funflector® designs

Fotball Season Kickoff

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NFL Kickoff Weekend is coming up and again the previous season’s Super Bowl winner will open the NFL season at home on the Thursday before. So, already tonight, the New Orleans Saints will host the Minnesota Vikings in the Superdome in a rematch or the NFC title game. College Football kicked off last week and most High School teams are also busy with games and practice sessions. Since the days are getting shorter it’s a great idea to have some football safety reflectors on jackets and backpacks for better visibility in dark parking lots and s

Boy with football safety reflector on fleece jacket
Football safety reflector for when their mind is on the ball and not on traffic.

Who will you be cheering for this weekend and how? Have you stocked up on chips and soda or do you prefer less traditional but healthier snacks? Do you like to get outside and throw a football around or do you let it become a couch potato day?

Here are some ideas for tasty snacks whether you are hosting a football get-together in front of your television or hanging out with friends and teammates at a tailgate picnic.

Have a great weekend!

Elisabeth

psst. Don’t tell my European friends, but I find football much more entertaining to watch than soccer…

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A beloved name is used for many children.

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The Swedish saying “Kärt barn har många namn” (“A beloved child has many names”) could be turned around to “A beloved name is used for many children.” That is certainly the case for the name, or rather symbol, “Tre Kronor,” which means “Three Crowns.”  What other name could you find that is used for so many vastly different phenomena as an ice hockey team, a tall ship, a soap opera, a restaurant, a former royal castle and much more? The only common denominator is that it has something to do with being Swedish or of Swedish origin. Of course, we also have Three Crowns safety reflectors in our Globetrotter Collection!

Al Johnson's Restaurant sign, a Sweden shirt and three crowns safety reflectors.
Al Johnson in Sister Bay, WI, announces their Swedish heritage with a “Tre Kronor” coat of arms. Photo by Gunilla Perry. “Sverige” means “Sweden” (in case someone would not guess that from the design) . Three crowns safety reflector has a Swedish flag on the backside.

History of “Three Crowns”

“Tre Kronor” is one of the oldest national symbols that is still in use. It was first used in the seal of the Swedish king in 11th century and became a more common symbol for the kingdom of Sweden over the next hundred years. At that time, the three wise men were popular as patron saints. Pilgrimages were frequent to the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, where the Shrine of the Three Kings was kept and said to contain their bones. The greater and lesser coats of arms are still used by the royal family as well as government officials.

“Three Crowns” Design Still Popular

Spending some time in Sweden this summer, we noticed quite a few people wearing T-shirts with various three crowns designs. We picked up the   pajamas shirt (photo above) at a Kappahl store.

If you are more curious or hungry, follow some of the links above. If not, just enjoy the cheerful design on some fashion forward clothes and accessories! We have found a few shirts with some interesting crossover between Swedish and American style available here in the US: a baseball shirt with “Tre Kronor” and a T-shirt with three monkeys wearing crowns 😉 .

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Keep the Peace Dream Alive!

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Beth is our inspiration for the heart and peace sign safety reflector. Beth is a mom in my neighborhood and was one of the first ones I had the good fortune to get to know soon after we moved in. After a couple of years of chatting on school mornings after the kids took off with the bus, we know each other pretty well. She is friendly, helpful and always in a good mood. With those qualities, it is not too surprising that she knows and is liked by almost everyone in town. I’ve often thought that if everyone was as friendly and helpful as Beth, the world would certainly be a more peaceful place to live in. Beth, who always signs off her emails with “Love & Peace”, has inspired our newest funflector™ shape with the same name.

Peace sign safety reflector
“Love & Peace” peace sign and heart safety reflector
The Peace Sign and Promoting Peace

The peace sign was created in 1958 by Gerald Holtom for the British Nuclear Disarmament movement. The “peace dove footprint” was inspired by the semaphore letters N and D for Nuclear Disarmament. It was brought to the US where it became a symbol for the anti-war movement in the 60’s. Eventually it became so popular that it was used for pure decoration as well.

As it was in the sixties, the peace sign is today also a fashion statement and found on everything from backpacks, notebooks and clothes to diamond rings and garden decoration. Googling “peace symbol fashion” gives over 24 million images to view…

The least one can hope is that the peace signs seen every day on clothes and accessories will remind people to be a little bit more like Beth. If you are friendly and patient with people around you and inspire them to do the same, the world can only get better—right?  The next step is to buy fair trade food and other items. People who get paid for their work have money to buy food for themselves and their families don’t need to become violent to get it. If you want to get engaged even more, there are many organizations working for peace in different ways that would love to take you on board. Whatever you do, don’t loose sight of the peace dream!

“Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us, and the world will be as one.” – John Lennon

The “Love & Peace” funflector™

The “Love & Peace” reflector will be available in pink and turquoise and be here just in time for you to wear on the International Day of Peace, September 21. That is also the time of year when the days gets a lot shorter every day and you suddenly find yourself out and about in the dark. With a reflector or two hanging on jackets and backpacks, you’ll be safer when that happens.

Beth and her 7th grade daughter have been waiting patiently since they saw the first sketches by our designer back in May and they will certainly be the first ones to get our newest reflector!

Elisabeth

P.S. Check out  some of these web sites if you want to learn more about the peace sign and work done for peace or just want to enjoy some creative expressions of the peace sign:

http://peacemuseum.org.uk
nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/
www.teachpeace.com/www.designboom.com/contemporary/peace.htmlwww.peacesymbol.com
onemillionpeacesigns.blogspot.com
imaginepeacetower.com

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