Proud Cubes Collection: All 5 Editions, 30+ Flags

Proud Cubes pride pin collection

We're Delwin and Jimmy, co-founders of Proud Zebra, a queer-owned Canadian small business. Proud Cubes are our signature line, the pin series we built the brand around. Each cube is small (about three-quarters of an inch), heavy enough to feel substantial in the hand, and designed so the flag wraps around all six sides like a tiny three-dimensional object rather than a flat lapel pin. Below is the full collection, edition by edition, with notes on what each one is for.

What is the Proud Cube collection?

The Proud Cubes are a five-edition series of hard enamel pride pins. The cube format was inspired by the Rubik's Cube as a cultural object, the puzzle that rewards persistence and looks like a small piece of art on a desk. We translated that into a pin: the flag wraps around the cube on multiple visible faces, each face shows a different element of the design, and the whole thing reads as a small three-dimensional object on a lapel rather than a flat sticker.

Proud cubes pride pins explainer youtube thumbnail

The collection spans 30+ identity flags. Each edition adds a different visual treatment to the same identity flag, so a customer can build a small set of cubes in a single flag (collecting the Signature, Community, Identity, and Medal cubes for the same identity, for example), or pick a single edition across multiple flags. Most customers do a mix.

What's in each Proud Cubes edition?

1st Edition: Signature and Flag Cubes

The collection's foundational pair. The Signature Cube features a smiling face in the flag colours, a reminder to show up to the day proud and smiling. The Flag Cube shows the identity flag wrapped around all visible faces, so the pride colours read clearly from any angle.

Lesbian Flag 1st Edition Proud Cube Pin Set

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2nd Edition: Community, Freedom, and Identity Cubes

The three values our brand was built on, each translated into a cube. The Community Cube is for the reminder that you're not alone. The Freedom Cube is for the right to live and love openly. The Identity Cube is a snowflake-style design, every snowflake unique, every identity valid.

Asexual Flag 2nd Edition Proud Cube Three-Pin Set

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3rd Edition: Love and Peace Cubes

The third edition leans on two of the most-cited LGBTQ+ rallying calls. The Love Cube carries the love-is-love message in flag colours. The Peace Cube nods to the right to live without discrimination, the underlying ask of every pride march going back decades.

"Love this pin. It's a regular part of my everyday teacher 'fit now. It's a good size, has a double backing, and is high quality."
Melissa, on the Inclusive Pride Proud Cubes

Bisexual Flag 3rd Edition Proud Cube Love and Peace Pin Set

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4th Edition: Medal and Rubik's Cubes

The fourth edition holds two ideas in tension. The Rubik's Cube design represents the unique challenges queer people work through, gender, family, faith, work, healthcare, the daily small ones. The Medal Cube is the counterweight: a token for the small wins along the way. Coming out, getting the right pronouns at work, finding your community, surviving the hard year.

Non-Binary Flag 4th Edition Proud Cube Medal and Rubik's Pin Set

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5th Edition: Combination Cubes

The newest edition, designed for people whose identity sits at an intersection. Each Combination Cube pairs two flags on a single pin, for example, Trans and Aromantic, or Bisexual and Non-Binary, or Lesbian and Asexual. They're built for the customers who told us their identity wasn't represented by a single flag, and who didn't want to wear two pins to make the point.

"Oh I absolutely LOVE this pin! The locking system is super high quality and there's no chance it'll fall off my backpack. Thank you for making such a great product! I'll be recommending to others!"
Victoria, on the Inclusive Pride Proud Cubes

Trans + Aromantic 5th Edition Combination Cube pin

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Which Proud Cube edition should you start with?

If you've never worn a pride pin before, the 1st Edition Flag Cube in your identity flag is the most popular starter, it reads clearly as your flag and works on a jacket lapel, badge holder, or backpack strap. If you want the full PZ-philosophy set, the 2nd Edition trio (Community, Freedom, Identity) is the most-bought together. If you're wearing pride to work and want something bolder than subtle, the 3rd Edition Love or Peace Cubes carry the message clearly. The 4th Edition Medal Cube is a popular gift for someone who's just come out, finished a hard year, or hit a milestone. The 5th Edition Combination Cubes are for people whose identity sits at an intersection that one flag doesn't capture.

For more on subtle workplace-friendly pin choices specifically, see our subtle pride pins guide. For the broader pride accessory range beyond pins, see our complete pride accessories guide.

How are Proud Cubes designed and made?

Every cube starts as a sketch on Delwin's iPad. Flag colours get matched to Pantone references; the design gets iterated for line weight and balance; prototype rounds with our partner factory adjust the metal thickness, the post placement, and the enamel fill until the piece is right. Once a cube clears prototyping, production runs come back to BC, get inspected by us, and ship from our home studio.

For the full behind-the-scenes look at how each pin gets designed and produced, see our how we design and produce our pins piece. For the cultural context of pride pins as a tradition going back to the 1970s liberation movement, see our pride pin history piece.

Want to learn about the identities behind each cube?

The cube examples in this collection map to identity guides we've published. To go deeper on any specific flag:

• Lesbian pride flag guide (1st Edition example)
• Asexual and aromantic spectrum (2nd Edition example)
• Bisexual and polysexual guide (3rd Edition example)
• Non-binary and genderqueer guide (4th Edition example)
• Transgender identity guide (5th Edition Combination Cube example)

Do you make magnetic pride pins?

No. Every Proud Cube ships with a steel post and your choice of rubber clutch (the standard low-cost backing) or deluxe locking metal clasp (the daily-wear upgrade). We've chosen to skip magnetic pins entirely, and the reason comes down to three things: security, fit, and what the pin is doing on your clothing.

Magnetic pins solve one problem (no holes in the fabric) but introduce three larger ones. They slide on satin, silk, and most jacket linings because there's no mechanical grip. They release the moment a bag strap or seatbelt pushes against them, which is exactly when you don't want to lose a pin you care about. And the magnet strength needed to hold a hard enamel pin against gravity on a thick lapel ends up scuffing the backing of the garment over time.

A standard pin post with a locking clasp solves all three. The post sits through a single fabric layer, the clasp grips until you release it deliberately, and the only contact point with the garment is the pin's smooth metal back. For full detail on the backing options including how rubber clutches compare to deluxe locking clasps, see our enamel pin backing guide.

If protecting a delicate fabric is the priority, the safest move is a single-layer fabric backer (a small piece of felt or a pin-keeper card behind the lapel) under the standard clasp, rather than switching to a magnet. We tested both during our 2022 booth season and the clasp + backer combination outperformed magnets on every fabric we tried.

Frequently asked questions

Before you shop

The Proud Cubes collection is the heart of what we make. Five editions, 30+ identity flags, designed in BC and packed by hand. Free shipping on Canadian orders over CAD$35. A portion of every order goes to LGBTQ+ charities (Rainbow Refugee Society, Covenant House Vancouver, GLSEN, and UNYA, plus our charity-pin partners) (running total since 2020: $10,219.58 CAD). If a particular identity flag isn't yet in the catalog, drop us a note at contact@proudzebra.com, community requests are how most of our 5th Edition Combination Cubes got designed.

Multiple Proud Cubes pride pins arranged together

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However you wear yours, wear it proud.

Delwin and Jimmy

Related Products

Complement your Proud Cubes collection with these popular pride pieces:

• Rainbow Pride Love Cube Pins
• Inclusive 2nd Edition Pins, Community, Freedom, Identity Cubes
• Lesbian 3rd Edition Pins, Love & Peace Cubes

Related Collections

Browse the full edition collections, plus the broader pride flag set these cubes represent in our complete guide to pride flags:

• Proud Cubes Pins, 1st Edition
• Proud Cubes Pins, 2nd Edition
• Proud Cubes Pins, 3rd Edition
• Proud Cubes Pins, 4th Edition
• Proud Cube Pins, 5th Edition