#78 His & Hers
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New word & colors for your Valentine… whoever they are
Don’t you agree it’s always been awkward, when you didn’t know the gender of the person in a sentence, to have to write “he/she” & “he or she”? AmperArt #78 His & Hers was inspired by this situation. (Frankly, I usually just write “it” whether it’s a person, animal or slice of pizza.) So we’d usually say “they” which up till now was not proper grammar, especially in writing.
But it is now. “He/she” can now be properly referred to as a singular “they.” As in “Whether his is a tie or a tablet, or hers is a necklace or a notebook, give them a gift they can really use.” (You could also give them a subscription to AmperArt which is absolutely free.)
According to the Washington Post,
“We know about singular they already — we use it everyday without thinking about it, so this is bringing it to the fore in a more conscious way, and also playing into emerging ideas about gender identity,” said linguist Ben Zimmer, language columnist for the Wall Street Journal, who presided over the voting…”
Full Washington Post article here.
Word of the Year & Color of the Year
“They” has been named the Word of the Year for 2016.
Again, from the Washington Post article:
Singular “they,” the gender-neutral pronoun, has been named the Word of the Year by a crowd of over 200 linguists at the American Dialect Society’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
Frankly, I never heard of a Word of the Year till now. But I do know there is always a Pantone Color of the Year — except for 2016 it’s plural (not singular like “they”); there are two Pantone Colors of the Year:
Rose Quartz & Serenity are Pantone’s Colors of the Year for 2016. I like Pantone’s decision to feature two colors — just like His & Hers — so we can have fun with more ampersands. And these two colors are perfect for Valentines Day. (I dare you: go ahead and express your love with a bar of soap, in the appropriate color of course, and see just how much they love you back.)
More about Pantone’s Colors of the Year (all years shown — lots of fun) at Pantone.com.
Various shades of each color were used for the bathroom tiles in this month’s AmperArt #78, His & Hers. The wire towel holder is just one use for this fun & functional ampersand accessory. It can be configured as a wine rack, photo frame, jewelry holder, and more. Eventually I’ll be featuring this in the online AmperArt gift store, but for now the patent is pending and can be made to order in a variety of materials & finishes. Please inquire.
To Do & To Don’t List
Here’s a fun & functional TO DO & TO DON’T LIST featuring the Pantone Colors of the Year for 2016 to help keep his & hers goals on track for 2016.
The new design features the Pantone Colors of the Year for 2016: Rose Quartz & Serenity.
Download the TO DO & TO DON’T list here and print out several copies for your friends.
Check out the new “chaz sez” blog at DesimoneDesign.com, my commercial graphic design website. There’s lots for both his & hers interests — designers, typographers, copywriters, artists, photographers, just about anyone in the creative field … whoever they are.
Most articles will cover various aspects of design, printing, publishing & marketing, but on occasion I’ll divert to a sideways topic that just can’t escape my ranting & raving. (more…)