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Why is the Tiffany’s box a trademark blue? And why is it more coveted than the actual contents?

February 9, 2015 by anubha76 Leave a Comment

It was in 1878 that Tiffany & Co.’s Blue Book catalogue acquired its first cover in the particular shade of blue that’s now come to be known as Tiffany Blue. Variously described as ‘forget-me-not blue’ and ‘robin’s egg blue’, it was handpicked because of the popularity of turquoise gemstones in the 19th century.

Turquoise was also a favorite of Victorian brides, who usually gave their attendants a dove-shaped brooch set with turquoise so that they would not forget the occasion – a detail that was not lost on Charles Lewis Tiffany, who founded the brand as the pinnacle of wedding luxe.

tiffany blue 2The box incited such a flurry of emotions that in 1906, The New York Sun famously reported: “(Charles Lewis) Tiffany has one thing in stock that you cannot buy of him for as much money as you may offer; he will only give it to you. And that is one of his boxes.”

At the beginning of the 20th century, the venerable jewellery house trademarked this cult shade and it now bears the same number (1837) on the Pantone Matching System as the year Tiffany was founded. More than a century later, the “little blue box” remains an international icon, whispering romance and sophistication, and inciting bidding wars on eBay from collectors who sometimes value the packaging more than the contents.

tiffany blue 4Bonus facts:

1. Pantone makes the blue-coloured paper for all Tiffany’s packaging materials.

2. The white satin ribbon that is tied at the counter is another de rigueur for all Tiffany’s boxes. The only time it’s replaced is during the holidays, when Tiffany’s uses a red ribbon for the festivities.

3. The brand’s name is embossed in Baskerville Old Face.

4. During the shooting of Audrey Hepburn’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the store posted 40 armed guards on the floor to prevent its blue boxes from vanishing!

5. The Tiffany’s blue box has even inspired actual pieces of jewellery (like this pretty charm) – not to mention the innumerable nail polishes, desserts, wall coverings, fashion collections and decor objects.

Own a Tiffany’s blue box? Want a Tiffany’s blue box?

Filed Under: Brands, Cult, Design, Fashion, Gifting Tagged With: Pantone 1837, Tiffany, Tiffany & Co., Tiffany blue, Tiffany blue box, Tiffany blue box charms, Tiffany color, Tiffany colour, Tiffany font, Tiffany history, Tiffany nail polish, Tiffany packaging, Tiffany red ribbon, Tiffany signature, Tiffany trivia, Tiffany white ribbon, Tiffany's, what is Tiffany blue, why is Tiffany's blue

Conversation starter: What is the Hermès orange?

January 21, 2015 by anubha76 Leave a Comment

Orange has been the Hermès hallmark colour since the Second World War, when the company’s packaging supplier ran out of its traditional brown-trimmed beige box. When the company was launched in 1837, the first boxes were cream-coloured, with gilded-edging, imitating pigskin; a few years later they became mustard-coloured with brown edging.

hermes orange 2The Second World War forced the next color change. During the Occupation, the shortage of all materials forced Hermès to use the only plain paperboard available: it was orange. Moving to orange was a pretty bold move in the 1940s, but there has been no turning back for the company that began in Thierry Hermès’ saddle shop in Paris.

According to Leatrice Eisman, author of All About Colour, “Because orange is closely associated to red from which it comes, vibrant orange is a very physical, high-visibility colour, calling for attention. And because of it’s connection to sunny yellow, orange is seen as friendlier and more approachable, less aggressive than red – a gregarious, fun loving hue.”

After the war, this color was continued, but in a much more vivid shade (as today) with a relief pattern. In 1949, the Bolduc (brown ribbon) was introduced. Before 1996, jewellery and tableware had different colored boxes: grey for jewelry and green for tableware; however, today all Hermès objects come in the orange box, which comes in 188 different sizes. This burnt orange corresponds to No. 1448 on the Pantone Matching System.

hermes orange 1

Filed Under: Brands, Cult, Design, Fashion, Gifting Tagged With: Hermès, Hermes color, Hermes colour, Hermes orange, Hermes packaging, Hermes signature colour, what is the Hermes orange, why is hermes orange

How to pronounce designer names 101: The ultimate guide

November 27, 2014 by anubha76 Leave a Comment

Ever found yourself stuck when trying to pronounce the name of a fashion brand? Manner & Mischief’s A-Z cheat sheet will help you tackle everything from Azzedine Alaia and Hermes to Versace and Yves Saint Laurent. Just remember:

1. For French names, trail off at the end, so your mouth is in a round shape and you don’t quite get to the ‘N’.

2. Practise makes perfect.

PS: Haute couture is ‘oat ku tour’. Not ‘hot kew-ture’.

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Designer pronunciations: A

A Détacher: ah day-tah-shay

Abaeté: ah-bye-ah-tay

Acne: ahk-nay

Alber Elbaz: ahl-bear el-bahz

Alejandro Ingelmo: allay-handro in-gel-mo

Andrew Gn: an-drew jin

Anna Sui: ah-na swee

Ann Demeulemeester: ann de-mule-eh-meester

Anya Hindmarch: ahn-ya hind-marsh

Arthur Mendonça: ar-thur men-doe-sa

Azzedine Alaia: azz-eh-deen ah-lie-ah

designer pronounciation4Designer pronunciations: B

Badgley Mischka: badge-lee meesh-kah

Balenciaga: bah-len-see-ah-gah

Balmain: bahl-mahhhhn

Behnaz Sarafpour: ben-ahz sar-uh-fur

Bibhu Mohapatra: bee-booh mo-ahh-pat-rah

Bottega Veneta: bow-tay-guh vah-netta

Bulgari: ball-gah-ree

Burberry: burr-behr-ee

Burberry Prorsum: burr-behr-ee prohr-sum

Designer pronunciations: C

Carven: cahr-vehn

Cacharel: cash-er-el

Carolina Herrera: caro-leena hair-era

Céline: say-leen

Cesare Paciotti: che-sah-ray pah-cho-tee

Chaiken: chay-ken

Chanel: shuh-nel

Christian Lacroix: kris-ti-an luh-kwa

Christian Louboutin: christian loo-boo-tan

Comme des Garçons: comb dey gar-son

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Designer pronunciations: D

Dior: dee-yor

Dior Homme: dee-yor om

Dolce & Gabbana: dol-chey and gab-ana

Dries Van Noten: dreeze van not-en

Dsquared2: dee squared

designer pronounciation 7Designer pronunciations: E

Elie Saab: ee-lee sahb

Emanuel Ungaro: ee-man-you-el oon-gar-oh

Emilio Pucci: ee-mee-lee-oh pu-chee

Ermenegildo Zegna: er-men-a-geel-do zen-ya

Etienne Aigner: eh-tee-yen on-yay

Etro: eh-tro

Designer pronunciations: F-G

Fendi: fend-ee

Gareth Pugh: gareth pew

Giambattista Valli: gee-am-bah-tease-ta vah-lee

Gianfranco Ferre: gee-ahn-franco feh-ray

Giles Deacon: jy-els dee-kin

Givenchy: jee-vohn-shee

Gucci: goo-chee

Guillame Henry: gee-ohm ahn-ree

Guy Laroche: ghee la-roash

how to pronounce hermes

Designer pronunciations: H

Hedi Slimane: ed-ee slim-ahn

Hermès: air-mez

Hervé Léger: air-vay lay-jah

Hussein Chalayan: hoo-sane sha-lion

Designer pronunciations: I

Issa: ee-sah

Issey Miyake: iss-ee mee-yah-key

Designer pronunciations: J-L

Jean Paul Gaultier: zhon paul go-tee-ay

Lanvin: lahn-vahhhh…n

Loewe: lo-ee-vay

Louis Vuitton: loo-wee vwee-tahn

L’Wren Scott: la-ren scott

Designer pronunciations: M

Maison Martin Margiela: may-sohn martin mar-jhell-ah

Maje: mahj

Marchesa: mar-kay-sah

Missoni: miss-own-ee

Miu Miu: mew-mew

Monique Lhuillier: monique le-hu-lee-ay

Moschino: moss-key-no

designer pronunciation 6Designer pronunciations: N

Narciso Rodriguez: nar-siss-so ro-dree-gez

Nicholas Ghesquière: nee-coh-la guess-k-yair

Designer pronunciations: O-P

Olivier Theyskens: oh-liv-ee-ay tay-skins

Pierre Cardin: pee-air car-dain

Proenza Schouler: pro-enza skoo-ler

Designer pronunciations: R-S

Ralph Lauren: ralf lor-en

Rochas: row-shah

Rodarte: row-dar-tay

Saint Laurent: san lor-raun

Salvatore Ferragamo: sal-vah-tor-re fer-ra-gah-moh

Schiaparelli: scap-a-reli

Sonia Rykiel: sonia ree-kee-eel

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Anton Oparin / Shutterstock.com

Designer pronunciations: T

Thakoon: tah-koon

Thierry Mugler: tee-air-ee mu-glare

TSE: say

Designer pronunciations: U-V

Vera Wang: veer-ah wang

Versace: vur-sah-chee

Vionnet: vee-oh-nay

Designer pronunciations: Y-Z

Yves Saint Laurent: eeves san lau-ron

Yohji Yamamoto: yoh-jee yam-ah-mo-to

Filed Under: Brands, Fashion Tagged With: design, designer names, designers, fashion, fashion designers, fashion words, haute couture, how to pronounce designer names, pronounce designer names, pronounce names in fashion, pronunciations of designers

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