- What’s a ‘keybie’? What is it for?
- Why ‘keybie’?
- Why the extra ‘e’ in keybie?
- How do you make them? Can you teach me how?
- How long does it take to make a keybie?
- How big are they? How much is one?
1. What’s a keybie? What’s it for?
A keybie is an illustrated charm, typically with mismatched dotty eyes. It can be used from anything to earrings and scrapbook decorations to bag or mobile phone charms. While our original keybies are made from scrap paper materials, we also have new ones that are made from acrylic. They used to be made individually by one person. Now they’re made by the collective efforts of a small team of artists and a whole household. The term keybie and the name the Keybie Cafe are copyrighted!
2. Why ‘keybie’?
‘Keybie’ came from words ‘chibi’ and ‘keychain’, which were combine to form ‘keybie’. The other choice was ‘chichain’, which is just ugly. A ‘chibi’ is an japanese anime term used to describe a small character made to look cute. It can also literally mean ‘small’. Although keybies are mainly designed as dotty-eyed chibis, keybies can be of ANY design.
3. Then why the extra ‘e’ in keybie?
Because it’s cuter than ‘keybi’!
4. How do you make them? Can you teach me how?
Keybie-making is a secret, but though it’s essentially made from scrap materials, you’re assured a durable, semi-waterproof piece of cuteness when you buy one. Just don’t get them wet!
Semi-waterproof simply means they can be quickly run under water in case of a spill of sauce or something, but they can’t be completely submerged in water. You can learn how to keep good care of your keybie here.
5. How long does it take to make a keybie?
From the time that it gets printed, it takes a minimum of two weeks per design, but this mainly depends on our workload.
6. How big are they? How much is one?
Here’s a size and price chart for your reference!
- I want a keybie! How do I get one? Can I have a keyring instead of a phone strap?
- Can I request a character or symbol? Do you do custom orders?
- I just want to request a character. I’m not really thinking of buying. I think it’s cool if you add <insert character’s name here> to your collection!
- Do you sell anywhere else apart from at cons? Any branches?
- What are the terms for bulk orders? Do you offer discounts?
- How do you deliver keybies? How much is shipping?
- How do I pay you? Are there other payment methods?
7. I want a keybie! How do I get one? Can I have a keyring instead of a phone strap?
You can purchase a keybie online through our Shopee and offline through our locations. If you’d rather not order through Shopee, message us on FB or IG and we’ll get your order! We’re unfortunately not attending events for the time being. We’re also not taking custom orders yet, and we can’t send internationally for the time being :(
Keybies can come with cellphone straps or keychains, all for the same price. When purchasing from our online shop, simply indicate which attachment you’d like before you place the item in your cart. Stocks at our locations both carry keybies in phone charms and keychains, but that might not always be the case as they run out quite fast. Similar to online shop purchases, custom orders can come in something other than our usual attachments.
8. Can I request a character or symbol? Do you do custom orders?
Custom orders are closed for now.
9. I just want to request a character and not really buy. I think it’s cool if you add <insert character’s name here> to your collection!
I’m afraid we don’t take free requests, as making keybies takes effort and resources. We make a living this way, after all.
10. Do you sell anywhere else apart from at cons? Any branches?
You can check our current locations here. We’re working on getting keybies consigned in other places, too, so stay tuned! Sadly, we’ve had to say goodbye to some locations, but we’ll announce on our social media once we have any new locations.
11. What are the terms for bulk orders? Do you offer discounts?
Although we don’t have a minimum amount for custom keybies, we offer a discount for orders of 50 pieces and above. This applies to all keybies, but custom orders have to be discussed first. Said custom bulk orders cannot be be composed of several designs in one, but they can be composed of any combination of keychains or phone charms. As regards payment, we’ll need a 50% downpayment for ALL bulk orders.
12. How do you deliver keybies? How much is shipping?
We use J&T to deliver keybies nationwide within the Philippines, but we can’t deliver internationally at a moment. Shipping fee is 65 minimum unless it’s through Shopee, but feel free to message us to check the exact price of shipping to your address.
13. How do I pay you? How do you pay via bank deposit?
We accept payment through GCash or BPI, or directly through Shopee. We unfortunately do not do COD at the moment.
Don’t know how to pay through direct bank deposit?
Click here for our super easy guide!
14. How do I take care of my keybie?
Because keybies are generally made from paper products, the first thing to remember is that while keybies can withstand getting dripped/spilled on, it’s never a good idea to completely submerge it in water for a long period of time. Look here for our guide on how to fix your keybie when this happens! We also include handy tips on how to care for your keybies, the tried and tested way.
15. I noticed that my keybie makes black stains. Is that normal?
Yes, that’s normal.That only means that the edges of the keybie have worn, and the ink used to color it is rubbing off. The paint itself is washable, but you can stop the paint from rubbing off by coating the edges of the keybie with a thick layer of glue and letting it dry completely.
However, I’ve been able to come up with a solution to this problem already: all new keybies should no longer bleed black stains. To make sure, try wetting your finger and rubbing it along the top edge of a keybie. If you find black paint, spread glue on that part and let dry.
If your keybie gets wet, don’t wipe it off with tissue! You need to let it dry, then wipe off the black stains with a damp cloth, not tissue.
16. Will you be making and posting more?
Yup! You can check our growing list of keybies at our Keybie List (no pictures), and our online shop at Shopee. The Keybie Team and I both add more keybies with each new design our customers order.
Keybie 101 | Getting a Keybie | Taking Care of Your Keybie | New Keybies?