Social media isn't new! People always wanted to stay in touch, and from the late 1800s, they did it with gorgeous lithographed, often somewhat hectically hand-tinted images, on cards printed by the thousand for every occasion you can imagine - as well as for a few you probably can't. In addition to the many commercially produced greetings, people also headed to photographic studios for portraits or staged shots, buying extra copies to send to family and friends who were interested, as well as to those who possibly weren’t at all!
Several years back, I set up a business trading in antique books and prints, although it became uncomfortably apparent, at an early stage, that the buying and holding on to was way, way outpacing the selling.
Fascinated by gorgeous imagesand glorious illustration, I spent an inordinate amount of time ferreting in cobwebbed attic corners, and rooting around at the bottom of boxes at boot sales (obsessive or what?). And unsurprisingly, before long had accumulated quite an image collection. It was at that stage I started writing copy lines for them. This was a hugely enjoyable pastime which made me laugh a great deal, and which I reckoned could only be therapeutic.
Luckily around about that time I'd also just set up my copywriting business, so was able to justify and utilise my feverish photo collecting as quirky business branding. Mercifully, the Vintage Ladies made others laugh a lot too, brought in lots of business, and eventually evolved by popular demand into a range of gift books. And yes, writing new lines still keeps me scarily cheerful!
THE VINTAGE LADIES AND ME!
Social media isn't new! People always wanted to stay in touch, and from the late 1800s, they did it with gorgeous lithographed, often somewhat hectically hand-tinted images, on cards printed by the thousand for every occasion you can imagine - as well as for a few you probably can't. In addition to the many commercially produced greetings, people also headed to photographic studios for portraits or staged shots,...
