Monograms Put Wardrobes in Stitches

Lori Springer likes to see her name in print, or rather, in stitches.

The Huntington Beach resident puts in a steady flow of orders to South Coast Monograms in Santa Ana to embroider her or her family’s name on towels, turtlenecks, sweat shirts, sweaters and tennis outfits.

Her relatives in Georgia and Wisconsin routinely receive gifts from the Springers neatly monogrammed with their names or initials. Springer has monogrammed her sister-in-law’s tennis outfits, sweat suits for nieces and nephews, polo shirts for her husband, bibs for her 9-month-old twins and terry robes for practically everybody.

“Our whole family loves monogramming,” Springer says. “It personalizes the gift and dresses up the outfit. It does a lot for a bib or sweat shirt.”

The Springers are not alone in their mania for monogramming.

While monogramming might be more common on the East Coast, where tastes lean more toward the traditional, in Orange County local monogrammers say there’s a steadily growing demand for having one’s initials emblazoned all over one’s wardrobe.

“I’ve done everything from horse blankets to underwear,” says Kandi Doyle, owner of A Custom Stitch in Fountain Valley. “People feel monogramming makes the item look more expensive and more elegant.”

The appearance of manufacturer’s crests on ready-to-wear T-shirts and blouses has helped spark renewed interest in monogramming.

“Why have someone else’s initials on something when you can have your own?” asks Darlene Perreault, owner of Darlene the Monogrammer shop in San Juan Capistrano.

“Some of my clients say they won’t wear a shirt before I monogram it. It’s a nice, clean look.”

Monogramming is to clothes what personalized license plates are to cars: Another way to stand out from the crowd.

Many businessmen have taken to adding a personal touch to their corporate uniforms by discreetly monogramming their dress shirts with small initials on the cuffs.

“It’s a classy touch,” says Marta Colmenares, who owns South Coast Monograms with her husband, Robert. Nordstrom, one of the shop’s biggest clients, sends shirts over in bundles to be personally monogrammed for its customers.

“Some men even ask for white thread on a white shirt. You really can’t see it, but they like it,” Marta Colmenares says.

A few customers have brought in a dozen shirts at a time for monogramming. One man wanted his initials stitched all over his shirt, on the collar, cuffs and the pocket.

“He asked me if there was any other place on the shirt I could think for him to put it,” Robert Colmenares says. “He wanted it everywhere.”

Monograms aren’t just for business. A woman spent $70 monogramming her entire devil costume for Halloween, right down to her red underwear.

In addition to several walk-in monogramming shops, Orange County has at least a half-dozen monogrammers who work out of their homes.

Most charge about $6 for a simple monogram, or higher for a more complex design. Fabric paint and press-on letters might be cheaper, but Perreault says her customers prefer embroidery because “it’s a richer look.”

Monogrammers find that they can start their own business for relatively little money. Their greatest expense is the computerized monogramming machine, which looks like an oversize copy machine with a sewing machine on top, and can cost $15,000 to $20,000 used, and $40,000 or more new.

“You can’t go into this as a hobby,” says Perreault, who opened her monogramming shop four years ago.

While they do need to know how to thread a needle, monogrammers need not be experts with a sewing machine.

Kandi Doyle started A Custom Stitch out of her Fountain Valley home five years ago.

“We had two children, and I was looking for something I could do in my home to bring in some extra income. Then I saw one of these monogramming computers and decided, ‘I can punch buttons with the best of them.’ I don’t sew, but I can operate a computer.”

Monogrammers insert microcassette tapes into their machines that can produce a variety of stitches and designs, including bunnies, palm trees, sailboats, dolphins, hearts, flowers, or simple logos and artwork brought in by customers.

The monogrammers determine the size of the design and placement of the letters by punching buttons on a keyboard. Then they stretch the fabric to be monogrammed tightly over a hoop and line it up under the needle. The machine does the rest, the needle flying back and forth in smooth satin stitches until the design is finished.

While most of the work is computerized, a monogrammer needs to have an eye for color and space.

“You have to be part computer technician and part seamstress, with an artistic flair,” Perreault says. “It helps if you have a picture in your head of what it might look like.”

She monograms VIP bathrobes for the Ritz-Carlton in Dana Point, jackets and polo shirts for Joan Irvine Smith’s ranch, the Oaks, and satin jackets for its horseback riders.

A horse lover who favors western apparel, Perreault also uses her machine to applique horses and fringe on sweat shirts.

“I have these creative juices I have to release,” she says.

Monogramming has practical uses, too. Parents have their children’s school clothes and sportswear monogrammed so they don’t lose their clothes.

Many adults want their finer garments monogrammed to discourage theft and avoid mix-ups in the coat room.

“We put a lot of names inside the lining of fur coats,” Colmenares says. “Nobody wants to get furs mixed up.”