Bicycles, Hungarian-brand beer, the world’s longest tram, and a granny walking her dachshund – these are all common sights around Budapest, and now they all can be found among the badges of POPpins, locally designed to accessorize any garments along with bags, wallets, and even shoes. The latest collection revolves around Budapest themes, featuring motifs often seen in the Magyar metropolis, making them ideal souvenirs or local touches for a jacket or hat. The badges are all produced in a limited number, so each one is a true piece of pop art that is literally peculiar to Budapest.

Ramóna Udvari is a Hungarian designer and illustrator, and a confirmed pin collector. Ramóna and her boyfriend, Dániel Csepregi, founded POPpins together in 2015, with the aim of adapting the idea of “new-wave pins” to Hungary. They release a new collection consisting of five pins made with nickel and enamel about every two months, which all revolve around the same theme.

“Pins are not very popular yet in Hungary, as they can remind people of elderly people’s worker-achievement badges from communist times, or the teen fashion of the ’90s, when high-school backpacks were crowded with the little round pins that usually portrayed their favorite bands,” say the POPpins proprietors.

Fortunately, during the past few years there was a new trend popularizing pins that began in the USA, which made young designers rethink the style of such badges, and reinvent them. Wearing a pin is now one of the most colorful forms of visual self-expression. “Small, creative workshops began producing a limited number of unique metal pins for young people. They quickly spread and became trendy, mostly due to the chosen themes.”

The advantage of the POPpins badges is that they are unique, funny, expressive, and variable. They can be worn on tops, dresses, shirts, jumpers, coats, hats, beanies, and bags – basically on anything. There are 100 pieces in each collection, without any reprints. The latest theme focuses on Budapest motifs like the world’s longest tram (twisted up like a pretzel), the Buda and Pest inscriptions, a granny walking her doggy on a slender chain, a city bike, or a can of cheap Kőbányai beer.At the moment, POPpins are only available through their online shop, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see them pop up at Budapest design stores and fairs in the not-too-distant future.