Kansas map, cut to the state line
Kansas is a clean rectangle with one bite out of the corner, which makes it one of the easiest state ornaments to design. A laser cut Kansas map with a heart on the hometown, and a Jayhawk or Wildcat backer, does the job.
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Places in Kansas people ask for
What sells in Kansas
Kansas runs on the KU and K-State rivalry. Lawrence and Manhattan maps sell to alumni across the region and to every parent with a kid on campus. Keep the city street map tight around the stadium or fieldhouse and put a heart on the house or dorm.
The Flint Hills are an underrated seller. People who live there are proud of the prairie, and a topographic map with gentle elevation levels shows the hills and creek valleys. Use fewer, wider levels. This is rolling ground, not mountains.
Then the military towns: Fort Riley, Junction City, Leavenworth. Families stationed there often want a map of their first home together. It is a strong, steady gift.
Kansas City is split by the state line, and the Kansas side, Overland Park, Olathe and Lenexa, is a big market. A map that crosses State Line Road is a fun piece for families who live on one side and work on the other. Wichita sells as a hometown map, with the Arkansas River and the Keeper of the Plains at the confluence.
Making a laser cut Kansas ornament
The Kansas outline is a wide rectangle with the northeast corner cut by the Missouri River. That corner is the only curve, and it is enough to make the shape read. Because Kansas is wide and short, a 4 in square ornament leaves space above and below. Consider a wider rectangle size if your customer wants more inside.
Inside, use I-70 across the state through Topeka, Salina and Hays, I-35 from Kansas City to Wichita, and the Kansas and Arkansas rivers. A heart on the town. For a farm family, put the heart on the farm, not the nearest town. Rural addresses work fine.
Crimson and blue for KU, purple for K-State. A golden wheat-colored wood behind a dark backer is a nice neutral option.
Questions makers ask
Can I put a heart on a farm instead of a town?
Yes. Search the rural address or drop the pin by hand on the map. On a state ornament, the heart sits where you put it.
Is Kansas too flat for a terrain map?
Not in the Flint Hills or the Smoky Hills. Use fewer, wider elevation levels so the rolling hills show without looking stepped.
What size should a Kansas ornament be?
The ornament preset defaults to 4 in. Kansas is wide, so a rectangle size gives the inside more room if you are making a wall piece.
Keep going
Places to mapState mapsA US state outline as the shape of the piece, with highways, lakes and a heart on the home town.
Pieces to makeMap ornamentsA 4 in layered hometown ornament with a name and a year. The map most customers buy first.
GuideWhy Map Ornaments Sell (and How to Make the Math Work)Why map ornaments sell comes down to three things: a place carries a memory, the wood costs pennies, and the season does your marketing for you. Here is the math, the calendar and the ornament ideas to sell, plus the one part of the job that quietly eats your profit.Cut your first Kansas piece.
Pick Kansas as the frame, drop in the hometown, and see it in 3D before the laser does.
7 days free, then $12 a month. Cancel anytime. Or 10 maps for $10.
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