single minded

Have you ever noticed that when buying a card with a specific message, the majority of the them are stacked for those who are married, had a baby, become engaged or celebrating an anniversary.  Of course there is the birthday range that we all share, but that is the only inclusive one.

There are more people in the world who choose not to marry or to live by themselves and we are a growing demographic.

It's not only the 'singles' that are not represented in the greeting card range but several other groups who are not acknowledged in the summary of people in our society.

The word 'single' is a powerful word in English speaking cultures and has always held a cringe factor for me, along with the words 'spinster' and 'miss' due to the connotations connected to them.  When asked "Are you single?" it is said with a tone and expression that gave made me feel I was deficient of something.  The suggestion that if I was single it wasn't possible for me to have fun, to live life to its full or even to have sex.

As a person who loves cards, and postcards and most especially, receiving them, I decided to reclaim the word 'single' and put a positive spin on it by creating a card range to send to people for no particular reason but to send a lovely light-hearted message.

The range was designed almost two years ago and whilst I had a positive response from people who saw the cards, the range of card sellers that I approached didn't respond.  Could it be that the idea is uninspiring for them or too confronting?

Even if you are in a relationship you can celebrate your single self.  Single, it's the new black.

hellsbells