Flip Flop Fantasy Trophies
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An Indianapolis Artist Couldn’t find a decent fantasy football trophy for his league.
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His solution? Start making them himself.
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Brian Phillips, the owner and artist of Flip Flop Fantasy Trophies, had been playing fantasy football for over a decade. “My brother was like ‘we’ve got to step it up! Let’s get a trophy this year.’” So Brian went on a search. He found that there were very few options available. “If you wanted something other than a cup, a goblet, or a football, your options were extremely limited.”
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Brian had been primarily a 2D artist but had some experience with sculpture in college. He wanted to create something original – a high-end trophy specifically designed for fantasy football. He started by making four figures in clay, creating humorous characters with beer hats, foam fingers, remotes, footballs and beer bellies. For the last place finisher in the league, he designed a loser trophy. The figure has a down-trodden expression and is holding a big foam finger in the shape of an “L” on his forehead.
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But Brian found that creating the sculptures was just the beginning. He had to turn them into trophies. “I was completely against making a fake trophy. I wanted to use real metal, not something painted to look like metal.” He began to experiment with the materials available and found that he could use a bronze metal powder and a rotational machine called a rotocaster to make each trophy with an authentic metal exterior. He then hand polishes the trophies with steel wool, applies several coats of wax to protect the metal finish and mounts them on solid oak bases.
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This is Brian’s first season making the trophies. “It started out as a way to have an awesome trophy for my league. But at this point, if no one else wants an awesome trophy, I’m in trouble with my wife!”
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Brian’s trophies can be found on his website www.flipfloptrophies.com.
