Precision Brush Makes Mark On the World of NFT Collectibles
Precision Brush was the very first industrial brush manufacturer to begin accepting payment in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ethereum and litecoin. Now the company is breaking molds once again and propelling the industry into the future by creating the world’s first industrial brush NFT. The above artwork “Brush Happiness” is now for sale by auction ending May 26, 2021, at midnight.
What Is an NFT?
NFT stands for “non-fungible token.” Fungible essentially means replaceable or interchangeable. So, a non-fungible token is by definition irreplaceable and singularly unique. As one journalist so aptly wrote: “It’s a digital asset plus certificate of authenticity plus legal rights all rolled into one. Buying an NFT means purchasing a hacker-resistant, public proof of ownership over a specific digital asset.”
A Brief History of NFTs
Cryptocurrency was the natural forerunner to NFTs. Bitcoin revolutionized money because it created scarce digital value for the very first time. However, digital scarcity alone is not sufficient to create a functioning monetary system. Each token must be fungible — interchangeable. In other words, a recipient should not care which bitcoin they receive or where it comes from as long as it is in the correct amount.
Fungibility is a crucial characteristic to many traditional markets, including currencies, commodities and precious metals, and open blockchain platforms. Every bitcoin, litecoin, ether, XRP or zcash must be interchangeable. Most core blockchain protocols (digital records of transactions) have built-in fungibility from the outset at the protocol level. However, for many of these platforms to evolve and grow, fungibility also needed to be incorporated into the application layer.
This was facilitated by the creation of new token standards, such as Ethereum’s ERC-20 in 2015, which allowed for the rapid creation of a constellation of fungible and interoperable tokens on top of ethereum. (This development was a primary driver of the 2017 ICO craze.)
Taking this idea a step further, people started to imagine a world of assets that were both scarce and unique. These could be tokens, images, artwork, virtual game accessories or even digital collectibles. A holder could use the blockchain to prove ownership and utilize these assets, but they would accrue unique properties and value.
In late December 2017, a hoard of digital cats almost ground the Ethereum network to a halt. A game called CryptoKitties had just launched in November 2017, and users started spending millions of dollars to breed and grow digital cats — some of the first known NFTs. In January 2018, the ERC721 Non-Fungible Token Standard was proposed.
Since then, blockchains have been created to leverage NFTs in the world of gaming, digital art, collectibles, music, financial products — and now industrial brush art! Precision Brush Company has created the very first industrial brush NFT, and is listing it for auction on the digital exchange OpenSea. Putting the industry’s mark on history, it will be forever immortalized in the blockchain ledger.
Why It Matters
How is this valuable you may ask? First of all, it is an awesome piece of art! And as those in the brush manufacturing world know all too well, brushes make so many things in our lives possible. In short, brushes make people happy and creating an industrial brush NFT memorializes this essential truth for all time.
If you’re still having trouble wrapping your head around why NFTs are special and how they work, think about it this way: There’s only one original Mona Lisa painting. There are countless reproductions, both digital and physical, but there is only one original. That’s what an NFT is — an undeniable original. And when someone purchases a particular NFT, they own not only the work itself, but also all the rights to its use. The verifiability of the blockchain protects and proves its validity.
Some people go crazy for CryptoKitties. Others are enjoying buying, selling, and trading sports-related NFTs. Artists are creating and selling a wide spectrum of one-of-a-kind works as NFTs. And now, there’s an industrial brush NFT, too!
How to Participate
There are two main ways to get involved:
- Purchase an NFT: Create an account on the digital exchange and directly buy NFTs, such as “Happiness depends upon Brushes.” Just be aware that, like any other collectible — from art, to real estate, to memorabilia — an NFTs value is in the eye of the beholder. The non-fungibility of these tokens can be a major value-add, but any given NFT can ultimately be highly illiquid. There’s no guarantee that you could sell an NFT quickly.
- Buy DeFi Tokens: A more predictable way to participate in the world of NFTs is to buy tokens that are used to power its popular marketplaces. DeFi (Decentralized Finance) tokens are an ecosystem of different financial applications that are built on blockchain networks. The Ethereum blockchain has been the most popular to build on so far because of its smart contract capabilities. Most of the main access points still run on ethereum (ETH).
It’s Digital. Is It Valuable?
We’re all familiar with baseball card collecting, and how the first baseball cards sell for huge amounts of money — but NFT collectibles are digital. Are they truly valuable? To answer this question, here’s a fact that might shock you: Revenue from selling digital baseball card packs has surpassed that of physical cards. NFTs are quickly gaining in popularity, with the recent 30-day sales volume on the top five marketplaces totaling more than $560 million; total sales for the entirety of 2020 were $78 million.
In short, yes! NFTs are valuable. It’s worth saying again, though, that like their physical collectible predecessors (Beanie Babies, anyone?), they are only as valuable as they are perceived to be. Precision Brush Company always strives to be at the forefront of new technologies in both the digital and physical realms. Our new industrial brush NFT “Brush Happiness” is aligned with that ongoing commitment. Check out our NFT offering and celebrate the industrial brush manufacturing industry making its mark on history.
Learn more about Precision Brush at www.precisionbrush.com.
