Zoë, José, Anne-Marie: accents on a name necklace
Yes, a name necklace can have accents. Type the name the way it's spelled, with é, ñ or ü, a hyphen, an apostrophe or a space, up to 14 characters. The accent is cast in the same solid metal as the letters and joined to them, so it can't fall off: a dot or accent that doesn't touch its letter gets a small 1.0 mm bridge to the nearest stroke.
names with accents, cast
Classic script in 14k rose gold, all drawn at the same scale.
- Zoë 23 × 13 mm
- José 30 × 16 mm
- Chloé 31 × 12 mm
- Renée 34 × 11 mm
- Inés 30 × 14 mm
- Sofía 32 × 16 mm
- Begoña 42 × 15 mm
- Noémie 40 × 13 mm
- Anne-Marie 44 × 8 mm
- Mary Jo 44 × 12 mm
- D'Angelo 44 × 12 mm
In classic script an accent adds no width or height to any of these names, and well under 0.1 g of gold.
how a dot stays on
On paper, the dot on an i, an accent or the second word of a name floats free. In metal, every loose piece would drop off, so the pendant has to be one piece. Two things make sure it is:
- Close gaps fill in. Where a dot or accent sits less than 0.3 mm from its letter, the gap is closed on purpose. Metal would run into a gap that narrow anyway.
- Loose pieces get a bridge. Anything still separate is joined to the nearest stroke with a bar 1.0 mm wide, the shortest way across. Specks under 0.2 mm² that couldn't cast are left out.
Which one happens depends on the lettering. In classic script the accent on José sits close to the e and fuses on, with no bridge at all. Rounded has bold, separate dots and accents, so José gets 2 bridges. Circled in red:
The outline that becomes the 3D file, drawn at the same scale. The bridges are part of the cast piece and look like one more stroke.
bridges in every lettering
How many bridges each name gets. 0 means every dot and accent already touches its letter.
| name | classic script | formal script | signature | retro | rounded | handwritten |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoë | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| José | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Chloé | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Renée | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Inés | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Sofía | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Begoña | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Noémie | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Anne-Marie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Mary Jo | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| D'Angelo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Across all 414 names on this site, with or without accents: 18% need a bridge in classic script, 12% in signature, 60% in rounded and 71% in handwritten. Of the 188 names with an i or j, 99% get a bridge in handwritten, against 16% in classic script.
| lettering | names with a bridge | names with i or j |
|---|---|---|
| classic script | 18% | 16% |
| formal script | 36% | 52% |
| signature | 12% | 12% |
| retro | 43% | 70% |
| rounded | 60% | 84% |
| handwritten | 71% | 99% |
Measured on each name's 3D file. Bridges also join letters that don't connect, like a capital standing apart from the rest of the name. If you'd rather have none, classic script and signature have the fewest. the six letterings side by side
spaces, hyphens and apostrophes
- A space leaves two words that don't touch, so the pendant gets a bridge across the gap and stays one piece: Mary Jo has 1 in classic script. Two words make it long, so it's drawn at 75% of full size to stay within 44 mm: 44 mm wide.
- A hyphen is cast like a short stroke between the two names. Anne-Marie has 10 characters and comes out 44 mm wide, so it's drawn at 65% of full size to stay within the 44 mm maximum.
- An apostrophe or a dot (D'Angelo, J.J.) is joined on like an accent.
- Everything counts toward the 14 characters, spaces and hyphens too. how long names are sized
which accents work
All six letterings have these, and their capitals: á à â ä ã å æ ç é è ê ë í ì î ï ñ ó ò ô ö õ ø œ ß ú ù û ü ý. That covers French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Italian, Dutch and the Scandinavian languages.
Letters like ř, š, ł, ş, ă or ą (Czech, Polish, Turkish, Romanian and others) aren't in these fonts, so they can't be drawn yet. If you type one, the name field says so and suggests the plain letter (ř becomes r, ł becomes l). Everything else is drawn as you type it, and what you see is exactly what gets cast.
type it the way it's spelled
The 3D file is free. You order it from Shapeways* yourself, and they cast and ship it.