The Etiquette of Monogramming

 

It is a funny thing how the monogram seems to come in and out of style.  Currently it is in, I believe...  correct me if I am wrong.  But do you know the order or the appropriate monogram etiquette?  I looked it up online - what did we do before google?

So here you go - straight from my google search to your computer.

A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos.  Obvious right?  Well here is the thing I did not know that there is an order to things depending on what you are monogramming. 

A traditional 3-letter monogram has the initial of the individual's last name (surname) set larger, or with some special treatment in the center, while the first name initial appears to the left of it and the middle name initial appears to the right of it. For example, if the individual's name is Mary Ann Jones, and Jones is the surname, then the arrangement of letters would be thus: MJA, with the surname initial set larger in the center, the M for Mary to the left and the A for Ann to the right.

Married or engaged couples may use two-letter monograms of their entwined initials, for example on wedding invitations. Married couples may also create three-letter monograms incorporating the initial of their shared surname. For example, the monogram MJA might be used for Michael and Alice Jones.However, monogramming etiquette for the married couple varies according to the item being monogrammed. Linens, for example, typically list the woman's given initial first, followed by the couple's shared surname initial and then the man's given initial (AJM). (Text Wiki)

So do you monogram?  I love it but don't do it as often as I should.  I think that they are great on gifts, maybe a note to add to my gift giving list this year.

20 awesome [free] fonts

Tweet Tweet! Two on Toast's summer collection

My favourite fashion brand, Two on Toast is proud to introduce their Spring/Summer 2012 Collection.

Please e-mail them on hello@twoontoast.co.za if you are interested to know more!

Can't wait for summer...

Yellow is the new pink

Yellow is my favourite colour.

Is it me or is it happening?

Of course, I was just following a hunch when saying that yellow would be the new pink, yet I do seem to see more and more yellow in detail as well as in bigger pieces of fashion and design – even as a colour for scooters and cars. Yellow seems to resonate with today’s current mentality, searching for a break from pessimism, radiating co...nfidence and glowing health and wealth.

As discussed last week, the arrival of mustard is changing our taste palette and style palette all at the same time; distributing tanginess in our salads, soups and sauces and a range of strange warm colours from light brown to bright yellow to yellow-green. This week I would like to discuss honey, which also seems to be an important ingredient on its way to becoming a mega trend. With the current bee scare (where we see bees endangered and disappearing at an alarming scale), it is only natural that honey becomes a luxury too.

With our countryside monopolised by industrial farming, biodiversity is in danger, causing beehives to die and bee colonies to dwindle. The cynical truth engrained in the condemning of an instrument of our own survival is telling of the power of greed over the basic intelligent management of our planet. Without bees no food, without food no survival; thus we are toying with the livelihood of our species just by dedicating land to the feeding of poor animals, destined to be industrialised for the mass consumption of tasteless hamburgers.

Therefore it is sort of a relief to know that bees are swarming to join us in the world’s big cities since bee biodiversity is now greater within the urban context – a strange reversal of fortune where our bees feed in our parks, rooftops, balconies and urban gardens, accessing plants, flowers and herbs from the four corners of the world as accumulated by us modern nomads. These urban bees are very happy to transform their exotic finds into fusions for new kinds of honey.

Thus the beehives atop the luxury brand buildings and major world bank edifices are doing well enough to presume that we will soon see Vuitton Honey and Hermès Royal Jelly from their own farms. Bringing us different honey colours to be used also as the nicest colourcards for their leather goods and scarves.

Biodiversity beauty!

To be continued…

Lidewij Edelkoort

fabulous (calligraphy) fonts

 

I am seriously in awe by callgraphy and therefor also calligraphy style fonts. These fabulous fonts by the one-woman foundry called Emily Lime. Based in Greenville, SC, this brand new font company managed to score one best-seller after another these past six months. The energetic Southern Belle in charge of the operation has made fonts in a range of styles, but capricious scripts are what she does best. Her peacefully named Bombshell Pro is at the top of our Hot New Fonts list as we speak. And while her alphabets are nonchalant and untamed, the underlying font technology is smart and nifty. Emily Conners is a newcomer with a punch.