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The trend for unusual and exotic baby names shows no sign of slowing down. Last week we overheard someone in a pub talking about their relatives’ children, three of whom are called ‘Geronimo’, ‘Princessing’ and ‘Guvna’. Yes, Guvna. Imagine that on your birth announcement cards!

So what’s in a name? A surprising amount, as it turns out.

Many people choose girls’ names because they sound so pretty. April, for instance. Or Rosie. Or Summer. But girls’ names can be deceptive.

‘Kate’ is a pretty-sounding name. But Kate has three possible meanings. One, a tribute to the Greek goddess Hecate. Two, some scholars say it has Coptic origins. In which case it means ‘My consecration of your name’; a bit of a mouthful. The third option? There’s every chance that the name Kate actually originates from the ancient Greek word for ‘torture’. Not too pretty after all!

Boys’ names fall into different categories. Things like ‘Oliver’ and ‘Charles’ have a classy ring whereas names like Frank and Steve sound slightly more macho. At the far right of macho you’ll find little boys with huge names like ‘Butch’ and ‘Rambo’.

In 2004 England’s top male baby name was Jack. Millions of birth announcement cards went out that year and countless thousands of little Jacks were welcomed into the world. Closely followed by Joshuas, Thomases, Jameses, Daniels, Samuels, Olivers, Williams, Benjamins and, at ten, Josephs… a startling number of traditional biblical names without a sniff of a Darren or a Dwayne.

Apparently once upon a time, back in the ‘80s, every other little girl was called Kylie. The media has been moaning ever since about a veritable epidemic of celebrity naming. Apparently we’re all naming our kids after celebrities.

But do media complaints stand up to scrutiny? Or is the whole celebrity naming thing an urban myth? A couple of years back the top ten girls’ names encompassed gentle Victorian-sounding Emily, Ellie, Jessica, Sophie, Chloe, Olivia, Charlotte, Kaite and Megan. No sign of a celebrity name. Not a Jay-Lo or a Jade or a Paris in sight. What surprises, we wonder, will 2008’s baby name statistics bring?

If you choose a name for your baby before he or she is born, you might find yourself back-pedalling frantically as little Cherry comes out looking exactly like an Annabel. Or little Phillip (which means ‘friend of horses’) turns out to have the undeniable look of a ‘Harry’ about him.

Made up names are great fun. But one piece of advice - if you create a name for your baby from scratch try Googling it before you book the christening. You don’t want to find out too late that your beautiful-sounding made up name actually means ‘Big bum’ in Swahili or ‘Untrustworthy pig face’ in Japanese. And it is always a good thing to check you’re not naming your new baby after a serial killer!

Some names simply hit the nail on the head. In retrospect they seem fortuitous, like magic. Take the name Barack - as in Barack Obama - which means ‘blessing’ in Arabic. Whether he really does turn out to be a blessing is to be seen. But things are looking good so far…

Once you’re sure the name you’ve chosen doesn’t mean anything silly, and it suits your baby to a tee, you’re ready to introduce him or her to the world by sending out your birth announcement cards. Until you’ve done your homework, you’re in dangerous waters!

How high do you score on the posh’o'meter?

You’ve probably heard of Debrett’s. They’re the publishers who, like Burke’s, publish beautiful leather-bound books containing lists of the richest and poshest people in the UK; Debrett’s Peerage and Baronetage. 

And boy, are they posh! They describe themselves as ‘the modern authority on all matters etiquette, taste and achievement’. And they say that ‘recognising people of distinction and the finer things in life are true to Debrett’s Heritage’.  They have opinions about all aspects of life from ‘modern’ manners to wedding etiquette to correct ‘form’, etiquette for young gentlemen to advice on every aspect of family life.

Gosh. 

We’ve had hours of fun reading through our copy of ‘Correct Form’. And we were pleased to see that they’ve got some sound advice about announcing the birth of a new baby:

“Birth Announcement cards should be printed or engraved and kept elegantly simple. Photographs of a new baby should never be sent out.“ they proclaim.

“Phew!” we proclaim in response. Thankfully we are not as common as muck after all. Far from it. In fact, from now on you can call us Lord and Lady Muck. We’re as posh as a posh thing.  

How come? Because our simple, elegant, luxurious new birth announcement cards fit the bill perfectly. According to Debrett’s we’ve got it right. Thick, crisp white cards embellished with a delightfully subtle pink or blue bow. And that’s it. You choose the message and text, which sits there looking ever so classy above the bow motif. Debrett’s would be proud of us.

As for their ‘don’t send a photo of your baby’ advice, we think that’s a bit harsh. It doesn’t exactly exude human warmth! So why not include a lovely photo of your new baby in the envelope to accompany your classy, minimalist birth announcement card?

That way you get the best of both worlds. You can be posh and  human at the same time in one big, cosy double whammy. We love happy compromises!

1969 and the Neil Armstrong is the first man to walk on the moon The second man  is Buzz Lightyear (Aldrin). On March 2nd ‘69 Concorde makes it’s first flight of 27mins. Number one hits that year include Tom Jones, The Rolling Stones and Fleetwood Mac, sound familiar? Marvin Gaye sang “Heard it through the Grapevine” and the legendary Rolf Harris  bought a lump to out throats with “Two Little Boys”.

This is landmark birthday, you must celebrate before Hush Puppies become a reality and that Pink Rinse seems to make sense. Be proud of 1969, let everybody know you were born in the Love and Peace year with our 1969 themed invitation.

Maybe you have memories of your misspent youth, Remember the Specials (touring 2009), The first Madness single “The Prince” and the mighty “Three minute hero” from The Selector? All from the Two Tone Lable. This invitation should bring back the glory days one more time!

We’ve been wondering why so many couples getting married abroad choose our most creative, unusual and eyecatching wedding stationery  

Tongue partially in cheek, we formulated a theory the other night while printing off a batch of silver  hologram mirrorball invitations for a customer:

Is their choice of stationery tied in to the amount of guilt they feel for abandoning tradition, heading for an exotic wedding abroad on some gorgeous beach?

It might sound silly. But after we’d stopped giggling we realised that there might be something to our theory. Putting ourselves in couples’ shoes, we realised that leaving all your relatives and friends behind to swan off into a tropical sunset for your wedding does pose a conundrum. You’re ecstatic. Your friends are delighted for you. But some of your family, no matter what they say, are slightly miffed. Noses are lovingly - but definitely - out of joint. 

One way to get around the problem, we decided, would be to have a whopping great party in the UK either before or after the event. That’s what we’d do. A real show stopper. To salve our guilt, we’d push the boat out with a superb venue, stunning party ‘Save the Date’ cards, matching invitations, place cards, menu cards, the lot. A vast cake, dancing girls, performing elephants… you get the picture!

So that’s why we’re getting so many orders for our most exciting top-end invitation ranges.  They’re a tangible expression of slight yet uncomfortable guilt. Or are they? If you’re lucky our next session at the digital print machine will probably deliver more pearls of ‘wisdom’! 

Is this a beauty or what? A gorgeously exotic thick silver invite complete with funky hologram…

Sometimes you just have to see something in real life to appreciate it properly. This is one of those times. If you think our delightfully funky mirror ball invitation cards look impressive in the ‘photo above, you should see the real thing! 

This design is unique to us, so you won’t find it anywhere else. 

The subtle disco ball image is actually a real hologram, expertly printed on thick silver board. The cards come complete with with their own eyecatching silver envelopes to match. And, best of all, we also supply matching RSVP cards and place cards for a truly unforgettable occasion.

Add your own personal details

Add your own unique details to your invitations - the text style, size and colour are all flexible - using the simple form on our website, choose your print quantity and off you go…  your cards will be delivered, beautifully packed, in plenty of time for your special occasion.

So what are our customers celebrating with these unusual and beautiful invitations?

• silver wedding anniversaries
• spring engagement parties
• spring weddings
• 18th birthday parties
• 21st birthday parties 
• 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th, 70th and 80th birthday celebrations
• surprise parties
• corporate events and PR

Free holographic invitation card sample

Visit our website and request a free sample silver hologram invitation card - we’ll be delighted to pop one in the post to you. Or drop by and find out more about our products and services at www.printed4u.com.

Fantastic value for money

• £32.00 for the first 20 cards
• £8.00 per 10 thereafter

Ho Ho Ho!

Stuck for gift ideas? You can’t go wrong with stationery, especially at this time of year.  At home cards, correspondence cards and thank-you cards are all the rage. So we’ve put together some cool offers for December. Get in quick and catch the last posting date before Christmas!

A generous 10% off all December orders: Whatever you buy in December, you’ll get 10% off. Nice? There’s more…   

Correspondence cards: Now this is nifty. How about a lovely boxed set of 50 correspondence cards with envelopes? They’re perfect for seasonal thank-yous and useful all year round. The deal? Fifty cards and envelopes for just £40.50 using discount code AYSCX1112. The Black postcards are £45.

Tip: Our customers particularly like our smart, contemporary black postcards printed in gold or silver.

At home cards: Our thick pure white ‘At Home’ cards have subtle silver edging and lovely script foil-printed in silver. These gorgeous, useful cards come in packs of 15 with their own envelopes. Card size 14.8 x 10.5cm (A6). The price? £11.25 per pack Price includes delivery (by post).

Thank you cards: Everyone loves getting a thank you card, especially when the post usually consists of boring stuff like bills and junk mail! Our exquisite thank you cards are generously thick and luxurious, featuring an attactive silver edge and foil-printed in silver. They come in packs of 15 with their own envelopes. Card size 14.8 x 10.5cm (A6). £11.25 per pack including delivery by post.

Head over to our at home cards page and see what’s what. Or get in touch and make your special order via www.printed4u.com.

Happy christmas and a great new year to all our customers!

The printed4u Team

When was the last time you missed someone’s wedding?

We’d bet it wasn’t too long ago.

As modern life gets more manic, it’s a good idea to get your wedding date into your favourite people’s  diaries well in advance. So Save the Date cards are hot right now.

What are Save the Date cards? The perfect way to make sure all your favourite people can make it to your special day by giving them plenty of notice.  

Save the Date with style for contemporary weddings

If you ‘re planning a sleek, minimal contemporary wedding you’ll love our crisp, pure white Save the Date cards with their subtle, cool text.

Save the Date with charm for traditional weddings

For a traditional romantic wedding redolent with frills, flowers and innocent prettiness, pick a lovely rose covered design.

Save the Date with gentle humour for informal weddings

If you’re keen to keep your wedding informal and fun, we help yiu inject some humour into your special day witha range of colourful, clever cartoons.

Save the Date seriously for formal weddings

Treat this unique occasion with a level of solemnity by choosing a traditional card that won’t frighten your relatives!

Black cards… is black the new white?

Are you on the trail of an un uber-stylish alternative? If you’re planning a state of the art wedding and you’re determined to make an immediate and dramatic impact, go black. Our Black Magic Save the Date cards are a deep, matte black with subtle silver text for added oomph. And they come complete with thick black envelopes. Yum.     

Unique matching cards for a uniquely happy occasion

We specialise in beautiful quality designs for all your wedding needs. You can order your Save the Date cards to match your Wedding Ceremony and Evening Celebration invitations, your Place Cards, Menus and Order of Service cards.

Click through to our website, have fun searching through our range of designs and order your Save the Date cards online.  

We must keep manufactoring in Britain even bring back the factories we have lost. If you make something then you are a man my son! We use three printing machines to print our invitations and two are made in the UK, we know these will go on forever if looked after.

This ball is rolling, now there is a decicated website buybritish.com a comprehensive directory of british products, suppliers and services, updated every day.