One-hundred feet apart in the last century, Burma-Shave signs advertised shaving cream. Others followed suit, promoting tourist stops ahead or shilling their products in like spaced-apart messaging. Burma-Shave placed multiple signs in sequence to create a message, generate smiles, and create memories – 70-plus years later!
Books have been written about the signs-in-sequence phenomena. Appearing in 44 states in America, the Burma-Shave signs showed up in 1925 and were actively posted through 1963. Four, five, or six messaged signs would appear in a row along major highways, with the last sign saying Burma-Shave. Born (by a chemist) in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1925, the first sequential product signs went up on highways around Minneapolis. Sales increased. Burma-Shave signs spread. One site has a list of the slogans from 1927 coming forward – what fun! Enjoy some of the Burma-Shave messages.
- 1963: Don’t lose/Your head/To gain a minute/You need your head/Your brains are in it/Burma-Shave
- 1950: To kiss/a mug/that’s like a cactus/takes more nerve/than it does practice/Burma-Shave
- 1948: A big/Improvement/Since the war/IS now on sale/In your drug store/Burma-Shave/No price increase
- 1934: He had the ring/He had the flat/But she felt his chin/And that/Was that/Burma-Shave (This one made me chuckle out loud – LOL)
- 1933: Mug and brush/Old Adam/Had’em/Is your husband/Like Adam, Madam?/Burma-Shave
Other people and companies have used the technique for campaigns of all types and for product promotions.
NestingCards too provides a way to create messages in a sequence to hold people’s attention and create delight. Each series of artistic images on fine paper with your hand-written messages tucked inside for recipients creates smiles, delight, and memory-keeping. What fun you’ll have creating a sequential message or story, tucked one card inside of another! Your messages in sequence might read:
- For Fun or a Birthday: Remember when…/I’ll never forget the time we…/You made us all laugh when…/The trip we took to ___________ was __________/I celebrate you and… /The day you were born, the world became a better place because…/ Love You!
- Friendship or Anniversary: Meeting you when we…/ Remember the time we…/I appreciate you today because…/You model______________ for all to see!/ Over the years (or decades), we’ve…/ Thanks for the laughter, thanks for the tears, I’ll shout to the rafters, for many years! (then tell a funny story you’ve lived together) /Here’s to all that lies ahead of us, may we enjoy more time together! (You might include a dinner gift card in the last card.)
- Life Celebration: I’ll always remember…/You (he/she) made me feel…/The trip we made to …/ Phone calls, video-calls, emails and texts kept us in touch. We…/ Celebrating life includes the good times and the hard times. I remember when you(he/she) helped me… / My earliest memory of being with you (him/her/them) is… / Affirming all the good brought into the world! With love and support,
NestingCards – a joyful inspiration for a recipient’s cascading card delight and memory-revisiting! Sharing life memories in memorable, keepsake ways.
NestingCards videos here: Welcome to NestingCards – YouTube
Nesting shares ideas for using NestingCards® and tips for creating keepsake memories on these cards which are printed with original images and paintings on fine papers. The written word shares joy, creates memories, and can envelope a sense of home! Enjoy browsing and shopping www.NestingCards.com for fun, for gifts, and for joy-spreading possibilities.
NestingCards® is a registered Trademark, United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Jana Kemp
