Friday, January 29, 2010

Monograms Are Not Monotonous

In this ongoing recession, some women are making a choice to reject outward labels.  I, for one, have given my standard winter bag, a LV cross-body messenger, a rest because I feel uncomfortably conspicuous carrying it this year.

But I recognize a certain charm in sporting initials, just not Louis Vuitton's. 

Instead, I've been thinking this year about the pleasure of monograms.  In our contemporary society, monograms are often associated with preppy dressers (not my style) or beach bags (I have a large pink one with a lime green monogram.  Who says preppy isn't her style?).


But monograms can also be mini works of art, placed on linens, tucked into the folds of a wedding dress, hidden on a shirt placket, displayed on a pocket.

Caroline Brackenridge designs and embroiders some of the loveliest monograms I've seen.  She works in tone on tone (not shown here) as well as color. 



And she appears to be fearless in both her designs and sense of color.



Do any gentle readers have monograms?  Would you like one?

10 comments:

K.Line said...

I don't have one but my very good friend Hilary does. The initials are HRHdV - which is so right for her.

Henry and Mom said...

haha! At first glance I thought that said "mammograms are not monotonous." *sigh of relief*

Miss Cavendish said...

HRH . . . looks good!

Jessica Thor-Miller said...

Absolutely. I had once believed it was the sign of an impressive ego to display your monogram but I now find them quite delightful. I adore the unconventional applications, those which are hidden, etc.

WendyB said...

I did monogram cufflinks for a client for Xmas but I didn't get to take a picture of them :-(

Belle de Ville said...

I love monograms and these are some of the prettiest.
Hopefully when my children get married I will be able to gift them monogrammed linen bedsheets and sterling silver.
Thank god they're not getting married anytime soon because I can't afford these gifts!

Angie Muresan said...

All the linen in my mother's and grandmother's trousseau is monogrammed. Quite beautiful, yet not practical as the fabric is so thin, you could cut it with your tongue.

Unknown said...

These are lovely. I've always had a thing for monograms, but think I embarrassed myself in college wearing one on every sweater, so I keep the monograms on little things like cosmetic cases these days :)

xo

Anonymous said...

Hi, I have been dreaming of monograms on all my J.Crew shirts. I have imagined how cool and innovative I would look with a bright pink trademark. Now that I've read this, I'm going out to do it, maybe white on white first, and then I'll report back. Thanks for the motivation! Karen

Jennifer said...

I would love a monogram and have been trying to design one for myself for some time now... not as easy to do for someone like myself with no middle name. Two initials have a different sort of balance than three.