After e-mail, texting; after texting, Blackberrying; after the Blackberry, the iPhone. Just as fashionistas are continually, wrongly, declaring the death of couture, you should beware proclamations of the death of the art of letter-writing.

"E-mail has prompted a shift in status for writing paper," says Samantha Cameron, creative director of the stationers Smythson of Bond Street. "Rather than being a necessity, writing paper has become a luxury. The quality and provenance of your writing paper is like a secret code. It signifies that you're in the club" - much as a certain kind of handbag or shoe does. It's an accessory" title="n.附件；帮凶 a.附属的">accessory, and an increasingly important one at that, especially as the month of gift-giving, getting and thanking looms.

"Your writing paper is your ambassador," agrees Contessa Sibilla della Gherardesca, author of Non Si Dice Piaciere, an Italian guide to modern manners. No wonder the great stationery houses of the world - England's Smythson, Italy's Pineider, France's Cassegrain, the US's Crane & Co and Mrs John L Strong - are enjoying a renaissance.

Styles are changing, though. Smythson's signature Bond Street Blue remains popular but Cameron reports a growing demand for more frivolous colours such as Park Avenue Pink and Glen Clova (eau-de-nil). "In the 1980s it was smart to have red painted borders on white like Princess Diana's Kensington Palace writing paper," she says. "Today it's more likely that a fashionable young woman will choose Glen Clova with the red border, which looks fresher and more modern."

Flat printing is an acceptable if less chic alternative to hand engraving, and matching envelopes with diamond flaps are non-negotiable. Black or blue ink is the form but in Italy burnt sienna is the smartest choice.

"The handwritten letter is very important to Americans," says Cameron. "It's traditional to have your name engraved at the top of your writing paper. This is becoming more popular in the UK. The formality of a handwritten letter has gone beyond private correspondence into the business arena.

"We are seeing a great demand for cards engraved only with a name," she continues. "The level of access you'd like to give - mobile number, e-mail, home number - is then handwritten." Fashion designers such as Tom Ford, Miuccia Prada and Christian Lacroix all cross through the surname of their monogrammed writing paper. This is an anachronism that has its roots in the 19th century. If the note was written for a friend or acquaintance, the surname would be scored through. Personal letters written in a professional capacity today have adapted this affectation.

The British habit of using an address to head writing paper is also bowing to change. Such is the fluidity of new wealth, and today's credit markets, that fortunes and properties can be lost before the stationer has even finished engraving the plate.

电邮之后出现了短信；短信之后出现了黑莓；黑莓之后出现了iPhone。正如时尚人士持续地、不正当地宣判某种服装设计过时一样，你也应该关注对信件书写方式消亡的宣判。

"电邮引发了信纸地位的转变，"文具商Smythson of Bond Street创意主管萨曼塔•卡梅伦（Samantha Cameron）表示，"信纸现在除了是必需品以外，已成为一种奢侈品。信纸的质量和产地似乎成了一种密码。它暗示着你很入流"--就像某种手包或鞋子一样。它成了一种附件，特别是在送礼月，它日益成为答谢活动临近的重要物品。

西比拉•德拉盖拉尔代斯卡伯爵夫人（Contessa Sibilla della Gherardesca）对此表示同意："你的信纸就是你的大使。"西比拉是意大利现代礼仪指南Non Si Dice Piaciere一书的作者。不足为奇的是，那些全球一流的文具店--英格兰的Smythson、意大利的Pineider、法国的Cassegrain、美国的Crane & Co和Mrs John L Strong--正享受着这种复兴。

不过风格正在改变。Smythson的标识"邦德街之蓝"（Bond Street Blue）仍很流行，但卡梅伦的报告称，越来越多的人需要更轻佻的颜色，比如"林荫大道之粉"（Park Avenue Pink）和Glen Clova酒店的样式。"20世纪80年代，将红色边框置于白色的像戴安娜王妃肯辛顿宫（Kensington Palace）一样的信纸上，是个聪明的做法，"她说，"今天，年轻的时尚女士更有可能选择带红色边框的Glen Clova酒店样式的信纸，这看起来更清新、现代感更强。"

如果别致的手工刻纸较少，与之搭配的菱形封盖信封无法流通，那么平版印刷还是可以接受的。黑色或蓝色墨水是通常的选择，但在意大利，赭色是最聪明的选择。

"手写信件对美国人非常重要，"卡梅伦表示，"把你的名字印在你信纸顶部是种传统。这在英国日益流行起来。手写信件的礼仪已经超越私人通信范围，发展到商务领域。"

"我们看到对于仅印有一个名字的卡片的需求量很大，"她继续道，"然后手写上你喜欢给出的信息--手机号、电邮、家庭电话。"汤姆•福特（Tom Ford）、缪科雅•普拉达（Miuccia Prada）和克里斯汀•拉克鲁瓦（Christian Lacroix）等时尚设计师，都在他们印有字母的信纸上签上姓。这种做法源自19世纪。如果信是写给一个朋友或熟人的，只有姓就足够了。今天，涉及职业能力的私人信件采纳了这种习惯。

以地址作为信纸开头的英式习惯也在改变。这是因为新财富的流动和今天的信贷市场，会导致文具商在完成雕板之前，财富和地产就已经亏掉了。
关键字:双语新闻
生词表: