Platinum 1934, Inc.

Most of you don’t know this but we have a corporate name under which our brand names Princess Linens and Doodlebugz Crayola operate.  Our corporate name is Platinum 1934, Inc.  It doesn’t mean much to our customers but has more to do with how our company is structured.  I was asked the other day about the origin of the corporate name and as I was telling the story felt very nostalgic.

The name Platinum 1934, Inc. is a tribute to my late grandmother, G-mama.  I know it is a strange name, one I have never heard anyone else use in referencing their grandmother, but that is what we called her.  G-mama was an amazing woman and I loved her very much.   When I was 7 years old she taught me to work with my hands.  She first taught me to crochet and I was immediately hooked on the wonderful world of needle arts.  She would show me my errors and how to correct them. Later she taught me how to knit and again how to undo and redo stitches without having to take out rows and rows of hard work.  She had the patience of a saint.  When we weren’t weaving needles in and out of fiber, we would draw and color together.    

When G-mama turned 90 (she lived to be 99) she gave me her platinum engagement ring that she had worn since 1934.  It is a beautiful, delicate ring with a modest diamond and two small sapphires on either side.  Years later, I was trying to decide on a name for my company.  I wanted to honor the woman who meant so much to me and without whom I would surely not have developed a love for all things creative.  Platinum 1934, Inc was born. 

I still think of G-mama often, especially when I am designing new products.  When I developed the Doodlebugz collection, she was my inspiration.  In the age of video games and often limitless TV, I wanted to make products that would inspire kids to be creative whether at home or on-the-go.   I envisioned children chalking on a placemat while mom was in the kitchen making dinner instead of parked in front of a television. 

I still love knitting in my spare time (of which I have very little these days with a 2 year old and a 6 month old).  But each time I sit down to knit or when I begin designing a new product, I think of G-mama. I am so grateful for the countless hours she spent with me, showing me all the wonderful things these hands can do.  I hope to one day do the same for my kids and maybe even my grandkids many years from now.

 

From our family to yours –

Kathryn