Lately I've been talking to a few people about book plates for book collectors who occasionally loan out their books. After the owner has died, these also become a part of the material culture and are used as provenance for future book collectors, librarians, and researchers.
These discussions have overlapped in some recent typosphere events including Sarah Everett asking for photos of repair shop labels, Lucas Dul having printed some repair shop stickers for Typewriter Chicago, and Richard Polt announcing that he's slimming down his typewriter collection. I'm also reminded of property tags that have popped up on some of my typewriters which came out of governmental entities, banks, and other businesses as well as the custom legends, often seen in the shift keys, of glass typewriter keys to advertise dealers and repair shops.
It all prompts the question: Has anyone ever made their own permanent labels, stickers, or permanent property tags for their own typewriter collection? They could be both cool and decorative like bookplates, identify ownership, show provenance for future collectors. They could be simple like some of the old bank property numbers, or more ornate like the refurbishment water slide decals some rebuilders used in the mid-century [1]. They could also be as basic as some of the stickers typewriter repair and sales shops used to advertise their presence. In some sense, I'm also reminded of the inscriptions and seals seen on Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints.
One could include their name, acquisition date, model name (if it's not obvious on the machine, I'm looking at you Olympia), decorative image, "ex collectione" (a la ex libris), and a personal serial number or collection number. What else might one include? Naturally one would like to have them be durable enough that they could withstand future cleanings, dips, or encounters with solvents and degreasers.
Obviously one would want these to be lovely and tasteful so as not to overwhelm a machine, potentially leave space for others in the future, and be somewhat more permanent than other tags one might have on their machines for identification. They could also be done and hidden inside body panels like some shops did for labels they used for dating clean, oil, and adjustments. Obviously one would like something better than messily hand-carving their name and social security number into the body of a machine like I've seen done with a variety of machines, or which Tom Hanks has done with sharpie on the hoods of typewriters he's donated away from his collection.
One could fashion a simple metal plate to affix to their machines in the same way that Olympia added their own manufacturer's plates? These machines also often have some blank space on them where collectors could add their own plates, stickers, or logos. Where would you have such a plate made?
Many collectors put a lot of work and time into maintaining or restoring typewriters in their collection. Why not show off some of this work and help to memorialize it for future generations? I recently came across a Marshall Plan sticker on a Royal KMG in the Typewriter Database that certainly helps to show it's history, why not add others? A variety of tags, stickers, labels, and miscellanea have added to the patina and history of these machines, why not add your "stamp" as well?
How would you design a custom typewriter plate to represent yourself and your collection? What would you make it out of to give it some longevity? Would you put it on the outside to show it off or hide it inside?
How else might you create some more permanent provenance for the machines you care for to pass along to future generations?
{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2026-03-21T13:11:05-07:00",
"summary": "Lately I’ve been talking to a few people about book plates for book collectors who occasionally loan out their books. After the owner has died, these also become a part of the material culture and are used as provenance for future book collectors, librarians, and researchers. These discussions have overlapped in some recent typosphere events … <a href=\"https://boffosocko.com/2026/03/21/typewriter-plates-for-collectors/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Typewriter Plates for Collectors?</span></a>",
"url": "https://boffosocko.com/2026/03/21/typewriter-plates-for-collectors/",
"category": [
"Typewriters",
"bookplates",
"labels",
"provenance",
"typewriter collecting",
"typewriter history",
"typewriter patina",
"typewriter provenance"
],
"content": {
"text": "Lately I've been talking to a few people about book plates for book collectors who occasionally loan out their books. After the owner has died, these also become a part of the material culture and are used as provenance for future book collectors, librarians, and researchers.\n\nThese discussions have overlapped in some recent typosphere events including Sarah Everett asking for photos of repair shop labels, Lucas Dul having printed some repair shop stickers for Typewriter Chicago, and Richard Polt announcing that he's slimming down his typewriter collection. I'm also reminded of property tags that have popped up on some of my typewriters which came out of governmental entities, banks, and other businesses as well as the custom legends, often seen in the shift keys, of glass typewriter keys to advertise dealers and repair shops.\n\n\n\n\n\u00a0\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\nView this post on Instagram\n\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\nA post shared by Typewriter Chicago (@typewriter_chicago_)\n\n\n\n\n\nIt all prompts the question: Has anyone ever made their own permanent labels, stickers, or permanent property tags for their own typewriter collection?\u00a0 They could be both cool and decorative like bookplates, identify ownership, show provenance for future collectors. They could be simple like some of the old bank property numbers, or more ornate like the refurbishment water slide decals some rebuilders used in the mid-century [1]. They could also be as basic as some of the stickers typewriter repair and sales shops used to advertise their presence. In some sense, I'm also reminded of the inscriptions and seals seen on Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints.\n\n\n\nOne could include their name, acquisition date, model name (if it's not obvious on the machine, I'm looking at you Olympia), decorative image, \"ex collectione\" (a la ex libris), and a personal serial number or collection number. What else might one include? Naturally one would like to have them be durable enough that they could withstand future cleanings, dips, or encounters with solvents and degreasers.\n\nObviously one would want these to be lovely and tasteful so as not to overwhelm a machine, potentially leave space for others in the future, and be somewhat more permanent than other tags one might have on their machines for identification. They could also be done and hidden inside body panels like some shops did for labels they used for dating clean, oil, and adjustments. Obviously one would like something better than messily hand-carving their name and social security number into the body of a machine like I've seen done with a variety of machines, or which Tom Hanks has done with sharpie on the hoods of typewriters he's donated away from his collection.\n\nOne could fashion a simple metal plate to affix to their machines in the same way that Olympia added their own manufacturer's plates? These machines also often have some blank space on them where collectors could add their own plates, stickers, or logos. Where would you have such a plate made?\n\n\n\nMany collectors put a lot of work and time into maintaining or restoring typewriters in their collection. Why not show off some of this work and help to memorialize it for future generations? I recently came across a Marshall Plan sticker on a Royal KMG in the Typewriter Database that certainly helps to show it's history, why not add others?\u00a0 A variety of tags, stickers, labels, and miscellanea have added to the patina and history of these machines, why not add your \"stamp\" as well?\u00a0\n\nHow would you design a custom typewriter plate to represent yourself and your collection? What would you make it out of to give it some longevity? Would you put it on the outside to show it off or hide it inside?\n\nHow else might you create some more permanent provenance for the machines you care for to pass along to future generations?",
"html": "Lately I've been talking to a few people about book plates for book collectors who occasionally loan out their books. After the owner has died, these also become a part of the material culture and are used as provenance for future book collectors, librarians, and researchers.\n\nThese discussions have overlapped in some recent typosphere events including Sarah Everett <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/groups/721704878218903/posts/3019304195125615/\">asking for photos of repair shop labels</a>, Lucas Dul having printed some <a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DVcQ_BvjW2O/\">repair shop stickers for Typewriter Chicago</a>, and Richard Polt announcing that he's <a href=\"https://writingball.blogspot.com/2026/03/typewriter-sale-from-my-collection-and.html\">slimming down his typewriter collection</a>. I'm also reminded of property tags that have popped up on some of my typewriters which came out of governmental entities, banks, and other businesses as well as the custom legends, often seen in the shift keys, of glass typewriter keys to advertise dealers and repair shops.\n\n<blockquote style=\"background:#FFF;border:0;margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;\">\n\n\n\u00a0\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\nView this post on Instagram\n\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n\n\n\u00a0\n\u00a0\n\n<p style=\"color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;white-space:nowrap;\"><a style=\"color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none;\" href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DVcQ_BvjW2O/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading\">A post shared by Typewriter Chicago (@typewriter_chicago_)</a></p>\n\n</blockquote>\n\n\n\nIt all prompts the question: <strong>Has anyone ever made their own permanent labels, stickers, or permanent property tags for their own typewriter collection?</strong>\u00a0 They could be both cool and decorative like bookplates, identify ownership, show provenance for future collectors. They could be simple like some of the old bank property numbers, or more ornate like the refurbishment water slide decals some rebuilders used in the mid-century [<a href=\"https://typewriterdatabase.com/img/g_royal_18021_1650308891.jpg\">1</a>]. They could also be as basic as some of the stickers typewriter repair and sales shops used to advertise their presence. In some sense, I'm also reminded of the inscriptions and seals seen on Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints.\n\n<img src=\"https://boffosocko.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/wp-1750273687413752441375416703622-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"View of a silver property tag found underneath the hood of a 1961 Royal FP typewriter indicating it's property of the Bank of Commerce in Idaho Falls.\" width=\"660\" height=\"495\" />\n\nOne could include their name, acquisition date, model name (if it's not obvious on the machine, I'm looking at you Olympia), decorative image, \"ex collectione\" (a la <em>ex libris</em>), and a personal serial number or collection number. What else might one include? Naturally one would like to have them be durable enough that they could withstand future cleanings, dips, or encounters with solvents and degreasers.\n\nObviously one would want these to be lovely and tasteful so as not to overwhelm a machine, potentially leave space for others in the future, and be somewhat more permanent than <a href=\"https://boffosocko.com/2024/07/18/tagging-typewriters-and-cases-for-easier-identification-and-storage/\">other tags one might have on their machines for identification</a>. They could also be done and hidden inside body panels like some shops did for labels they used for dating clean, oil, and adjustments. Obviously one would like something better than messily hand-carving their name and social security number into the body of a machine like I've seen done with a variety of machines, or which Tom Hanks has done with sharpie on the hoods of typewriters he's donated away from his collection.\n\nOne could fashion a simple metal plate to affix to their machines in the same way that Olympia added their own manufacturer's plates? These machines also often have some blank space on them where collectors could add their own plates, stickers, or logos. Where would you have such a plate made?\n\n<img src=\"https://boffosocko.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/wp-17741231402404239835664877898624-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Rear of a green crinkle painted Olympia SG1. The bottom of the machine has a panel with a metal Olympia manufacturer's plate showing the company name, place of manufacture, and location of the dealer ship in New York. On either side is a wide rectangle where other identifiers could be similarly placed.\" width=\"660\" height=\"495\" />\n\nMany collectors put a lot of work and time into maintaining or restoring typewriters in their collection. Why not show off some of this work and help to memorialize it for future generations? I recently came across a <a href=\"https://typewriterdatabase.com/1949-royal-kmg.16171.typewriter\">Marshall Plan sticker on a Royal KMG in the Typewriter Database</a> that certainly helps to show it's history, why not add others?\u00a0 A variety of tags, stickers, labels, and miscellanea have added to the patina and history of these machines, why not add your \"stamp\" as well?\u00a0\n\nHow would you design a custom typewriter plate to represent yourself and your collection? What would you make it out of to give it some longevity? Would you put it on the outside to show it off or hide it inside?\n\nHow else might you create some more permanent provenance for the machines you care for to pass along to future generations?"
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"_id": "47708968",
"_source": "2785"
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{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2026-03-21T19:06:55.249937+00:00",
"url": "https://cleverdevil.io/2026/moved-my-mastodon-server-to-a-new-home-a",
"syndication": [
"https://cleverdevil.club/@jonathan/116268729323787836",
"https://bsky.app/profile/cleverdevil.io/post/3mhlq2pfswr2b"
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"text": "Moved my Mastodon server to a new home and it\u2019s much snappier now. \ud83d\ude4c\ud83c\udffb",
"html": "<p>Moved my Mastodon server to a new home and it\u2019s much snappier now. \ud83d\ude4c\ud83c\udffb</p>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "Jonathan LaCour",
"url": "https://cleverdevil.io",
"photo": "https://cleverdevil.io/profile/photo"
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"_id": "47708886",
"_source": "10"
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{
"type": "entry",
"published": "2026-03-20T17:00:00-07:00",
"url": "https://nadreck.me/2026/03/on-technical-writing/",
"category": [
"writing",
"technical-writing"
],
"name": "On Technical Writing",
"content": {
"text": "I don\u2019t talk about my day job all that often. What I\u2019m doing currently is software development \u2013 specifically, I write tools and create infrastructure for a documentation team. This ranges from writing deployment pipelines and build scripts to writing extensions for the writing software we use, to building out sites and wrangling server configurations. I enjoy it, and I like that the role is broad, where what exactly I\u2019m working on can vary a lot from day to day, depending on what needs to take priority. Prior to my current role, however, I was a technical writer \u2013 one of the folks writing the docs, and I wanted to talk about that a bit, as I think it\u2019s a great role that I think a lot of folks might overlook.\n\n\n\n Continue reading \u201cOn Technical Writing\u201d",
"html": "<p>I don\u2019t talk about my day job all that often. What I\u2019m doing currently is software development \u2013 specifically, I write tools and create infrastructure for a documentation team. This ranges from writing deployment pipelines and build scripts to writing extensions for the writing software we use, to building out sites and wrangling server configurations. I enjoy it, and I like that the role is broad, where what exactly I\u2019m working on can vary a lot from day to day, depending on what needs to take priority. Prior to my current role, however, I was a technical writer \u2013 one of the folks writing the docs, and I wanted to talk about that a bit, as I think it\u2019s a great role that I think a lot of folks might overlook.</p>\n\n\n\n <a href=\"https://nadreck.me/2026/03/on-technical-writing/#more-12186\">Continue reading<span> \u201cOn Technical Writing\u201d</span></a>"
},
"author": {
"type": "card",
"name": "Nadreck",
"url": "http://nadreck.me",
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One could include their name, acquisition date, model name (if it's not obvious on the machine, I'm looking at you Olympia), decorative image, "ex collectione" (a la ex libris), and a personal serial number or collection number. What else might one include? Naturally one would like to have them be durable enough that they could withstand future cleanings, dips, or encounters with solvents and degreasers.
Obviously one would want these to be lovely and tasteful so as not to overwhelm a machine, potentially leave space for others in the future, and be somewhat more permanent than other tags one might have on their machines for identification. They could also be done and hidden inside body panels like some shops did for labels they used for dating clean, oil, and adjustments. Obviously one would like something better than messily hand-carving their name and social security number into the body of a machine like I've seen done with a variety of machines, or which Tom Hanks has done with sharpie on the hoods of typewriters he's donated away from his collection.
One could fashion a simple metal plate to affix to their machines in the same way that Olympia added their own manufacturer's plates? These machines also often have some blank space on them where collectors could add their own plates, stickers, or logos. Where would you have such a plate made?
Many collectors put a lot of work and time into maintaining or restoring typewriters in their collection. Why not show off some of this work and help to memorialize it for future generations? I recently came across a Marshall Plan sticker on a Royal KMG in the Typewriter Database that certainly helps to show it's history, why not add others? A variety of tags, stickers, labels, and miscellanea have added to the patina and history of these machines, why not add your "stamp" as well?
How would you design a custom typewriter plate to represent yourself and your collection? What would you make it out of to give it some longevity? Would you put it on the outside to show it off or hide it inside?
How else might you create some more permanent provenance for the machines you care for to pass along to future generations?
