Another extraordinary experience in London was my visit to the Smythson bespoke stationery office on New Bond Street. For our one year wedding anniversary, Adrian bought me a hand-engraved copper die of my full name written in Saint Germain, and commissioned a set of social cards on Mayfair Smooth White with Deep Purple ink. On the weekend I was lucky enough to visit the flagship store to discuss my options of using the same die to commission some personalised writing paper with my favourite stationery company.

We were ushered to the back room, and sat down with a gentleman called Christopher who placed an extraordinarily large and thick book filled with hundreds of samples on the mahogany desk in front of us. I was lucky enough to have my friend Shyla by my side, an expert in both paper and design. She was an excellent consultant and a great source of support and enthusiasm through the difficult decision making process. I told her that I would like to have a splash of purple, perhaps purple tissue lining and a violet ink colour for the letterhead.

Then, of course, there was the choice of paper. Nile Blue, Bond St Blue, and Park Avenue Pink did not work well with violet. So we were left with the choice between Mayfair Smooth White, White Wove, Ermine White Laid, Cream Wove, the pale brown Marston Mill, or the pale green-grey Three Crowns. None of them seemed to stand out above the crowd. Then we turned the page and caught sight of the daring peppermint coloured Glen Clova. Our assistant told us that this paper had been designed for the Queen Mother’s 100th birthday, but warned us that it was now at very limited stocks and would not be renewed. It has a unique watermark that reads “Smythson Glen Clova” when held up to the light. It was inspired by the area near her childhood home of Glamis Castle (also the setting for Macbeth).  He told us that there would be enough for one order, but no refills. The co-ordinating correspondence cards were already unavailable.

With Shyla’s encouragement, I decided to take the plunge and choose the bright and vibrant colour combination of green Glen Clova paper with Violet accents for my set. Our assistant then revealed that he had chosen the exact same colour combination for his personalised stationery, and pulled it out to demonstrate. I am not sure that Miss Manners would approve of such unconventional colours, but I am excited to see the result. The last decision was the size of the paper, and we decided on Kings (203mm x 159mm), slightly larger than Dukes and smaller than Imperial. The paper is milled in Scotland, and then is cut, pressed, and folded by hand in Wiltshire. The boxes should arrive by courier in three weeks.

All photos from Smythson

Ever since I first stumbled across Miss Manners’ Guide for the Turn-Of-The-Millennium at the Australian National University Library as an undergrad, I coveted a stationery wardrobe. It is not, as Judith Martin remarks, dresses that don’t “capriciously change their fit through the years” (that, of course, would be a stationary wardrobe). It is a collection of writing paper for all occasions. For most of my years here in Seattle I have used Crane and Co to feed my stationery desires. They are American company who make their products from cotton, rather than wood pulp, and they supply paper for US bank notes and Tiffany & Co. Their envelopes are lined with bright colours and they carry many whimsical designs. However, this time I was looking for something a little more regal.

Our trip to London provided the incentive to first see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, and then visit the stationers that supply my Queen with her writing paper – Smythson of Bond Street. First established in 1887, they produce luxurious paper and leather goods. They were granted the Royal Warrant to Her Majesty the Queen in 1964, to HRH The Prince of Wales in 1980, and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in 2002. When I visited the museum at the back of their flagship store on New Bond Street, I was able to see samples of this stationery, as well as that of the Maharajah (crests inlaid with mother of pearl) and Princess Diana (red and cream).

Smythson’s writing paper is available in a wide variety of colours and weights, ranging from Mayfair Smooth White to their distinctive Nile Blue. The Park Avenue Pink was premiered at the launch of their New York store, and Glen Clova green was created for the Queen Mother.  A gentleman at the store gave me a sample pack of their papers and cards to take home and ponder. I selected some correspondence cards for various occasions, writing paper in Cream Wove with a classic watermark, as well as a silver pencil with retractable lead. They packed it all up in those delightful blue boxes pictured at the top of this page.

Because Adrian knows me so well, and also because I am spoilt, on our anniversary he presented me with the pièce de résistance of my stationery wardrobe – my very own social card. The text engraved in Saint Germain script on a copper die, hand embossed in dark purple ink on Mayfair Smooth White board. A proper social card generally only contains the name, not the address or the telephone number. If more information is required, it is hand-written on the back. One of my favourite aspects of leaving a social card is that folding each particular corner forward carries its own specific message:

Turning the lower left corner indeed means that you are taking leave. When everyone knew this, and Pour prendre conge’ was as generally understood among Americans as RSVP is now, “P.p.c.” was sometimes also written on the lower left corner.

The gentleman was congratulating you on your new job. The upper right-hand corner is “P.f.,” for Pour fe’liciter. However, these abbreviations, if written, are always in the lower left. There is also “P.c.,” Pour condoler, for sympathy calls, for which the lower right corner is turned; and “P.r.,” Pour remercier, to thank, for example after being entertained at dinner the night before.

If the right corner is turned toward the face of the card, it means the card bearer has been there in person. However, that may also be expressed by turning the upper left corner, which means visite.