Vintage calling cards

Lonely this Valentine's Day? These 19th Century calling cards are guaranteed to score you a date.

Without Facebook, online dating sites and lest we dare mention applications like Tinder, in the 19th century, single boys and girls had to be a little more inventive with their dating game. And thus, the American 'escort card' or 'invitation card' was introduced. It wasn't exactly used in high socie

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Victorian calling cards

For a similar card, see The Unknown Sheik, Wholesale Dealer in Love. "Charles M. Krout, Jacobus, Pa., wholesale and retail dealer in love, kisses, and up-to-date hugs. A large stock on hand at all times. Will be glad to demonstrate in a dark room. Come and examine my stock before dealing elsewhere. All business confidential. Consult me on spooning business. Special attention paid to other fellow's girls. Cable address: I Have a Feeling for You. Beware of fakes. I am the original."

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What follows is a brief history of the calling card and how men today can resurrect this tradition to create some stylish panache in their social interactions.

Victorian Calling Card

Luzel from iDIY found this fabulous flickr set comprised entirely of antique business and calling cards, which she was kind enough to send to me and I'm now sharing with the rest of you! I love the way calligraphy plays a role in many of the designs: Check out the rest of the collection right […]

In 19th-century America, 'escort cards' - not to be confused with the explicit sort you might imagine today - were handed to women by men who found them attractive.

Street gangs in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and other urban centers have various ways of identifying (or shall we say, branding?) themselves—think bandanas, hoodies, jackets, etc. As the book Compliments of Chicagohoodz: Chicago Street Gang Art & Culture (Feral House) shows, there are uniquely Chicago ways of marking turf and being unified with a group. In his foreword to the book, Anthony Haden-Guest reveals a particular form of Windy City street literature: compliment ca

Three business cards from the family, 1920s and 1930s

Lonely this Valentine's Day? These 19th Century calling cards are guaranteed to score you a date.

I love the calling cards that are handwritten...This one if for Maude B Latta and was in a 1917 Grammar School Commencement Invitation. I...