Without a doubt, the non-fungible token (NFT) invention has come to stay. Recently, NFTs have been among the most talked-about things globally. Having gone mainstream in 2017, adoption and developments in the NFT sector have increased astronomically. This is evident in the huge number of players in the niche, numerous NFT projects, and multi-blockchain marketplaces.
Speaking of NFT marketplaces, there are several of them but Opensea. is seemingly the most popular and largest platform where users can access various NFT collections and also trade them. However, certain NFT concepts such as 'minting' could appear bizarre and difficult to newcomers.
Not to worry, this article will enlighten you about the concept of NFT minting and how you can mint your first NFT on Opensea and other marketplaces.
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What is NFT Minting?
The history of the term "mint" can be traced back to 269 BC when silver coins were produced at the temple of Juno Moneta in Rome. However, some sources claim that coins were first minted in the ancient kingdom of Lydia which is modern-day Turkey, over 2000 years ago.
In conventional finance, minting refers to the process of producing or creating new coins (money). Also, the word 'mint' is used to represent a production facility where coins (money) are being created for use as a nation's currency or legal tender.
NFT minting is not very different from traditional money minting. Just like money minting refers to the process of generating currencies, NFT minting is the process of converting digital data into crypto collections or digital assets recorded on the blockchain.
In other words, minting an NFT is when you upload a unique digital item (artwork, music, etc) to the blockchain. If done on the Ethereum blockchain, it is the act of publishing a unique representative of your ERC-721 token on the blockchain.
Minting an NFT on Opensea
NFTs are unique digital assets issued and stored on the blockchain. Minting of these non-fungible tokens can only be done on NFT marketplaces.
To mint an NFT on a marketplace like Opensea, you need to have a supported crypto wallet like Metamask Wallet or Coinbase Wallet.
Importantly, you must hold a sufficient amount of Ethereum in the wallet to pay for the accompanying gas fees. The amount of Ethereum you’ll need to get started with minting an NFT varies based on the gas fee needed at the time.
For Metamask, it is recommended to use Google Chrome or Brave browser and install the MetaMask wallet extension. Once installed, you can use it to store Ethereum, Ethereum-based tokens like NFTs, and also access NFT marketplaces.
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The next step is to connect your crypto wallet to the Opensea marketplace. You do that by heading to Opensea.io and clicking the wallet icon in the top right corner. A list of wallets will appear on a new age, select Metamask if you are using that or any other wallet. Follow the accompanying prompts to successfully connect your wallet to Opensea.
With this, you are getting closer to minting your first NFT on OpenSea. But before then, you need to register on the NFT marketplace and create your collection. Simply click on "My Profile", set up your account, and verify accordingly by entering your email address and username. You can insert links to your social media profiles as well.
Creating and Minting An NFT
Click on "Create" at the top, then "My Collections". Enter your collection’s name and description. Moving forward, click on ''Add New Item.' On the next page, you’ll see the option to upload metadata such as the image/video/audio file and enter the name of the NFT. Below, you can also add an external link and enter a description. Thereafter, click on “Create” to upload and put the created NFT up for sale.
To sell your NFT, click on the option to sell. Based on preference, you can either list your created NFT for auction or sell it at a fixed price. It's worth noting that you can define the fixed price for your NFT. To confirm your selling price, you will be redirected to your wallet where you follow the available prompts. Once this is done, any buyer who fills the order will have the NFT minted and sent to his wallet.
Final Words
Creating a non-fungible token (NFT) on marketplaces like Opensea isn't much of a hard nut to crack. Interestingly, the same steps outlined here can find applicability on other NFT marketplaces. Have you been hearing of the buzzword NFTs and probably feel it is for the crypto and blockchain experts alone? You too can create your first NFT and also be a part of the NFT market with the above-mentioned processes.