How to make a medal display

Medals symbolize excellence and achievement, serving as a powerful motivator for individuals to strive forward. Whether you possess a vast collection of medals or are beginning to embark on this journey, a comprehensive guide to badge collection is essential. Representing Badges UK, I am crafting this guide to assist you in effectively showcasing these tokens that encapsulate the essence of hard-earned success, including school badges. Here, I will outline methods for acquiring medals, followed by the top five methods to beautifully display them. Join me as we explore the intricacies of this article together.

How to Get the Medals

Participate in Competitions and Events

There are many ways to get medals, such as participating in sports, academic, and skills competitions. Participants who perform well in the competitions can receive medals awarded by the organizers. In addition, soldiers who have outstanding achievements in the army or combat can also receive medals.

Purchase or Customise from Medal Stores

If you don't want to participate in competitions or join the military, but the ornamental value of medals deeply attracts you. You can also buy medals from specialized medal suppliers, which is very reasonable. Here, I recommend Badges UK. Their medals cover a wide range, including cute Children's Sports Day Enamel Medals, Kids Enamel Medals, etc., encouraging children to strive for progress. Professional sports medals, such as Running Medals, Football Medals, etc., can meet the needs of various sports events and school sports meets. Of course, Badges UK also provides personalised medals. You only need to email the artwork to their service team, and they will have a dedicated team of designers to assist you in customizing the medals.

Exchange with Medal Collectors

In addition to participating in competitions and purchasing medals from professional medal suppliers, you can also exchange medals with medal collectors. You can participate in online discussion groups, such as the medals collectors topic group on Facebook, the discussion on medals on Reddit, etc., where you can meet many like-minded badge collectors. Find the medal you like and express your demands to the medal holder. You can exchange medals if the other party is also interested in your collection. Of course, to make the exchange process smoother, you must communicate the details of the medals, the method and the time of exchanging medals in advance.

5 Ideas to Display Medals

Display the Medal on a Picture Frame or Shadow Box

Usually, military medals do not have a lanyard. There are needles on the back of the medals to fix the medals, so we need to use a shadow box to display them. Military medals should be placed from high to low according to their levels. If you are unsure about the level of the medals, you can consult a professional.
Materials Needed: Shadow Box, medals, background material such as coloured paper, fabric, or velvet, double-sided tape or hot glue sticks, scissors

How to Make it: First, buy a good quality shadow box and backing fabric at a craft store. The shadow box is different from ordinary picture frames. It has a greater depth and can hold medals of a certain thickness without looking cramped. The backing fabric can be selected in a colour that looks good with medals. Then, cut the backing fabric into a suitable size and stick it to the board with glue or double-sided tape. In this way, you will get a unique shadow box. Finally, use the pin on the back of the medal to fix the medal on the board. If your medal does not have a pin, you can sew it with a needle and thread. But remember not to use glue and staples to fix it, which will cause irreversible damage to the medal.

Display Medal on the Wall Shelf

Materials Needed: Wall shelf, hooks, hammer, pencil, display stand

How to Make it: First, you can buy your favourite wall shelf in the online store. Pay attention to the size to be able to hold all your medals. Next, you can consider where the wall shelf should be placed. Usually, we fix the wall shelf next to the TV or on the sofa to appreciate our achievements better. After assembling the wall shelf according to the instructions, you can use a pencil to outline the location where you want to drill holes in the wall and then fix the shelf with screws to complete it. Finally, you can conduct a comprehensive inspection to ensure the shelf is firmly fixed.

Display Medal on the Corkboards

Corkboards and Shadow Boxes are similar in that they display medals in frames. The difference is that Corkboards do not have a plastic panel or glass sheet on the surface to prevent dust and scratches, but they are easy to take and put. Shadow Boxes have a plastic panel and a certain depth to accommodate thicker items. In addition, their backings are also different. We usually stick our favourite backing cloth, such as velvet cloth, to the bottom of the Shadow Box. Corkboards are made of cork boards, which can be directly inserted with hooks and thumbtacks to facilitate the fixing of ornaments. Which display method you choose depends on your personal preferences and actual needs.

Materials Needed: Corkboards, screwdriver, hammer, pencil, hooks, pencil

How to Make it: First, buy a favourite corkboard with a style and size that can meet your needs. Next, find a suitable location on the wall and make a simple mark with a pencil. Then drill holes in the wall and screw in the screws to fix the corkboard to the wall. Hammer the prepared hooks and thumbtacks into the corkboard. You can place medals with straps or nails on the back.

Source: 13_monsters on Reddit

Display Medal in a Military Coin Case

Materials Needed: Military coin case, foam inserts, double-sided tape, labels

How to Make it: First, buy a military coin display box. Pay attention to the width of the slot in the box to fit your medal. If it is unsuitable, you can use scissors to cut it into the appropriate size. Next, insert the medal into the slot. If it is not fixed firmly, use double-sided tape to stick it. Before placing the medal, you can wipe it with a soft cloth so it can be placed neatly in the military coin display box. Then, put a small label next to the medal to record the time and place where you received the medal.

Display Medal inside a Glass Jar

Materials Needed: glass jar

How to Make it: Buy a glass jar with high transparency and good quality, then put the medal directly into it.

How to Keep the Medals New with Time

Clean Regularly

Check the medals regularly for rust or damage, and wipe them with a dry towel to keep them shiny. If necessary, you can apply a rust-proof coating on the medal's surface to prevent it from rusting.

Place in the Proper Environment

Placing the medal in a dry environment without direct sunlight can extend its life.