A New Year is a Gamble
This sophisticated, celebratory hankie sends cheer and good wishes to the recipient in a multitude of languages. What a lovely gift to start off the New Year. “Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.” Oprah Winfrey Sparkling and effervescent, champagne epitomizes jubilation and revelry. The list of “best years” ends at 1949, which helps us date this charming accessory. This hankie is a hoot. Although the dice spell “Good Luck” this gentleman’s roll may have sentenced him to buying a Mathusalem or (gasp) a Nabuchodonosor for the celebration. Yikes! Seeing these...
Read MoreLove and Marriage
For some, true love is their heart’s desire, the prize they seek. For others, romance is merely a prelude to the main event – marriage! The ultimate, nonpareil, pinnacle of achievement. Hmmmm. With success rates hovering at 48% for first marriages, 33% for second marriages and a grim 27% for third marriages, one wonders about those convinced they can beat the odds. Perhaps they’re just incurable romantics. These handkerchiefs reflect the era when marriage was considered the zenith, the ultimate victory in the world of love. Yet, the artists are well aware that romance, for some, is akin to...
Read MoreRoad to Romance
So many flirtations, assignations, and secret trysts have commenced with the flutter of a handkerchief, it’s no surprise that hundreds of hankies carry images of amour. Naturally roses and romance go hand in hand, with many a suitor gifting everything from hand embroidered bouquets To dazzling displays of bonbons bursting from a bevy of blossoms. An elaborately draped blackamoor displays a stunning bouquet sent by a suitor with the card “see you tonight.” His boutonniere matches the bouquet, providing a subtle reminder throughout the evening of his adoration. Our...
Read MoreThe Music of Romance
From stolen kisses to secret rendezvous, scenarios are endless when it comes to matters of the heart, yet all seem to share one common denominator – the power of music to express the inexpressible, to enfold the heart and move the soul. Victor Hugo opined “Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.” Music can transport us to either the apex of joy or nadir of despair like nothing else can. It moves both body and soul, compelling us to literally dance with joy when we’re in love. The 1935 musical “Top Hat” encourages one to “do the Piccolino with...
Read MoreWords of Love
Alex William’s New York Times article The End of Courtship could bring the most optimistic romantic to tears. The accompanying graphic depicts 16 millennials sitting at a bar, all sending and reading texts. Eye contact between patrons is Zero. Zip. Nada. Yet the messages they’re reading include “Join me for breakfast?” “Steamy spa night @ 11 p.m.” and “You in? 2am my place for some hot mac and cheese.” Courtship today consists of “Hey” or “Sup?” (Sounds the Fonz; yet even he knew courting required meeting the girl at her doorstep and escorting her home.) According to Williams, one woman who...
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