environmentalist beliefs.
He wears his ideals on his sleeve – and wants others to do the same, using The Trendy 7’s pin badges.
“The badges are a way for people who are truly passionate about their industry to express their passion, to express the challenges we face as a community, to wear something we are proud of, and also for people to respect our work,” says Lucas.
“Pins have been worn since industrialisation and earlier. Whether people were representing an agent, being a president, or being a sheriff – it’s a sign that I have a position, I represent this community, and this is what I do.
“Our pins do exactly the same. By wearing the measuring tape, thread, mannequin, or shears, you are being an ambassador for the art you stand by.”
