Ah, the naming process. Who hasn’t been in a crowded conference room enduring a heated debate between the “cool, offbeat name” and the “one small step away from where we’re at” name? It got me thinking about the word and, the ampersand, or the plus sign. Dress it up however you like, it’s happening everywhere and the pattern has become more and more acute.
These are all blogs/designery sites I frequent:Birch + BirdBird And BannerChocolate & ZucchiniCoral & TuskDuct Tape & GlitterFavorite & FoundFelt & WireHi + LowHither and ThitherNectar & LightObject & TotemPaper + CupPart & ParcelPica + PixelRivers & RobotsSimple + PrettySnippet & InkStyle & PepperTwig & Thistlewit + delight
Delicious restaurants/bars to further illustrate the pattern:A Salt & Battery (o.k., that one’s really clever)Bourbon & BranchBrick & MortarButcher & SingerChiles & ChocolateEdi and the WolfFig & OliveFox and HoundGirl and the GoatGrain & SaltHogs & HeifersMilk & HoneySalt and PineScales & ShellsThe Bull & WhistleViktor & Spoils
It wasn’t so long ago that the monosyllabic names were the ones getting all the attention…generic and mysterious sounding words like Office and Drink. Then, they were ousted in favor of an ampersand holding two marginally related nouns together for dear life. I remember when noun and noun configurations represented partnerships, like Dolce & Gabbana or Siegfried & Roy, simple pairings that made sense. Maybe the duo configuration will lose its caché and 2013 will be the year of the trifecta, the triple-play, also known as This & That & That Other Thing.
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