Handkerchief

From Free net encyclopedia

A handkerchief or hanky is a square of fabric, usually carried in the pocket, for personal hygiene purposes such as wiping one's hands or blowing one's nose. Richard II of England is said to have invented the handkerchief, although people had been using pieces of cloth to wipe things long before him.

Use of handkerchief instead of facial tissue paper is often seen as old-fashioned and, especially in North America, unhygienic. On the other hand, some see it as a more environment-conscious choice.

A constant debate rages as to whether a handkerchief is softer than a tissue on the nose. Depending on which tissue (those with lotion being the softest, but able to stimulate some allergies depending on the lotion) and which handkerchief (much-washed cotton ones being the softest) are used, results can go either way.

The story goes that the Kleenex company hadn't initially imagined that people would want a disposable handkerchief, so they initially marketed their product exclusively as a make-up removal tool. It was only later after they discovered that people were blowing their noses into the tissue that they began marketing it for this purpose.

Handkerchiefs of different colours can identify gang affiliation. For instance, the Crips use blue handkerchiefs, and their rivals, the Bloods, use red.

Historically, white handkerchiefs have been used in place of a white flag to indicate surrender or a flag of truce.

[edit]

Folding styles

When used as an accessory to a suit, a handkerchief is known as a pocket square. There is a wide variety of ways to fold a pocket square, ranging from the austere to the flamboyant:

The Presidential, perhaps the simplest, is folded at right angles to fit in the pocket.
The TV Fold looks similar but is folded diagonally with the point inside the pocket.
The One-point Fold is folded diagonally with the point showing.
The Two-point Fold is folded off-center so the two points don't completely overlap.
The Three-point Fold is first folded into a triangle, then the corners are folded up and across to make three points.
The Four-point Fold is an off-center version of the Three-point Fold.
The Cagney is basically a backwards version of the Four-point Fold.
The Puff or the Cooper is simply shaped into a round puff.
The Reverse Puff is like the Puff, except with the puff inside and the points out, like petals.
The Astaire is a puff with a point on either side.
The Straight Shell is pleated and then folded over to give the appearance of nested shells.
The Diagonal Shell is pleated diagonally and then folded.