One topic, one page
Everything with a name on it
Keepsakes that carry a baby’s name, and stories about choosing one — on one page.
- StoryChoosing a name four times: how we learnt to love a nameSüleyman Taha, Muammer Esat, Hamza Bera, Mehmet Emde. We chose a name for four boys and learnt the same lesson each time: a name isn’t found on a list, it’s found by calling it out loud. On the quiet side of naming a baby — with a note on why Turkish children so often carry two names.
- StoryEmbroidery and remembering: what happens when a name is written in threadEvery cloth in my grandmother’s dowry chest had two letters stitched into the corner, and they can still be read today. Why embroidery is back in twenty-somethings’ handbags, and why a baby’s name written with a needle lands so differently from one typed on a screen.
- StorySewing a name into the school smock: the small ritual of September morningsEvery September the same scene plays out in Turkish kitchens: four school smocks on the table, a reel of thread, a needle, and a name sewn into each collar so nothing gets lost. As the mother of four boys, I learned that the little label holds far more than lost cardigans.
- StoryStones from the autumn park: writing a name on a pebbleIn October the park paths fill with leaves and gravel; children crouch to collect stones, mothers empty their pockets. A few of those stones come home, get washed, and a name is painted on them. From autumn afternoons with four boys: why a name written on stone outlives one written on paper.
- StoryThe first letter on the blanket: where a baby’s name gets written firstAfter the hospital wristband, most Turkish homes write a baby’s name in one place first: the corner of the blanket. Why there? My mother with an embroidery hoop, a needle that refuses to hurry, and a single lopsided letter found in a cupboard years later.
- StoryThe name on the door: the warmth of wood, and whose room it isHanging a baby’s name on their bedroom door is a small thing; but for everyone who opens that door, the room becomes someone’s in that instant. From the scrap of wood my father nailed above our door in Zonguldak to four boys and four doors: why wood is still the material that belongs on a door.
- StoryMevlit şekeri and tulle pouches: hosting a baby’s mevlit at homeSugared almonds in tulle pouches, a tray of lokum, rose sherbet and a name on the nursery door. How my mother and Hamza Bera’s grandmother prepared his mevlit, who tied two hundred ribbons, and what I would tell a mother hosting one for the first time.
- StoryTwo lives in one dayA day that starts with four children’s voices, continues in a white coat and comes home again to four small hearts. Meliha Özyalvaç, a specialist physician and mother of four, on the hardest part of working motherhood — and the thing without a name that rises through all the tiredness.
- Gift guideBaby shower gifts: what to give a mother-to-be before the baby arrivesA baby shower celebrates the mother, not yet the baby. Here is how to choose a gift for a child who may not even have a name yet, how to make the mother feel seen, and what to avoid.
- ProductBunny and Baby Shoes Gift SetA gift set of one long-eared plush bunny and one pair of fringed baby shoes, brought together by the same little name. Choose the bunny and shoe colours separately for a thoughtful gift with two keepsakes to treasure. The name appears on the bunny and on both shoes.
- ProductCeremony Jewellery SashA wide satin sash for the jewellery ceremony, carrying your initial and name, or both names and the day. Forked at the tail and worn over the shoulder, it’s made as a pair for the couple.
- ProductPearl Ring RibbonA satin ring ribbon edged with tiny pearls, your name and the date of your promise written along it. The finest detail on the ring tray — and a small keepsake of the day afterwards.
- ProductPersonalised Baby Announcement Gift SetA personalised baby announcement gift set: one white baby bodysuit and one pair of socks, with the same name on the bodysuit and both socks, plus a message for the dad, grandparent, aunt or uncle you want to surprise. A little name and a big piece of family news, ready to become keepsakes of that first delighted smile.
- ProductPersonalised Baby BodysuitA soft cotton bodysuit with a line you choose and their name across the chest. For the first visit to the grandparents, or the first proper photograph.
- ProductPersonalised Crescent & Star Hair BowA red sailor bow for the national holidays, on a soft elastic band. The crescent and star sit on the left tail; on the right, choose her name or Atatürk’s signature. It holds a half-up hairstyle for the school ceremony and comes out again every 23 April and 29 October.
- ProductPersonalised Fringed Baby ShoesA pair of fringed baby shoes in a moccasin style, with tied bows and the same name on both toes. A lovely detail for a family photograph, and a pair to keep long after that little outfit has been outgrown. Available in tan, navy and sand.
- ProductPersonalised Plush BunnyA plush bunny with long floppy ears, a soft coat and their name across the tummy. It brings a familiar face to the nursery shelf and a personal touch to a birthday gift. Twelve colours to choose from, cream and blush to mint, mustard, lilac and black, with the lettering you like best, for a keepsake that is unmistakably theirs.
- ProductPersonalised Plush Cloud CushionA wide, cuddly cloud cushion with closed sleepy eyes, a tiny smile and their name stitched across the front. It settles into the cot corner, the nursing chair or the reading nook and stays long after the first lullabies. Six soft colours, from white and blush to peach and baby blue.
- ProductPersonalised Plush DinosaurA mini plush dinosaur with their name on its pale tummy, a round little face and cheerful orange spikes. It brings a personal touch to a nursery shelf or a birthday gift chosen with care. Pick blue, pink, beige or white; each order includes one dinosaur with the name you choose.
- ProductPersonalised Plush FootballTheir name takes the centre spot on a soft, panelled plush football. Choose black and white, yellow and navy, or yellow and red for a birthday keepsake with a sporting touch. A plush gift, not a match ball; the design carries a name, not a club crest.